Advice Please! Electric Quilt (EQ7)
 

I'm thinking of buying Electric Quilt 7. Do you have this program? How helpful is it? Can you recomend it or another program. How advance computer user do you have to be? What are pros and Cons? Help!!!!!!!!!

Well I have to say I started with EQ4 and upgraded each time it was offered...You really don't need to be an advanced computer user at all...I just did the lessons that were provided with the manual...I'm told that I spend alot of time designing and playing with my EQ7...I love it and can't imagine anyone not enjoying having this program. There is plenty of help right here on this board...So for me I would say yes for sure purchase this program, don't think you would be disappointed...with any new program there is a learning curve, but there is a wealth of help here and other online groups.....

what btiny said. also, if you go to Tutorials, Rhonda has done weekly tutorials and then posted .pdf's of all of them. i found them very helpful. they will give you an idea of what can be accomplished with the program.

I use EQ on almost everything I make (on lots more that never gets made). The only con I know of is that you do have to practice using it to be proficient, and if you're not computer savvy then you will need to practice more.

I use EQ7 also. I didn't use the tutorials, I'm more of a search-the-index-for-what-I-want kind of girl. I was able to figure out how to use EQ by just clicking on things to see what they did. If I couldn't figure it out, I'd look it up in the manual or click on the Videos or Help buttons.

I can't compare and contrast the other design programs that are out there, I've only used EQ.

I make a lot more EQ quilts than real ones. But, any quilt I make for real is first made in EQ. It's so much fun to play with, not even counting the accuracy of yardage requirements, the math that it does for me, the templates, rotary cutting charts and even foundation papers it will print for each block.

If you like playing with computer graphics programs, you will probably love this. If you want to be able to draw your quilts with the actual fabrics you want to use or play with quilting plans for a completed top, you will probably love this.

Nobody can guarantee that you'll like it as much as they do - me, either. But, I'm addicted to it. :D

i've had EQ since it was EQ3 and I love it...I use it a minimum of once a week... love the fabric yardage function and I always put the current quilt into the program just to play with border size, number and color... if i never did anything else, it would be worth it for these two functions... and Rhonda's tutorials on EQ are wonderful... i have learned a lot even tho i have owned it for years...

I've had it since EQ4 and use it as I would any other tool. Mostly I draw up my ideas and it lets me play with color choices, rotation and placement. I don't bother uploading fabrics but rather pick something from the existing palette that approximates what I want to use. It does have a learning curve which will be easier if you have worked with CAD programs before, but even with that I'd recommend investing in the basic written manual. It is much easier than trying to wend your way through the online help.

I love my EQ software, have been using it since EQ4, love the upgrades!!! I don't subscribe to quilt magazines anymore, just pick up a magazine once in a great while for inspiration. I just love that I can design a block any size desired. I found the supplemental books very helpfull, they are written as tutorials. Their tech support is great, a real person if you need it. The only cost is a phone call!!!
I designed a quilt for my brother in law that I couldn't have done otherwise. Even designed the block and then played with the layout. I have ADD, seriously, and don't have the patience for graph paper and crayons, really....no kidding. Another issue, there is a big difference between ADD and ADHD!!!

I have it but don't use it nearly as much as I thought I would.

I upgraded from EQ6 to EQ7 and love it! I use it for everything from designing the quilt to making the labels. I didn't find it too difficult to learn, mostly just played with it until it started making sense and looking up what I couldn't figure out. Video tutorials are included in the program, which are helpful. I love that I can audition fabrics on my quilts and can make the exact size quilt I want without having to do all the calculations manually. There are a lot of fabrics in the program and you can get more to download from their monthly newsletter or from the internet.

Moda makes images of all their fabric lines available for downloading and using in EQ, which is awesome.

There is no EQ for the Mac, so if you have a Mac, you'll need to run a virtual Windows program on your Mac to use EQ.

Ok! Thanks for the help. I have it on order!

Andover also makes jpg files of their fabric lines and Connecting Threads makes .fab files of their fabrics specifically for EQ. :)

There were a couple of others, but I can't remember which ones, now. Short term memory is fizzing on me, but I hope someone else might know.

I use mine all the time. I love that you can scan in your own fabrics and see your quilts completed in your own fabric choices.

There was someone on here yesterday wanting to sell theirs; maybe do a search on it.

I have been using EQ software for a long time and highly recommend it...for me it is the best quilt software out there. It does require some time spent studying, so go through the lessons in the user manual! EQ7 has a lot of built-in support to help you, along with an informative website and user community.

I know quiet a few quilt designers and they all use EQ 7. I learn something different every time I use it. I usually stick with blocks from the block library and edit them to my liking. I am learning how to use the pieced borders library now. I haven't even looked at how to do all the layers of the quilt top yet. The import and trace feature is worth the price of EQ7.

I really enjoy mine. I usually find fabrics close to what I'm planning to use already in the program. But this next time I'm going to use scanned fabrics to work on an "ugly" fabric challenge quilt for our guild.

EQ is as easy or advanced as YOU want it to be. You can use only the basics, or be endlessly creative by learning all the in's-and-outs of it. Quilt University offers great classes to learn it, which I highly recommend. I took them and it made all the difference for me - well worth every penny. And they're taught by Fran Gonzalez and Patti Anderson, who both have written tutorial books for EQ.

I've been looking into this too. If you have a Mac it will work if you are using Bootcamp. Bootcamp comes loaded on your Mac so you won't have to purchase that, but you will have to purchase Windows.

There are actually several programs that will enable you to run Windows-only programs on your Mac (right, Cindi? lol). I don't know anything about Bootcamp. My husband uses VMWare Fusions, and Cindi used Parallels, although she's unhappy with it and it's caused some problems. And yes, you will have to purchase Windows.