Who here uses CM's SBC+ for digital scrapping?

[Disney Baby]

Hello all!
I am normally a lurker and you all have been SO helpful with SB that I wanted to pass on some information I got today (after trying to find it on my own and then waiting an hour to chat with a digital support person).

One feature of the new upgrade is the ability to view 2 pages as a two page spread so that you can be sure that the pages are aligned correctly and so that you can edit the pages together. Apparently you can ONLY view the 2 page spread when you are working on a Storybook. Those of us who do individual pages (or Page Prints as they are termed in the software) or groups of pages cannot view the pages as a spread.

In order to view them together, you have to create a Blank storybook in the size you normally work in (ie 12by12) and import the page prints you have into the storybook. Then you have the option to view as a 2 page spread.
You can either save the pages then as a jpeg for exporting or you will have to go back into your file with the page prints and import the pages from the storybook if you want to print the individual page prints. It's not all that difficult but certainly time consuming!

I'm disappointed that you are limited to where you can view them. I am hoping this gets changed in an upcoming update-I kept asking the digital support person to make sure that this was reqested!

Thought I would share this information along with everyone! Hope it helps someone from spending a ton of time on this issue.
~Melissa

Melissa,

Thanks for posting this.

 

[kellig]

Anyone have suggestions or advice for shadowing on black paper? I have tried TONS of different things and am just never very happy with the results.

I am getting ready to purchase the upgrade, just kinda scared I won't know what to do! I'm finally back on a roll scrapping and don't want to loose my mojo again.

Jennifer, I followed your advice from many moons back and keep all my kits on an EHD and simply direct SBC+ to that directory for them. Are you changing that with the new release? I'm worried that I won't have room on my PC for all of those goodies!!! It almost sounds like you are picking and choosing what you actually put in SBC+, is that right? If I'm understanding what you guys are saying, you can actually tag items in the new release (like Picassa - blue ribbons, red paper, etc) in addition to how you typically have them stored? Sorry for all the questions, I know that I need to just DL it and start playing and THAN ask the ???'s!

 

[quiltymom]

Anyone have suggestions or advice for shadowing on black paper? I have tried TONS of different things and am just never very happy with the results.

I am getting ready to purchase the upgrade, just kinda scared I won't know what to do! I'm finally back on a roll scrapping and don't want to loose my mojo again.

Kelli,

Shadowing on black is a very hard thing to do. I usually switch the shadow color to white, but it doesn't give the same effect as a black shadow on a light background. You could also try a complimentary color or something that would match. Just play around with it is my best advice.

I'll let ya'll in on a secret: once you get the upgrade you'll wonder how you ever got anything done on 2.0! It does take a bit to get used to, but once you're there you'll never want to go back! And my family didn't see me for days after I got the DL - I was just having so much fun playing around with it!

And as far as keeping the kits: I keep mine on the HD and have the back-up copy on the EHD (same for all of my photos in MM). I also save my albums/pages on the EHD since they take up so much space.

And for MM backup (if you have it), they were suggesting you keep the working photos on your HD, and have a shadow copy on a EHD AND a back-up copy on a separate EHD (or many DVDs), just in case. That's still something that I gotta do...

Hope all of this helps!

 

[mum of two pirates]

Apparently it is only good tell tomorrow night. I have heard that you change things around just like your own papes but I will find out in a few min.
It would be nice if you put in the lady who let me know Brenda Franck wash if you decide to buy it. Have a nice day. Mum


Delight Diva
http://www.creativememories.com/Mai...ed-Pages/Delight-Diva-Predesigned-Pages-12x12

Discover Grunge
http://www.creativememories.com/Mai...Pages/Discover-Grunge-Predesigned-Pages-12x12

 

[Davids-Coco]

Apparently it is only good tell tomorrow night. I have heard that you change things around just like your own papes but I will find out in a few min.
It would be nice if you put in the lady who let me know Brenda Franck wash if you decide to buy it. Have a nice day. Mum


Delight Diva
http://www.creativememories.com/Mai...ed-Pages/Delight-Diva-Predesigned-Pages-12x12

Discover Grunge
http://www.creativememories.com/Mai...Pages/Discover-Grunge-Predesigned-Pages-12x12

This is true... the predesigned pages can be edited if you are running SBC+ (not with the free version). You can move elements around to different pages, add stuff, delete stuff... it's nice.

