F.A.Q.'s for SEDS & iPunch 6.7
Software Frequently Asked Questions
For iPunch, Embroidery Art Studio, SEDS Digitizing Systems, E.D.Tools

For F.A.Q.'s on V7 and 8 Click Here

Lettering  
How can I generate fill stitch lettering with a satin border? You can set this up easily in the Settings bar, using the 4 settings boxes marked with the white "AB" symbols. Right-click in the lower-right and choose the option labeled "Border: Radial Stitch". The other 3 settings will even let you choose its width in mm, max. stitch length and span (density). When you generate your text, the letters will appear with the border.
How do I generate good-quality small lettering?   Go to the software support page on this website and click on the link for Key Settings for Lettering, which describes how to get good-quality lettering in your SEDS or iPunch system.
Are there any other fill stitch options for large lettering? Yes! If you've purchased Turn Fill for 2-line radial stitches, (all SEDS Insignia or iPunch users have this) you have the added bonus of using this option with the radial stitch lettering styles. Just activate it by changing the "Satin" option to "Fill" in the Mode Control icons. You can even control the needlepoint pattern with the cycle, offset and stitch length parameters.
Digitizing
Besides scanning, what other ways can I use to import artwork into the program for tracing and digitizing? You can import all major graphics file formats, including BMP, TIF, JPG, GIF, PCX, and Photoshop PSD files. SEDS will even read WMF or EMF  files, which already have objects, or wire frames that you can use to build stitch groups on. From the File pulldown menu, you can use the Import Template command to import images to trace, and Import Object command to take advantage of the special features of WMF files.
Is there a way to set the fill stitch angle by doing it visually instead of entering a number in degrees? Yes! Before clicking on Go to Punching, use the Ruler/Angle tool to draw a line at the desired angle. When you click to set the line, the angle is entered automatically in the fill stitch setting box.
Can I customize my auto lock stitch? Yes!  Go to the Edit pulldown menu and choose Options.  At the bottom of the screen, you'll see the Lock Stitch Pattern.  By default at installation (in versions 6.7 and earlier) the pattern is set to a single value of -0.20.  This means that after sewing the final stitch, the program adds another stitch exactly 0.2mm back along the direction of the last stitch, then sews 1 more stitch back at the final point.  You can customize this by adding negative (backwards) and positive (forward) values separated by commas.  A good  example is this popular lock stitch pattern:   

       -.5,.5,-.5

As a result, after sewing the last stitch of a given stitch block, an additional stitch is added half a mm behind the last stitch, then a second one half a mm forward, then a third half a mm behind the second, and a fourth  one back at  the final point of the stitch block.  As you may have noticed, the final return stitch does not have to be included in the numbers you list.   
When building a fill stitch, I get the error message "object for fill stitch is wrong".  How do I fix this?
1.  CLOSED OBJECTS:  All objects that define the fill stitch need to be CLOSED object such as a box or a circle/ellipse.  Or if you build the shape with the Polycurve tool, remember to toggle to "closed" mode before double-clicking to finish the shape.  Press the letter "O" to do this - you'll see the 2 ends join each other. 
 
2.  NON-INTERSECTING OBJECTS:  If you're creating a complex fill (i.e. one with a cutout like a donut or the side of a house with the windows cut out), make sure that the objects that define the inner cutouts are not only closed as well as in (1) above, but also don't cross each other and also don't cross the outer object as well.
 
