Signs Down Under

AHHH... BINGO... YES THANK YOU ASH I really appreciate everyone's input here trying to help solve my problem. BUT... As l kept saying it is not a cutter driver problem... I have that driver. Ash here is a link from the FTDI Web Site l found... Maybe it will make more sense to you than me If you look about half way down the page (Figure 7.2) it is not showing the USB Serial port (Circled in Red) when l connect the CR 1200. Also the USB Serial converter d) (Also Circled in Red) When l connect the CR 1200 in the only thing it shows is "Creation USB Board" included where all the little pictures are of the USB connectors... Not the items circled in Red. It did not do this when l set up my new CS 1200 This is what l cant figure out or why it is doing that for. (Only happens with the CR no matter what computer it's loaded on) http://ftdichip.com/Documents/AppNotes/AN_107_AdvancedDriverOptions_AN_000073.pdf Cheers, Gary.

Thanks Lizzyloo... This is exactly where l bought my CS 1200 about a month ago. BUT... I don't have a problem with this cutter... All up and running out of SBE. I do not need drivers for this. I'm talking about the "CR 1200" l sold to my friend prior to buying the above mentioned cutter. I am trying to get this running in SBE for him as well... DO NOT NEED DRIVERS FOR THIS CUTTER I HAVE THEM.Looks like Dakota has caught onto what I'm trying to find out, this is the link from the newbie manual for the chipset driver which needs to show in device manager for creating a USB-SERIAL PORT http://www.ftdichip.com//Drivers/CDM/CDM 2.06.00 WHQL Certified.zip But does not work for the CR 1200 It worked for my CS 1200 l just bought... I also tried the updated version from UScutter site and that does not work either. SO... in short to my original post at the very top... Does anyone know if it is a setting of some kind to show the USB-SERIAL PORT in the drop down menu under COMM/LPT in device manager because it is not there OR a different chipset driver that would be suitable In device manager next to a USB symbol it always shows "Creation USB Board" no matter what PC everything is loaded on. Again this is only happening for the CR 1200. Gary.

OK... Sorry if l sound a bit ignorant... BUT... What would be the advantage of me downloading these CR 1200 Drivers when l already have the driver for this cutter from when l first purchased the cutter ?? They are also available on the Creation Web Site. The problem I'm having is as quoted in the newbie manual l need to download the FTDI Driver (Which l Did) "USB to Serial Driver" that creates a comm port via USB... This is what l done when l set up my new "CS" and set both as comm 4... Done. So... It's the FTDI Drivers I'm having trouble with "Not the driver for the cutter" Have downloaded the FTDI Driver for my mate l sold the CR to. BUT... In device manager it is not creating the virtual USB-SERIAL PORT Needed to run as serial connection. Basically what it shows in the newbie manual is just not there... When l plug the cutter in and turn it on, in device manager there is no comm port drop down... It just shows CREATION USB BOARD... As if the FTDI drivers don't work for this cutter or something !! All l need to know is how l can make the comm port drop down list show in device manager when the cutter is connected to the PC so l can see the "USB-Serial COMM Port" as in the newbie manual so l can do the same as l did for my new cutter.

Hey Dakota... Was going to say thats news to me... Thanks. Have been trying to research why the CR series shows in device manager as "Creation USB Board" where as other Pcuts dont. We have now tried on 3 different PC's and all see it as "Creation USB Board" which is leading me to think it can't be a PC problem. Loaded my CS series on the same 3 PC's and all is fine... Can see the USB-SERIAL in device manager to set everything up ready to cut !!!

Ash is going to look at this for me... So hopefully he can fix it. Also was unaware Creation made the Graphtec !!

I did try using that Roland driver. But when you connect the USB cable it goes straight to the Creation USB Board. In SB l select USB1 and does not work. Cant stop it from reading this damm Creation Board.

Sorry should of mentioned in my original post above... The CR series has no serial... USB is the only option. Gary.

Hi... Was just wondering if anyone knew what was happening about the guy who was offering SB Pro/Hotshot on here... Can't find the post anymore !!! Think his name was Eric, he said he had unlocked all the features and was offering it at a price via email only. Was supposed to be on a list of the first 10 to get it at a discounted price and haven't heard anything else since !!! Like l said can't find the post anymore since the forum has had a face lift.

Just out of interest has anyone heard anything else about the Hotshot version that was on offer Have tried emailing Eric to see where it was out... But no replies. Not sure if it is still on the cards. Gary.

Thank you kindly Gary.

Hi everyone, Have been trying to get my cutter going, it's a Creation Pcut CR1200.... 2010 Model. I have a version of SBE ( SBE_W_Setup ) l checked out the UK version and is exactly what l bought from Jerry Bonham with all the exact same drivers. I have this on my desktop and have installed it onto my laptop as l want to do all my cutting from there. It wants me to put in a activation code so l used the one l got when l originally loaded it onto the desktop but will not except the code on the laptop.... Looks like one activation code per computer !! Wanted this version on my laptop because l thought l would have a better chance of finding a driver to run my cutter... It's USB only. Does anyone know how l can get around this... Currently l am using SBE UScutter version and exporting into Flexi Starter for cutting. The Flexi Starter came with my cutter and obviously has the driver... That's why l export to there for cutting. Also have read on the forum that if l had a serial connection l would not need a driver... Is this correct ? because l have also considered changing my cutter to one that has a serial just so l could use SB for cutting. Any help would be much appreciated. Gary.