The new version also has an auto propagate option. So you just let it arrange your pictures. My computer for SBC+ crashed, so yet to play...

 

[kellig]

Kelli,

Shadowing on black is a very hard thing to do. I usually switch the shadow color to white, but it doesn't give the same effect as a black shadow on a light background. You could also try a complimentary color or something that would match. Just play around with it is my best advice.

I'll let ya'll in on a secret: once you get the upgrade you'll wonder how you ever got anything done on 2.0! It does take a bit to get used to, but once you're there you'll never want to go back! And my family didn't see me for days after I got the DL - I was just having so much fun playing around with it!

And as far as keeping the kits: I keep mine on the HD and have the back-up copy on the EHD (same for all of my photos in MM). I also save my albums/pages on the EHD since they take up so much space.

And for MM backup (if you have it), they were suggesting you keep the working photos on your HD, and have a shadow copy on a EHD AND a back-up copy on a separate EHD (or many DVDs), just in case. That's still something that I gotta do...

Hope all of this helps!

Unfortunately, that's what I figured about the shadowing on black paper Jan. I was just hoping someone knew I trick that I didn't!

Thanks for the heads up on the upgrade. I'll make sure to wait to DL until I have some time to devote to it. I'll be just like you and not want to get away from the computer at all. I may see a day or two off from work coming.

Thanks again for the help...I've got to do better about staying up on these boards too!

 

[cobbler]

Couple of questions for some of you, maybe one of you has had this problem or knows what I can do...

When I upgraded - I converted my packages like it said. I keep all my packages on an external portable hard drive. When I imported the packages to be used on my upgrade, all of a sudden the pre-designed pages were in a different language. I don't know what happened. Has anyone had this problem or know how to correct it? I am wondering since it converted it that my packages are permanently in the different language.

It really isn't a big deal as it is more annoying because my embellishments (titles, stickers and whatnot) have remained in English, it's only the pre-designed pages where it tells you to "Put Text Here" or whatever that are not in English...

Also, I organized my packages how I wanted and when I went to use the software again, none of them were in the areas that I put them. They were all under commercial again. Does this have anything to do with the fact that they are stored on an external hard drive instead of my C drive?

Thanks

 

[mommyofthreeboys]

cobbler-- never had the issue you have but....

after I converted everything, I lost a whole folder of jpegs. It was a folder of completed pages. I have no idea where it went. I all ready printed them so I'm going to forget about it. Just irritating.


Now that we can tag...what is everyone using as tags? This is my list so far....

stars
circles
hearts
flowers
ribbons
staples
ric rac

and I'm stuck there! what else can I tag?!?!

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

YAY!!! I FINALLY got the upgrade... Oh my gosh, I am soooo excited. i can't wait to play.... I just need DD(3) to go to SLEEP! LOL!!!

I am SOOOOO excited about the photo actions/ filters... I can't believe all of the options that are just one click away. That is SO COOL!

And I am in shadow heaven... I am going to have to get used to the new "expansion" option. Is there a way to save my own custom shadows so I can just click on the ones I like to use over and over again... I have become really picky about my shadows....so that would be fabulous.

The corner rounding is AMAZING and I can't believe all of the options there either.

Haven't even begun to explore text on a path -- can't wait to play with that.

I love the "line" option too... such a simple little thing, but I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to just circle something on a page or draw a quick arrow to it and I have to go searching for a doodle!

I don't see a paper tearing option?

Can't wait to play more... we should post some pages on this thread when we use some of the new techniques... would love to see what everyone does with them.

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

Kelli -- I stink at shadows on black... that is why you will find VERY few LOs with black BGs in my gallery... Maybe with the new shadow options in 3.0 we will be able to figure something out... Some of the gals over at SM who use adobe programs are always talking about using a "burn" technique for shadows on black paper??? IDK what that means exactly....

 

[mommyofthreeboys]

OMG!!!! Was this a feature in 2.0 and I didnt realize???

When I was trying to figure out what text I wanted on a page, I moused over the font type and it showed what it would look like on the page!!! OMG-- SO COOL!!!!

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

OMG!!!! Was this a feature in 2.0 and I didnt realize???