3.  WATCH YOUR SELECTION.   Another common error that is made is that objects other than the ones you need for the fill stitch are also selected.  Try Deselect All, then re-select the object(s) with the Point Select mode (while holding the CTRL key if selecting more than one object).
How can I create a color fade effect in SEDS or iPunch? Depending on the level you have (BYOS, SEDS Insignia and all iPunch users), you can do this using the Gradient FIll tool - just go to Special Stitches in the stitch type menu and choose it from there.  A common technique is to fill with a regular fill in one color first, then overlay with the gradient - the 2 will blend nicely together as long as they're laid at the same angle.  Be sure to explore all the options for varying the densities and the sides from which the gradient opens up or becomes dense.
How do Automatic Lock Stitches in work in SEDS / iPunch? By default, the program adds the automatic lock stitch  wherever you add a trim to your stitch group.  You can see this setting in the Mode Control functions at the top-right corner of the program under Help.  The default is " 'Auto Lock Stitch With Trim," which causes the program to do as described.  The other 2 options are "Lock Stitch On", which generates a lock stitch on every stitch block you create.  This is recommended for large satin letters.  The third option, "Lock Stitch Off, prevents auto lock stitch generation, period. 
Editing
I forgot to add underlay (or density, or pull compensation) to the stitch group I generated. How do I go back and fix this? Use the Change Stitch Settings tool to to change this or any other stitch parameter you wish to edit. Just select the stitch group you wish to edit and click on this tool in the Editing toolbar. That stitch group's settings will be displayed in the settings box. Make any changes you wish, and right-click in the design window. The program makes the changes instantly.  This feature is in SEDS/EAS Imagine or iPunch and in E.D.Tools' EDP Reader.
I forgot to add underlay (or I need to adjust the density, or pull compensation) to the auto-text I generated. How do I go back and fix this? Use the Change Stitch Settings tool just like in the question above.  But in this case, you'll need to do this to a large number of stitch groups (in the case of satin lettering it will be a large number of satin stitch groups).  It is not possible to do them all at once.  But you CAN do it very quickly, following these steps:

1.Select the first stitch group in sequence to be edited.  If you're not sure if you have it or not, press the letter "X" on your keyboard to ghost out the other non-selected stitch groups.  If you're off, you can use the arrow controls at the bottom left corner of the design window to advance the selection forwards or backwards (the tool is called Go to Next Stitch Group/Back to Last Stitch Group).

2. Click on Change Settings.  The settings bar at the top will change to display the settings of the currently-selected stitch group.  Make as many changes as desired in that settings bar.  this or any other stitch parameter you wish to edit

3.  Apply the Changes.  Do this by right-clicking anywhere in the design window (or pressing the keyboard shortcut equivalent F5).  

4.  Advance the selection to the next stitch group that needs to be changed.  As mentioned in step (1) above, use the Go to Next Stitch Group button at the bottom left corner of the design window to advance forward until the next stitch group of the same kind is selected.  If you're in "X" mode you'll see the previously-selected stitch group fade to black while the next one lights up in color.  You can use its alternate tool "Back to Last Stitch Group" to go backwards if you've gone too far.

5.  Apply the Changes Again. You'll see that the program remains in Change Stitch Settings mode with all of the changes you've made, so you can just right-click or press F5 every time you advance the selection to another stitch group you wish to edit.  In this way, you can advance through even a large group of satins very quickly and make many adjustments in the space of a few seconds to a minute. 

This works for SEDS Insignia, Imagine, iPunch 6.7 and E.D.Tools-EDP Reader.
I notice “Export to EDP” and “Import EDP file” on my File pulldown menu. What is this? In SEDS version 6.0 and later, CAI introduced a new format called EDP, short for Embroidery Design Portable. Stitch files exported to this format can be read into our EDP reader program, which allows the user to perform virtually any editing task, including condensed functions (i.e. density change, re-sizing), and all other editing tasks. 
Do you have the hotkeys for the program listed anywhere? Yes!  Go back to the support page and download it in PDF format.
My fill stitch "e" has strange bulges in it when I add external (pull) compensation. I can't figure out how to get rid of them. What do I do? Use the other type of pull compensation (available in versions 6.2 and later), which allows you to enter the compensation as a value in mm.   Here's an explanation of how external compensation works in the software - you have 2 options:

By percentage: the additional width is based on a percentage of the length of that particular row of stitching. So on the "O" and the 'e"s or other letters with loops, if it's a fill stitch, from the top, it sews the tip (very short) so 10 percent (for example) of that row is very small. But as the row goes longer, 10 percent of that given row results in more and more added width. But where an "o" or an "e" suddenly splits from one long row to 2 separate rows for the sides, each separate row is suddenly much narrower, so there is dramatically less pull compensation, very suddenly. That explains why you get the strange "bulges" on either side.