Hey Corey, I have pro also... What version is it... Mine is version 5. (Might be able to help) Where in OZ are you ?? Gary.

Hello all, I have 2 SBE's... One l downloaded from USC some time ago and the other one l bought from SB which was a digital download at the time off eBay 2-3 years ago, so l don't have a disc for it. The one from USC has only a few drivers and the one off eBay has lots of drivers which is probably the version l have seen here for download. So have a couple of questions. Can l take the version l got off eBay from my desktop pc and load it on my Laptop... I remember reading something about that if you do it could stop working... Just cant remember when and where l read it, and am just a bit worried about losing it !! Sometime ago l went to take it off the desktop and copy the exe file onto a flash drive and from memory a message did come up indicating this, again l cant remember... Would have to try it again to see what it said. Basically was wondering if anyone knew if this was safe to do ?? Which brings me to my next question... If l can get it onto my laptop does anyone know which driver would be compatable for my cutter l have a Creation Pcut CR1200W which is not listed although it does have other Creation cutters listed... Is there an alternative l could use ?? Thanks for reading, Gary.

Hey Rodger, Haven't heard anything for a while now about it. Will have to do some research myself... In the meantime I'll try figuring out these drivers... Probably something simple. Thanks for trying to help. Gary.

Hey Rodger, Yeah l have heard that for a while... As you say that could be just a rumor, but you never know what could happen down the track. I knew Jerry fairly well as l bought his very first SB in the early days and he and the other guys would always work on my computer and fix any problems l had... Don't know what happened to the guys from Colourchrome after Jerry passed away, thought maybe they would of carried the company on. Was thinking about converting to Vinylmaster (VML) which is a light version of Pro and Expert because it supports my cutter. Downloaded the demo versions but didn't like it compared to SBE. (On eBay for around $250.00) If l cant get my cutter to work in SBE l think l will keep designing in SB and just export to Flexi Starter for cutting... It's not a huge problem, I'm just that used to SB that l didn't want to give up on it. Gary.

Hi Jay, The pro version l have is 5. something... it is about 15 years old or so but is still fantastic, would love to get this onto vista but would not be compatiable... It's on an old windows 98 machine l have. I have the disc's for it and my activation codes etc, it has the old type software lock (Dongle) which also has a code number... it connects to one of the ports on the back of the pc... LPT 1 from memory and then the serial from that to the cutter. There are tons of drivers on there... Think it might of been before Creation was around, only top end cutters supported (No Chinese) I have a driver for my cutter (CR1200W) which was on a disc and can download it from Creation web site as well...Is there a way to get this driver into SBE driver list, have tried but dont know how to do it. Read a post from Jerry somewhere that you need to load drivers first before loading SB... So SB can find the new driver. Thought about starting from scratch and reload the driver for my cutter then loading SBE again to see if this works. My Computer guy says there is a good chance that he can get my old SB pro working in Windows 7... not sure how he would do that because of the dongle etc, he has a old laptop with Windows 7 loaded and is willing to give it a go on that !!! That would be great but still would need a driver for my particular cutter. Gary.

Hi again... yes l agree would be easier to cut from SB directly. I used to years ago as l have SB pro with hot shot which l have on an old windows 98 machine when l had a Roland PNC 1000. At the moment the only choice l have is to export to Flexi for cutting. The SBE that l bought from Jerry is the UK version with most drivers but my cutter is a 2010 model and does not support it. So I'm here to find out if anyone might know what my options would be. Gary.

Thanks for your reply. I know you can load SB on as many computers as you want but just wasn't sure about the version l bought if it may have something coded into it compared to the free version available. The one l bought is on my desktop which is a XP machine. The version l downloaded from USC is on my laptop (Vista) Wanted to copy the version off my desktop to my laptop because that one has heaps more drivers and more of a chance to get my cutter going... At the moment l do all designing in SB and export to Flexi Starter for cutting on my laptop. I want to use the laptop instead of the desktop because it's on it's last legs. I'm not even sure l can cut out of SB with my cutter !! Also the CR1200 is only USB... There is no serial. Gary.

