Comments on: Creating schematics and PCB layouts with open source tools http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/ "Another visitor! Stay a while. Staaaaay, FOREVER!" Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:40:19 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Windell Oskay http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-101 Windell Oskay Thu, 08 Jan 2009 21:32:23 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-101 >The thing that made me snap and gave me hysteric fits was creating new symbols and footprints Ah. Making footprints in PCB is actually straightforward and useable-- it's basically like copying and pasting a small section of your layout. But I'll agree with you 100% that making new symbols in gschem stinks. It's the single weakest point in the whole workflow. (I'm half tempted to write my own utility for that part.) >The thing that made me snap and gave me hysteric fits was creating new symbols and footprints

Ah. Making footprints in PCB is actually straightforward and useable– it’s basically like copying and pasting a small section of your layout. But I’ll agree with you 100% that making new symbols in gschem stinks. It’s the single weakest point in the whole workflow. (I’m half tempted to write my own utility for that part.)

]]> By: robert http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-100 robert Thu, 08 Jan 2009 07:26:48 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-100 Well, I speak my mind freely. Maybe I should have put more emphasis on stating that the gEDA suite is usable, but lacks certain things I (personally) just don't want to do without. To me these features gravitate in the 'ease of use department'. The thing that made me snap and gave me hysteric fits was creating new symbols and footprints, that is having to do console hacking or 'just modify an existing part' and the likes. Well, I speak my mind freely.

Maybe I should have put more emphasis on stating that the gEDA suite is usable, but lacks certain things I (personally) just don’t want to do without. To me these features gravitate in the ‘ease of use department’. The thing that made me snap and gave me hysteric fits was creating new symbols and footprints, that is having to do console hacking or ‘just modify an existing part’ and the likes.

]]> By: Windell Oskay http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-99 Windell Oskay Thu, 08 Jan 2009 03:35:29 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-99 robert, I don't know where you get the idea that gEDA PCB is difficult or takes forever to learn. I actually find it to be one of the fastest and most intuitive interfaces for pcb layout that I have used. (And I speak as someone that designs circuit boards-- using expensive pcb design software for a living.) It's stable, efficient and powerful, and only as complicated as it needs to be. There's a tutorial that you need to walk through in order to understand the workflow. I was admittedly baffled before the tutorial, but it took me about two hours to do it, and I pretty much knew what I was doing after that. For the first few days of using PCB I was finding minor annoyances-- mostly learning where to find different features-- but after that I've been really quite happy with it. All of the circuit boards for Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories projects (Peggy, Meggy, target boards, interactive LED panels, etc) are now done in PCB. The Meggy Jr PCB is actually one of the smaller ones that we've done, and it wasn't particularly challenging or time consuming. We've fabbed *thousands* of boards now in a dozen or so designs that we made in PCB, and I've always been impressed by how well they turn out. You don't have to use it or love it, but I don't think that dissing it is called for either. :) -Windell robert,
I don’t know where you get the idea that gEDA PCB is difficult or takes forever to learn. I actually find it to be one of the fastest and most intuitive interfaces for pcb layout that I have used. (And I speak as someone that designs circuit boards– using expensive pcb design software for a living.) It’s stable, efficient and powerful, and only as complicated as it needs to be. There’s a tutorial that you need to walk through in order to understand the workflow. I was admittedly baffled before the tutorial, but it took me about two hours to do it, and I pretty much knew what I was doing after that.

For the first few days of using PCB I was finding minor annoyances– mostly learning where to find different features– but after that I’ve been really quite happy with it. All of the circuit boards for Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories projects (Peggy, Meggy, target boards, interactive LED panels, etc) are now done in PCB. The Meggy Jr PCB is actually one of the smaller ones that we’ve done, and it wasn’t particularly challenging or time consuming. We’ve fabbed *thousands* of boards now in a dozen or so designs that we made in PCB, and I’ve always been impressed by how well they turn out.

You don’t have to use it or love it, but I don’t think that dissing it is called for either. :)

-Windell

]]> By: mightyOhm » Blog Archive » gerbv - A free, open source gerber viewer for Linux / OS X http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-98 mightyOhm » Blog Archive » gerbv - A free, open source gerber viewer for Linux / OS X Wed, 07 Jan 2009 03:37:02 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-98 [...] I missed an interesting update to a post over on My 2uf, not everyone seems to like the rest of the gEDA suite. gerbv [...] [...] I missed an interesting update to a post over on My 2uf, not everyone seems to like the rest of the gEDA suite. gerbv [...]

]]> By: robert http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-94 robert Fri, 19 Dec 2008 21:15:49 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-94 I'm done with the PCB part of gEDA until they manage to get a single GUI up and running. Terrible stuff. I wonder how long it took the guys @ evilmadscientist.com to make the layout for Meggy Jr RGB. I won't even think about how long it must have taken them to get used to it. I’m done with the PCB part of gEDA until they manage to get a single GUI up and running. Terrible stuff. I wonder how long it took the guys @ evilmadscientist.com to make the layout for Meggy Jr RGB. I won’t even think about how long it must have taken them to get used to it.

]]> By: Jeff http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-51 Jeff Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:27:35 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-51 I am really curious to see what you think of gEDA. I made the decision recently to go with Eagle. The more I use Eagle, the less frustrated I am by it's somewhat nonintuitive user interface and the more I start to love it. I just completed my first design cycle using entirely Eagle (schematics, board layout, gerber files to the PCB shop) and I am very impressed. The gerber export was actually easier than some pro tools I have used in the past! I am really curious to see what you think of gEDA. I made the decision recently to go with Eagle. The more I use Eagle, the less frustrated I am by it’s somewhat nonintuitive user interface and the more I start to love it. I just completed my first design cycle using entirely Eagle (schematics, board layout, gerber files to the PCB shop) and I am very impressed. The gerber export was actually easier than some pro tools I have used in the past!

]]> By: robert http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-50 robert Wed, 19 Nov 2008 23:10:11 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-50 Looks good, very complete library. But I'd need windoze to run it and it's not open source. Seems comparable to Eagle. Looks good, very complete library. But I’d need windoze to run it and it’s not open source. Seems comparable to Eagle.

]]> By: andy http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/2008/11/19/creating-schematics-and-pcb-layouts-with-open-source-tools/#comment-49 andy Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:44:43 +0000 http://blog.spitzenpfeil.org/wordpress/?p=554#comment-49 try "diptrace" seems upto the job for designing pcbs try “diptrace” seems upto the job for designing pcbs

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