By absolute value in mm: the added width is measured strictly in millimeters (example: value of 1.0 means added .5 mm on either side), regardless of the shape of the fill or satin stitch at that point. For this reason, it's often better to use this for complex fills and other stitch groups whose width varies greatly.
I'm new to digitizing and the file that I created sews  messy with a lot of jump stitches.  How do I clean them up? EDITING THE SEQUENCE AND PATHING OF A DESIGN

1. Check the design's sequence and the pathing.

a. View the file with jump stitches. (this tool is located at the bottom-left corner of the design window behind "View Stitches with Needle Points".

b. Open the Stitch Browser. You can see the color
sequence immediately and find unnecessary color changes.

c. Redraw the stitching to see how it sews.
d. View in Simulation - (F10) - this will show any undesirable underlay or otherwise faulty running stitches.

2. Fix the sequence inside of a stitch block with Change In and Out Points in the Edit Tools.  Follow the directions as shown in the FAQ question in this section about jump stitches and In and Out points in the program.
This also fixes a lot of running stitches coming out of a stitch block.

3. Fix the sequence between the stitch blocks with the Stitch Browser.

4. Connect stitch blocks with running stitches or trims if necessary.  Remember, pressing the letter "M" puts the in manual (running) stitch mode, letting you "draw" these stitches with left mouse clicks.
How do I control jump stitches and where they start or finish?  As a rule, the program always places jump stitches between 2 given stitch groups as long as you don't tell it to trim or as long as you don't "draw" a running stitch between them as you're creating them. The jump stitches ALWAYS start at the last point of the first of said 2 stitch groups and end at the start point of the second one. You can control where the jump stitch falls by changing the starting or ending point of either stitch group. Follow the procedure below to do this.
How do I change where a stitch group starts and ends? 1. Select the stitch group whose starting and/or ending points you wish to change. (it is better to select only one stitch group to avoid confusion) If you're doing this to edit jump stitches, change the program view mode to "View With Jump Stitches instead of "View Stitches with Needle Points" at the lower-left corner of the design window. Jump stitches will appear as white dashed lines.
2. . Click on Change In and Out Points In the Edit tools, on the right side.
3.The  starting and ending points appear as a red and green dot. As long as they're not on top of each other, they'll be connected with a single white line (for visibility purposes, nothing else)
4. Move one or both by clicking on one (don't hold), moving it to a new location, and clicking again to set it down. You can do this as many times as you wish.
5. Right-click in the design window to re-generate that stitch group when satisfied so that it starts and finishes according to your desired changes. The jump stitches should immediately move according to what you've done.

NOTE 1: If the In or Out point is placed somewhere outside the shape of that stitch group, the program generates a running stitch to that point that sinks needle penetration points into the fabric. If this is desired, it is better to put the In or Out point on the edge nearest the location of entry/exit and travel to/from there with a manual stitch, as you'd have more control.

NOTE 2: For stitch groups imported from Tajima, EXP and other expanded design formats, changing the in and out points will not re-generate that stitch group. You'll need to recreate that stitch group or use the program's conversion tool to convert it to a condensed satin or fill stitch type.
How do I Resize another  Design using iPunch or SEDS ? 1. Select the part of the design you wish to resize. If you want to resize the whole design, click CTRL+A to select all.

2. Click the +/- key in the Edit toolbar (Change Size/# of stitches). This feature is available in iPunch, SEDS Impression, SEDS Imagine, SEDS Insignia, and EDP Reader.

3. The settings bar at the top will change. Find the new icon with the +/- symbol on it and right-click on it. 2 or 3 options will appear. Left-click to choose the second one, labeled "Change Size of Stitch Groups".

4. The boxes to the right of this will change to show 2 columns of numbers:

a. The first column reflects the width of whatever you've selected in mm at the top, with the bottom showing the original percentage of the original size you're starting out with. Enter a new value in either box to resize the width. For example, if you want to double the width, enter 200%. Or if your selection is showing that it's 52mm wide (about 2 inches) and you want it to be 4 inches wide (about 101 mm), enter that value.

b. The second column reflects the height of whatever you've selected in mm at the top, with the bottom showing the percentage of the original size you're starting out with. To change the height, do the same as you did for the width. If you want to make sure the height-width ratio does not change (i.e. you don't squash or flatten the design) make sure the new percentage values in both boxes are the same.

c. Right-click in the design window. The selected stitches will be resized, and the stitch count will be adjusted accordingly. Note that your program will not allow the selection to be increased in size if it thinks the new size will go beyond the file's canvas size (the size shown at the top left corner of the design in mm). If you need to expand this, go to Edit..Properties and add additional height and width, click Canvas and then OK.