Hello all.... this is my first post here as l have only just recently joined the forum. I'm not a computer whiz but can get around OK, but l do have years of experience with SignBlazer. I am a traditional signwriter from Melbourne Australia. I bought my first SignBlazer back in the early days from Jerry Bonham (RIP) when it was just a Black screen with Green text and with only 5 fonts, that must have been 25 years ago or more. I have always stuck with SB and kept upgrading as it became avaliable. I have an old windows 98 computer with SignBlazer Pro and Hot Shot that use's a dongle key, sometimes l still use it.... it's version 5.0.28 with a upgrade disc to 5.1.19 On the dics it says windows 95/98/NT4 Fast 32 Bit. It's a fantastic piece of software even today... Does anyone know if l could get around this to run on Vista Home Prenium 32 Bit which is on my Laptop I have the original lock number and password number etc, font book and manul. I also bought off Jerry when he had his eBay store in 2008 SignBlazer Elements which back then was a digital download and once you paid for it Jerry would send you a activation code, this version of SBE has heaps of drivers for all kinds of cutters, l have this on another Desktop which is XP and because it was a digital download l don't have a disc for it, which brings me to my next question. Is there some way l can copy this to a CD and load this version onto my Laptop if l can not use the 98 version l mentioned above To my main problem.... I was excited to find l could download SBE from US cutters which l have done onto my Vista Laptop, it came with 200 basic fonts and because l have 700 plus SB fonts from previous versions l removed the SB fonts folder and burnt a disc from my other Elements from the XP Desktop and reloaded that font folder onto the Laptop but in the text dialog box it's still only showing the 200 from USC, when l open the font folder it's showing all the new ones l put on, l also copied all my SB files for my jobs, it reconizes the fonts but still not showing in the text dialog box. So l put the original 200 back on but now it's only showing about the last 10 fonts used above the Red line, so basically when you hit the drop down arrow there's no fonts exept those 10. So l uninstalled SBE completely and started over again and done a fresh download from USC but still having the same problem of only showing the few above the Red line, l have now put the 700 plus back on and it's still doing the same thing, I'm guesing it's something in windows. I thought maybe l have to load into windows fonts as well but checked on other Desktops and SB fonts are not showing in there and everthing is fine, so l ruled that out unless Vista is different, just can't figure it out !!! My Final Question.... I needed a larger cutter so l bought the latest model Creation pcut CS 1200 off eBay it had Laserpoint registration and SD card reader.... long story short, it had a few issues and because the guy didn't have any left to swap over l had to settle for the new model under that which is a CR 1200 it sounds a bit like a Freight Train when it's cutting compared to the CS model BUT hey it cuts and will do me for now. It came with Flexi Starter 8.5 ver 2. I'm happy to do all my design work in SBE and import into the Flexi for cutting but was wondering if anyone knew if l could get the CR 1200 to work in SBE it would be easier to just cut from there Look forward to all your replies with the concerns above and hope l can be a help to everyone in the future. Regards, Gary.

Hi again, the jpeg file wasn't a very good file, I managed to use the png file that you posted, it worked fine.... why l couldn't get it into SignBlazer before was l found you have to delete the coloured image first for some reason then follow the procedure l outlined before. After you hit import in SignBlazer it will show as a black box in the preview box but hit "Use full postscript interpreter" anyway and it will open in the SignBlazer work area page as the Black and White image then save it as a SignBlazer file. It looked not too bad but you may have to play with the trace settings in Inkscape to get it a little better, l have to experiment myself but you will be able to get it into SignBlazer at least. Gary.

G'day, l couldn't do it either.... but l think your nearly there. Noticed it was a "png file" l have been tracing as a "jpeg" Trace it as this file and then go through the previous steps again, l think it should work for you then. Post a jpeg file for me and l will try it too. Gary.

I just created a new folder in Windows under "My Documents" and called it "Jobs" 1- In Inkscape "File save as" give it a name then hit the drop down arrow where it says "Save as type" select eps then hit "Save" 2- A window will pop up, leave it at "Postscript level 3" and hit OK. 3- Go to SignBlazer and hit "File import" locate the my documents folder in top right hand corner and double click then double click the new folder you created and you will see the image you saved, make sure in bottom left hand corner where it says "list files of type" it says "All graphic files" 4- Double click the image and 2 options will pop up, select "Use full postscript interpreter" which is the first one. 5- The image is now on your SignBlazer work area, now just save as normal as a SignBlazer.

OK, if you traced your images in Inkscape sounds like your coloured one is the Bitmap, the Black and White one is the result of the trace which is the vector, delete the coloured one and export the Black and White one into SignBlazer as l described using the full postscript interpreter and it will open in SignBlazer. Gary.

Hi, l only have just downloaded Inkscape the other day and still only learning it myself. I had to vectorize something for a job and had similar problems. This is how l got it into SignBlazer. 1- Vectorized the image. 2- I created a folder (In my case l just call it "Jobs") 3- Then l went "save as eps" call the file what ever you want, then saved it in my folder called Jobs. 4- Went to SignBlazer then "file import- from my jobs folder" and double click on what you called the file. 5- Two options will pop up use the one that says "Use full postscript interpreter" 6- it's now on your workspace in SignBlazer ready to save as a SB file or whatever you want to do with it. As l said I've only just started playing with Inkscape so someone may have an easier or better way. Gary.

Hi Missy, How did you go with this ? If you still need help let me know and l will post how l tackle these jobs. Gary.