When I was trying to figure out what text I wanted on a page, I moused over the font type and it showed what it would look like on the page!!! OMG-- SO COOL!!!!

OMG! I had to rush over and try it and you are RIGHT! That was definitely NOT a feature in 2.0. WOW -- little things like that make ALL the difference in terms of time and efficiency.... that's why I LOVE SBC+.

The only thing that is currently driving me CRAZY is the fact that they moved the "undo" button... AHHHHHHH... I am going to have to retrain my brain and my hands on that one... 2.0 was so automatic for me, that I feel a little lost.. but I am sure in a couple days I will be clicking away like a maniac.

 

[mommyofthreeboys]

The only thing that is currently driving me CRAZY is the fact that they moved the "undo" button... AHHHHHHH... I am going to have to retrain my brain and my hands on that one... 2.0 was so automatic for me, that I feel a little lost.. but I am sure in a couple days I will be clicking away like a maniac.

I SOOOOO agree!!! My DS keeps asking me why I am grunting at the computer!

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

Here's one I did....

I tried the rounded corners... easy easy...
I played with the text on path. It seems pretty easy. I like how you can click and drag the little points around to edit it. I want to play with it more...
For the main photo, I used the "diffuse glow" filter to add the fun glow and then I used the "film grain" filter to add the speckled texture, then I added the "soften edge" filter. Pretty fun!

I'm going to need some practice to get used to layout of the shadows now...

 

[DisneyCruiser2008]

OOh!! I just found the paper tearing option... and all of the OTHER cool paper edges... Yahoo!!

 

[Disney Baby]

OOh!! I just found the paper tearing option... and all of the OTHER cool paper edges... Yahoo!!

You are making me laugh I love your page.

Have you found the Touch Up features - I was able to ERASE!!!!!

The undo button was my biggest challenge!!!

I am having few problems and was wondering if anyone else was experiencing them too...

1) When I rotate a picture in the pictures - it does not rotate on the side but when I drag it to fill the photo square - it has been rotated.

2) I can't select everything on the page with Ctrl A anymore

3) I can't use the cutout feature for paper or flattened pictures. CM put it under the mat functions for pictures and I can't access it to do the cut out thing with the stars, leaves, etc - the function that used to make the cool border effect!

I think those may be bugs - but the trade off for now is worth it! I am losing sleep because I keep staying up to play with the program.

BTW, I heard that Stampin' Up is releasing their Digital Software called My Digital Studio on October 1st. The consultants that have it already claim that it the best thing on the market...I can't imagine that it is better than SBC+3.0. - but I am a little biased!

 

[missyintx]

BTW, I heard that Stampin' Up is releasing their Digital Software called My Digital Studio on October 1st. The consultants that have it already claim that it the best thing on the market...I can't imagine that it is better than SBC+3.0. - but I am a little biased!

I am a past 'su consultant and am still on the consultant boards at 'splitcoast. I have been reading everything on the new program and looking at the few pages and cards that have been done. I also have MM and SBc+

I have to admit that I am not impressed with what I am seeing with the su product. Most of the ladies know nothing about digital and have never seen anything like it. But from what I can tell, even though it has alot of stuff that comes preloaded it does not do nearly what the SBC+ does.

I am still thinking of getting it so I can put it on my Mac.

Missy

 

[DecemberDisneyBride]

Couple of questions for some of you, maybe one of you has had this problem or knows what I can do...

When I upgraded - I converted my packages like it said. I keep all my packages on an external portable hard drive. When I imported the packages to be used on my upgrade, all of a sudden the pre-designed pages were in a different language. I don't know what happened. Has anyone had this problem or know how to correct it? I am wondering since it converted it that my packages are permanently in the different language.

It really isn't a big deal as it is more annoying because my embellishments (titles, stickers and whatnot) have remained in English, it's only the pre-designed pages where it tells you to "Put Text Here" or whatever that are not in English...

Also, I organized my packages how I wanted and when I went to use the software again, none of them were in the areas that I put them. They were all under commercial again. Does this have anything to do with the fact that they are stored on an external hard drive instead of my C drive?

Thanks

I just upgraded to 3.0, and my pre designed pages are now in another language too.....Did you find a solution to it? All of my files are on my pc, no external drive. I have never used SBC+, I just got it, and now I am discouraged

 

[quiltymom]

Couple of questions for some of you, maybe one of you has had this problem or knows what I can do...