Note that this procedure works well (in general, there are occasional exceptions) with either stitches you've created or even expanded stitches (i.e. from an imported Tajima or EXP file).  

 
How do I Cut a stitch group into 2 or more parts using either SEDS, iPunch 6.7 or EDP Reader from E.D.Tools? 1. Select the stitch group to be cut.  To make things easier, press the letter "X" on your keyboard to "ghost out" the non-selected stitches.  
2. Redraw the stitch block to the exact point where you want to cut the stitch group.  Use the Redraw Screen controls at the bottom-left corner of the design window.  
3.  Mark the stitch to be cut.  With the re-draw paused at the desired cut point, click on Mark/Unmark Stitch, the button located at the far right of the redraw controls.  You'll see a blue point highlight that stitch
4. .Continue marking any other stitches that you need to cut.
5.  Enter "Cut Marked Stitch" Mode.  Do this by finding "Cut Line" on the right-hand column of the Object Tools and opening up its flyout underneath.  The Cut Marked Stitch button will be on the far right.  Left-click on the button.
6.  Left-click on the stitch group that you marked.  If you've done everything correctly, you'll see the selection markers disappear.  With your single mouse click, the program cuts the stitch block at all points where you marked it.  You should immediately be to select and edit each stitch block independently.

Notes:  On the main support page, you'll see an animated program  on how to perform stitch editing functions, that you can download and run.  It provides further illustration on how to use this feature. 
How do I Resize another  Design using E.D.Tools ? 1. Read the design into iFont.
2. Go to File..Export EDP and save the file as and EDP file.
3. Open EDP Reader and open the EDP file.
4. Follow the steps for resizing a design as shown above.
File Management
How do I set the design center in SEDS, iPunch 67 or EDTools? Before saving your file, find the button "Start/End Points: Design Center." in the Object Tools (it is near the bottom on the left or center column, depending on the version you have).  Click on this button once.  Then, save your design in EDF format, and finally use Punch Write to export it to DST (or EXP,CND, etc).
How do I combine 2 designs or paste part of a design into another? 1.  Open both designs  in the program.

2.  Select the stitches you'll be copying from the "donor" design.  If you're copying the whole design, you can do this by pressing CTRL-A (the common Windows shortcut for "Select All").
3.  Choose Edit...Copy from the Edit pulldown menu at the top of the program.

4.  Click on the design that will be "receiving" the stitches.   Make sure that its canvas area is large enough to fit both the existing stitches and the one you're about to paste.  If not, you can change this from Edit..Properties.

5.  Choose Edit..Paste from the Edit pulldown menu at the top of the program.  You'll have several choices.  "Before Document" inserts the pasted stitches to sew in sequence before the existing design.  "After Document" does the opposite.

6.  Rearrange the pasted stitches.  The new stitches appear in the design surrounded by selection markers.  Click on the "Move" tool in the Object toolbar, allowing you to click and move the new stitching as desired.  To clear the selection markers, just click on Point Select (shortcut key "T") and cick on any empty space in the design.  

If I want to just convert a stitch file into another format, how do I do this? 1. Type the letter "R" to bring up the Punch Read dialog box

2. Choose the format you wish to import

3. When the file name appears in the window, click on it once and click OK. The stitch file should then open into a new design window.

4. Save your file in EDF format: Click on File and choose Save. Pick a directory into which you wish to save your file (the chosen directory will be at the top next to the words "Save In")

5. Convert the EDF file into the desired target format: Press the letter "W" to open the Punch Write dialog box. Find the EDF file you just created and click on it. A miniature view of your file should then appear in the small window.

6. Choose an output format at the bottom of the dialog box if different than Tajima.

7. Next to the word Path in the dialog box, find the button with the 3 dots on it and click on it. You can use this to set the file name of the output file (instead of leaving it as G001, G002, etc.). Keep the name under 8 characters. When finished click OK.

8. Click Punch. Wait for the floppy disk light to turn off before removing your disk and sewing it.