Software

Corel Paint Shop Pro $69.99. Can do both vector or raster based. Been using this since it was shareware many years ago

I;m wishin an a hopin that this will be the year to learn portrait making.

Hey amazingkevin...me too...portraits pattern making is my ambition. i have done a few of them and I liked what I was able to do with it, but I have not taken the time to sit down and really learn it..I just dream that I might be good at it without all the effort to learn it properly, which sets me up for failure..I am just a little to lazy to take the time to learn...maybe this year too, for me

Travis, I do not have a lot of money but I like what I see Coral Draw's user friendly concepts. I have also looked at Inkscape and Gimp...what would you suggest for a retired man to explore for pattern making and portrait making ?

Corel Draw is best for regular patternmaking, but not portraits. Steve Good has a lot of tutorials on using Corel Draw. I haven't played with Corel Draw since the mid 90's, so I'm not sure how easy it is to learn. I certainly think it's a great option.

For portrait making, perhaps Photoshop Elements. It's not too expensive and has a lot of great features. The concepts of portrait patternmaking I cover in my GIMP class apply, but the process and location of the buttons will be different.

I'll probably still suggest GIMP and Inkscape for a couple reasons. First, they're free. Free is always good in my book. Second, if you get stuck, we'd be able to help you out. Many folks here have gone through the classes and can give advice & support. GIMP and Inkscape are not as polished as the commercial counterparts, but I think they do pretty dern good and certainly meets the needs of scroll saw pattern makers.

Others can weigh in on their thoughts.

I've updated the list to update SketchUp's info.  It's now available on the Mac.  It also isn't a Google product anymore.  A group called Trimble bought it.  It's free for personal use, but the commercial license is $495.

Thanks to oldhudson for the updated info.

Gimp and Inkscape have Linux versions as well.

Phil

I updated Gimp & Inkscape with Linux versions.

Thanks Phil.

Have downloaded Inkscape! How do I find the tutorials on this program?  Thought I saw some on this site.

Thanks Bert

Have downloaded Inkscape! How do I find the tutorials on this program?  Thought I saw some on this site.

Thanks Bert

I've been following them on YouTube. Go there and search on "scroll saw goodies inkscape lessons", they should be there for you to enjoy.

Have downloaded Inkscape! How do I find the tutorials on this program?  Thought I saw some on this site.

Thanks Bert

You can find them in the Articles section on SSV as well as the Village University forum here on SSV.  Enjoy the videos!  

I downloaded gimp a few weeks ago.  Now I whish I had the time to learn it.

Thank you Travis for the information, It will help a lot of people,

Bob   

I have tried Scroll Saw University and You Tube and can't get the lessons to open. Both say an error has occurred. Anyone else have this problem

They seem to open for me.  You can also find them in the Articles section.  You can also go directly to YouTube for the videos.

has anyone used either posterza or poste razor. if so do they seem to be safe. Usually I'm hesitant to go downloading things on my computer

Posteriza is safe (depending where you get it) - just be careful. From it's own site will be fine. I use it quite often on the large pieces I work on. For the smaller stuff I use Rapid ReSizer. To be honest - most things are fine with Rapid ReSizer, unless you're looking at creating something larger than 15 inches.

Hope this helps,

Kindest Regards,

Nick.

I've used Poste Razor and like it well enough. It's mostly for printing images larger than a single sheet of paper.

Art rage is good for freehand patterns I use it a lot..........paul

Hello everyone, I'm new to Scroll Saw Village. and From Nova Scotia, Canada. I have various Programs and was wondering which is a good software to use to make scroll saw patterns..... I have: Perfect Effects 9, Inkscape, Artweaver, ArtRage, PhotoPlus SE (Serif), Gimp 2, Corel Draw, Jasc Paint Shop Pro, Photo Shop CC, Print Shop, Print Master, Ulead Photo Express 3.0 SE.....I'm new to Scroll Sawing. but have loved drawing & photo's for a long time. I have tried using different programs to do one thing the go black and white with the others. Does anyone have any pointers/tips? All would be greatly appreciated.