When I upgraded - I converted my packages like it said. I keep all my packages on an external portable hard drive. When I imported the packages to be used on my upgrade, all of a sudden the pre-designed pages were in a different language. I don't know what happened. Has anyone had this problem or know how to correct it? I am wondering since it converted it that my packages are permanently in the different language.

It really isn't a big deal as it is more annoying because my embellishments (titles, stickers and whatnot) have remained in English, it's only the pre-designed pages where it tells you to "Put Text Here" or whatever that are not in English...

Also, I organized my packages how I wanted and when I went to use the software again, none of them were in the areas that I put them. They were all under commercial again. Does this have anything to do with the fact that they are stored on an external hard drive instead of my C drive?

Thanks

I have no idea why your pages are not in English. You can call the CM digital hotline to find out why. That didn't happen to me, so I'm no help here.

And about organizing the packages: They are only organized INSIDE of SBC+, not in Windows Explorer. So if you're looking in Explorer to do more organizing, you won't see a thing. It will only show up in SBC+. I don't know if this is what you're experiencing or not, but it's what I've run into. And I'm not sure why they would move to commercial, either. Sorry!

cobbler-- never had the issue you have but....

after I converted everything, I lost a whole folder of jpegs. It was a folder of completed pages. I have no idea where it went. I all ready printed them so I'm going to forget about it. Just irritating.

and I'm stuck there! what else can I tag?!?!

I didn't loose anything in the conversion. Do you convert a copy and save the originals? You could try re-converting them again if you did. Otherwise, call the hotline and see what they have to say.

I've not done too much tagging right now, but I'm going to try and spend 15 minutes a day doing this. It'll take a long time, but it will be worth it!

And by looking at my non-CM kits, I would add these categories:
frames
journaling boxes
glitter/bling
brads (you could combine that with staples)
scatters
borders
word art
leaves/bushes/trees
animals
food

I'm sure I'll have a bunch more later, but these are just some of the things that I know that I have looked for in the past.

YAY!!! I FINALLY got the upgrade... Oh my gosh, I am soooo excited. i can't wait to play.... I just need DD(3) to go to SLEEP! LOL!!!

And I am in shadow heaven... I am going to have to get used to the new "expansion" option. Is there a way to save my own custom shadows so I can just click on the ones I like to use over and over again... I have become really picky about my shadows....so that would be fabulous.

I don't see a paper tearing option?

Can't wait to play more... we should post some pages on this thread when we use some of the new techniques... would love to see what everyone does with them.

I know that when you create a custom shadow, you can use it immediately again by clicking on the shadow icon, but I haven't looked into saving a particular one. That would be great.

And I've experimented a bit with the "glow" option for using an element on black/dark backgrounds, but I haven't found anything yet that I like for working on black (which is OK since I really don't like black backgrounds!).

The paper tearing option is under the line cutting - it's one of the options listed. It took me a while to figure that out.

And the automatic paper mats are listed under frames. Click on the select icon and choose frames from the pull-down menu. I have a hard time finding that every time I want to use it.

 

[cobbler]

I just upgraded to 3.0, and my pre designed pages are now in another language too.....Did you find a solution to it? All of my files are on my pc, no external drive. I have never used SBC+, I just got it, and now I am discouraged

No I didn't find a solution to it, but I notice that when I actually use them, then they are back in English. It just shows them in a different language in the preview mode or when you are scrolling through the content.

Since it shows up in English and the embellishments (like the little word sayings) are in English, I never bothered to call to fix it. I might someday when I get a chance or when I think about it.

I have no idea why your pages are not in English. You can call the CM digital hotline to find out why. That didn't happen to me, so I'm no help here.

And about organizing the packages: They are only organized INSIDE of SBC+, not in Windows Explorer. So if you're looking in Explorer to do more organizing, you won't see a thing. It will only show up in SBC+. I don't know if this is what you're experiencing or not, but it's what I've run into. And I'm not sure why they would move to commercial, either. Sorry!

Nope I don't look in Windows Explorer. I just keep them on my external hard drive and not on my C drive. So I don't know what the deal is but as long as they keep showing up then I am ok. It will get annoying more once I get more packages but for now, I'll deal with it.

Maybe I'll call tech support on both of those things... someday...