Ann The Gran Community

I own a ult 2002D embroidery machine & have not used it in a very long time. I had a computer that had xp & broke & I bought new with Vista & no serial port.  I cannot use my PEdesign card  reader/writer box or program due to the security dongle.  Even after installing a serial port on the computer with the vista- the box still will not work & even tried to download the patch for vista for this serial port, etc. & still it will not work. I spent a lot of money on this machine & the Pedesign sofware - what can I do?  I do not want to buy any new pe design program, etc. as I want to learn this old one first - because not much support from them on the first purchase.  Can you help.  I have contacted brother previously & was told that there is no support anymore & nothing will make my reader/writer box work.  I just can't believe there is nothing that can be done when I spent 7000.00 back in 2002 when I purchased it all.    When I tried downloading the patch to make the serial port work on vista it shut down my computer & did nothing. (blue screen & crashed).  Can you help as I would like to get back into this without spending a lot of money.  Thank you

Is this the site you used for your download?

http://www.brother.com/E-ftp/hsmsoftware/vistainfo_eus.html

not sure.  It was a while ago - I know it was on the brother web site & also some lady from brother was trying to help me.  Then she wrote me & stated that I would just do better to buy the new (at that time) pe design 7 with new reader/writer card, etc.  So I just gave up!   While I was at work my husband tried & tried to download this patch & have that serial port recognized.  It just did not work. 

Have you tried talking with a Brother Dealer?

Granted, some dealers know very little about software and hardware, but you may get lucky.

If that doesn't work, try talking with a PC tech about getting the program working. 

If none of the above works out, then new software and hardware will be needed.

You do not need to use the Brother brand of editing/digitizing software nor their brand of reader/writer box.  Just about any brand will work without having to deal with a dongel or other security devices.

Some products are available here at ATG.  Click on Shop at the top of the screen to see what is available.

Some editing/digitizing software brands have free trial offers that you can try your hand at.  Buzz Tools and Embird are a couple that have free trials you can download.

This model also uses a floppy disk, so you may not need the reader/writer box and memory card. 

Technology continues to change and my embroidery software is getting a little dated also.

Best wishes.

Pattiann

Yes the person who tried to help me was a brother dealer who does training & seminars, etc.  She even stated she was having  computer techs check into whether or not or why the patch wouldn't work.  I never really got a good answer but that I needed to buy a new program & reader/writer box!

  I like to make my own designs.  It took forever but I could make my own.  PED is what I had used previously.  Then I would save to floppy  and put my  floppy into machine & embroidery it.  The software usually does not work without the box but my husband got the software to work.  At least some of it.  But not the reader /writer box.  I am afraid that I will spend many hours trying to make a design only to have one part of the program not work.   Maybe we should now try to download this patch again for vista & see if it works now! 

If I want to get a new software; what would be a good program to buy that will allow me to do all that the pe design program  would have allowed me to do and would still allow me to be put that design on a floppy disc & put into my brother ULT 2002D machine & have it embroidery it?  Would buying the ultimate box help & could it be used with PEDesign 4 and then sewn out on my machine?

So happy to hear that your husband was able to make some progress in getting PE Design to work.

My editing and digitizing software is an independent program, as are most brands.

My EM has USB direct connect, so I have no need of the card and box.

If the floppy disks your machine uses are just regular disks used with a PC, then you do not need a reader/writer box.

The Ultimate Box is only a method of transferring designs from your PC to the EM. With this, and other reader/writer boxes, they work with all software programs - you have to request the memory card for the box in the format your EM uses.* 

A lot of home embroiderers use Embird embroidery software.  There is a free trail download at Secrets of Embroidery.com

With Embird, you start with a base program, then add-on other programs as you wish.

*When I state, all I am not including Bernina as this brand is not as interactive as other brands.

I've read all of your info and have learned a few things, thanks. I'm not the only one having problems with Ped Basic/Vista I have also had problems witht he Ped Basic, I don't know why but, having an off day, I downloaded the software from my Ped Basic CD. Afterwards I read that your not to do that with Vista woops!! Even though I made this mistake, my Ped Basic works on my Windows Vista, to a certain extent. I can bring up a file on a CD that I saved a lot of desings into files  and do everything it's supposed to do including loading to the card. But, if I close that file and try to go to another file on that same CD it gives me a MFC error.

I too have contacted brother and they have even sent me over instruction on how to go and get software updates for W Vista. I've taken the program out and downloaded it again 3 times & still get the same MFC error. I've learned to live with this, if it's something you want to try if you have to use your Ped Basic download with the disc it came with. If you get the MFC error, Just close the program and start over again, I don't like it, but, having my desk top (xp) in the den and my laptop in my sewing room on the other side of the house, it  works for me right now.

I did recently go to brothers solutions and to the downloads upgrades and I read that they added to there downloads to USE the computer that you will be using the upgrade to, not to download to a CD and then upgrade with the CD. And that is what I was doing, cause I don't want to get on line with my desktop, it's strictly for my designs and etc. So what I'm going to try doing is to take my laptop to where there's WIFI and go on line and try downloading right to my laptop. Hey it's hopeful.

lipps58 - tell me please how do you use the Floppy disk on your ULT 2002? Let me tell you what I did, I downloaded the design onto the floppy, put into my machine and my floppy is blank. The book doesn't mention a certain disk, it's just a regular floppy right? Do you have to format the floppy? I thought this would be better than using the Ped Basic, lol lol I was so dissapointed.