newBe

I'm wishing to purchase quilting software, primarily for getting a preview of how a quilt may look upon completion and to in advance ascertain the quantity of pieces of fabrics and the required yardage. I will not draw any creative designs, but rather will use what blocks come with the program. I am not sure about spending $150 to $200 for the Electric Quilt products. Suggestions on any other manufacturers product(s) would be welcome. Does anyone know about when Electric Quilt 8 might be introduced?

MTS

Quilt Design Wizard is also made by EQ but it's a much pared down version (and it's under $30).

http://electricquilt.com/Shop/QDW/QDW.aspYou can sometimes find EQ5 available on eBay for around $50.
That would also be more than enough to meet your needs, and also allow you to test drive some of the more advanced features before deciding if you want to shell out the bigger bucks for EQ7 (or EQ8, whenever it comes out).

dunster

Quiltinaday usually has the best price on EQ7 (currently just under $150, and free shipping if you spend a few dollars more). I bought Quilt Design Wizard at the same time as EQ, and I never use it, because EQ is so much more powerful. I don't understand why you would use only the blocks that come with the program though. With EQ7 it's easy to put in new designs, whether they're ones you design yourself or ones you copy from a picture of a quilt. I know $150 sounds like a lot, but for me being able to visualize my designs is well worth the money. I would not advise buying an older version. The interface for EQ was drastically changed and improved with version 6, and the ability to install on multiple machines was improved with version 7. And when 8 eventually comes out, you will be able to upgrade at a lower cost if you're currently at version 7.

ScubaK

I, personally, would go with EQ7 and be done with it...
Has everything, can do most everything and you can upgrade to what/when you wish...
K

newBe

Thank you, quilters, for your guidance!

BKrenning

Quilt Pro will do what you want plus a lot more. http://www.quiltpro.com It is also available for Mac and can be downloaded. There is a demo program you can try out. I use it for scanning in my fabrics and playing with the color options and figuring yardage. When I get a quilt idea, I scan in whichever fabrics I plan on using to test out the pattern and to make sure I have enough.