I am trying to figure out my best choice at a reasonable cost/ease of use for design and CAM software. I purchased a license for Mach3 today, so that end of things is set.
My goal is to make some signs, some carved out words (Believe, Achieve, etc.), cut some 2D shapes for a future machine and clocks, some plaques with bible verses or other quotations, and stuff like that.
In terms of design software, I have Autocad 14, but I find it rather cumbersome to learn. For me, it is not at all intuitive. Maybe it just can do too much. So I have been thinking about buying Corel Draw, which I have used a long time ago. However, I read posts here that say the export formats available in Corel Draw do not plug in well to many CAM programs (does it export in DXF?). The thing I like about it, is its relative ease of use, plus it is more oriented to having some design elements which would jazz up signs...I think. So what does everyone think about Corel Draw for this use?
For CAM software, I have the free version of Cambam, but it really doesn't feel too newby-friendly to me. And I wonder if the free version has enough features. Yes, I know there is a pro version, but it seems to me that Cut2D may be a better choice for the $$ from all the references I have read here (I think VCarvePro would be ideal, but out of my price range). I also like the idea that Cut2D can import graphic files (bmp, jpg, etc) and read them. Any advice here?
Some of my confusion comes from the blurring between design programs and CAM programs. There seems to be a trend to combine some of each function in certain packages (VCarvePro, Cambam, etc), without including the full functionality needed...but that that may be just my lack of understanding exactly what is in these programs.
Thanks for any help and advice you can offer.