From our Computer Q&A Forum... 'Is there any software that can be used on a Mac to view the designs once they are downloaded from the Internet?' Thanks Carolyn for the question and to Vicki and Fran for their answers.
Best Embroidery Software For Mac
There were a few embroidery programs written for the Mac before the turn of the millenium, but since then I have only found one program called 'PowerStitch' written for machine embroidery on the Mac. Here's a link to their website that currently works... http://www.textiletech.com/ It says it is OS-X compatible (Operating System Ten in Mac-speak) which is the current Mac operating system from 2001 to present day.
I don't know anyone who has the software who can testify to how well it works, but I can see that their price is $2,000 for the program. That is digitizing software and it's a pretty steep price to be able to view your designs on your Mac considering that a windows program to view designs is available for as little as $30.
- This page contains links to free machine embroidery software and converters available on the web for Windows and Mac. These freeware downloads are tried and tested, and all of them work great with no issues. We highly recommend every link on our page and continually update.
- Find Mac Embroidery Software (Download) at EmbroideryDesigns.com. The one site you need for all things embroidery.
In practical terms, this means that while you can certainly DOWNLOAD the designs to your Mac, you will need to bring them into a Windows environment to see the designs. Here are some more details on how that can be done.
They should work with the computer you prefer, whether it’s a Mac or a PC with Windows 10. Embroidery software should be easy, fun, and useful for every embroiderer. An embroiderer friend once explained the tools they needed most in their embroidery software; and we listened.
As Vicki (mama_duck) points outk you can use SewIconz on a Mac if you use Windows on your Mac. And Fran (Puddinluvrtoo) says she has downloaded designs to her Mac then emailed them to herself so she can open them on her Windows PC. Both of these suggestions work using Windows. And that is the bottom line unless you're willing to spend a LOT of money for the one Mac program available.
Here's my additional comments...
There are several ways you can use to put Windows onto a Mac. They all involve buying a full-blown Windows installation and installing it onto your Mac hard drive. So you do have a Windows machine then, with all the crashes and annoyances of Windows, right there on your Mac.
Parallels is one of the programs that allow you to do this. With Parallels you can boot up in Mac then toggle over to Windows. There's another program that allows the same thing with but with more than 1 additional operating system, so you could put Windows AND Linux AND Unix AND several other operating systems all onto your Mac.
Then there is 'Boot Camp'. It comes with OS-X 'Leopard' and allows you to boot up into Mac or Windows. If you boot up into Mac but want to change to Windows you re-boot and select Windows before it begins the startup process. That's not as quick as just clicking a toggle-key, but Boot Camp is free.
Regardless of how you get from Mac to Windows on your Mac, you have to buy Windows and install it. Windows EATS UP your hard drive space and if your hard drive isn't very big you could regret that.
Once you get Windows installed, then you do have to install a Windows-based embroidery program in order to see your embroidery files. So you will be spending some money to see embroidery designs on your Mac. There's about $150 for Windows (depending on which one you buy) and the cost of the embroidery software will be at least $30 for SewIconz. That still doesn't solve the problem of transferring designs to your embroidery machine from your Mac. You'll need software for that too unless you have a Janome and can just write to a Compact Flash card. All other machines require some sort of design transfer software and box. (More money!)
If you already HAVE a Windows PC with software that allows you to see your embroidery designs then it MIGHT be better to stick with it for that task. The challenge then becomes two-fold... 1) How do I download a design on my Mac and then transfer it to my Windows PC, and 2) How do I make room on my desk to fit two monitors, two computers, two mice, etc.
For transferring designs or any other file from Mac to PC (or from PC to Mac) you could set up a wi-fi network with a hard drive attached to it. If you already have a wi-fi network then just add a hard drive that all computers on the network can access. Apple makes a 'Time Capsule' which is a network hard drive with a built-in wi-fi router. I have one that allows me to transfer files back and forth between Mac and Windows as well as giving me a backup drive that's always available.
To save desk space, you can use something called a KVM switch...
'K' = Keyboard
'V' = Video
'M' = Mouse
It's a small device made by several companies (Iogear, Belkin, etc.) that allows any 1 of two or more computers to be connected to your keyboard, mouse, and monitor. You push one button on the device and your watching the video and using computer #1, push another button and your watching the video and using computer #2, and so on.
Using a KVM means you can have both a Mac and a Windows PC hooked up to your one mouse and one monitor and one keyboard on your desk. Transfer files between them with the wifi hard drive.
So there are more than one way to accomplish getting your designs through your Mac and into your embroidery machine. They all involve Windows in some way. Which way is your choice.
