General questions on Corel Draw

I am not familiar with either Corel Draw or the other graphic program (Adobe).  I am hoping someone can help me figure out what I need to buy.  I am looking for a program that I can use to make lettering and graphic files and send to a cutter.  I also want to be able to change bmp files to vector files.  I would need to save in .plt format.   I would also want to be able to put together a graphic to print and then transfer to a T shirt.  I don't understand Corel Draw.  Do I have to puchase the program piece by piece?  Is Corel Draw Graphic Suite X3 a stand alone product or ?.  Thanks for any help you can give me.