18 Dec
2015
18 Dec
'15
5:38 p.m.
From: Brent Hilpert
I need to move to something newer but I haven't
evaluated current
schematic-drawing programs
Dave Bridgham got me started with KiCAD, and that seems like a pretty good
system to me. It has separate sub-systems for schematic capture; circuitry
checking; netlist generation; PCB layout; etc, etc. I've only worked with the
first three, but it seemed pretty good for them.
I'm a little concerned they won't provide the
degree of control or
finesse I like
Well, you'll have to try it and see, but it's pretty customizable: they
provide libraries of common components, but it has a nice component editor
for drawing up new ones (or customizing the ones it comes with).
Component location and line routing (in the schematic capture) are manual,
but it's grid-based, so things line up.
Noel
18 Dec
18 Dec
7:19 p.m.
New subject: Design tools Was: Mystery IC: Allen Bradley 314B102
On 12/18/2015 02:38 PM, Noel Chiappa wrote:
Dave Bridgham got me started with KiCAD, and that
seems like a pretty
good system to me. It has separate sub-systems for schematic capture;
circuitry checking; netlist generation; PCB layout; etc, etc. I've
only worked with the first three, but it seemed pretty good for
them.
KiCAD isn't bad; I used to use Eagle a lot, which was also pretty good.
Before that was OrCAD, and before that, Schema--and before that, a
plastic template and a pencil.
If you join the "OldDOSOrcad" Yahoo group, I think they've got a copy of
OrCAD and additional files if you find yourself pining for the old stuff.
Schematics have changed a lot in my experience. There was a time when
drawing wires was important; a lot of schematics today look more like
pin lists then a circuit diagram. Times change.
--Chuck
19 Dec
19 Dec
10:33 a.m.
* Noel Chiappa <jnc at mercury.lcs.mit.edu> [151218 17:38]:
Not to mention it's open source so if you don't like the control you
have you can always change it as desired.
Todd
From: Brent
Hilpert
I need to move to something newer but I
haven't evaluated current
schematic-drawing programs
Dave Bridgham got me started with KiCAD, and that seems like a pretty good
system to me. It has separate sub-systems for schematic capture; circuitry
checking; netlist generation; PCB layout; etc, etc. I've only worked with the
first three, but it seemed pretty good for them.
I'm a little concerned they won't provide
the degree of control or
finesse I like
Well, you'll have to try it and see, but it's pretty customizable: they
provide libraries of common components, but it has a nice component editor
for drawing up new ones (or customizing the ones it comes with).
Component location and line routing (in the schematic capture) are manual,
but it's grid-based, so things line up.
Noel 
11:24 a.m.
New subject: Design tools Was: Mystery IC: Allen Bradley 314B102
On 12/19/2015 9:33 AM, Todd Goodman wrote:
* Noel Chiappa <jnc at mercury.lcs.mit.edu>
[151218 17:38]:
Not to mention it's open source so if you don't like the control you
have you can always change it as desired.
Todd
I settled on and used KiCAD for both the schematic and PCB layout for my
Mark-8 project and a couple of other smaller boards, after looking at
AutoTrax (DeX), DesignSpark and DipTrace. I actually installed and
tried AutoTrax and DesignSpark.
I had no problems at all with KiCAD, really. Open source, open ended.
Had no issues sending the boards off to be fabricated, etc.
JRJ
From:
Brent Hilpert
I need to move to something newer but I
haven't evaluated current
schematic-drawing programs
Dave Bridgham got me started with KiCAD, and that seems like a pretty good
system to me. It has separate sub-systems for schematic capture; circuitry
checking; netlist generation; PCB layout; etc, etc. I've only worked with the
first three, but it seemed pretty good for them.
I'm a little concerned they won't provide
the degree of control or
finesse I like
Well, you'll have to try it and see, but it's pretty customizable: they
provide libraries of common components, but it has a nice component editor
for drawing up new ones (or customizing the ones it comes with).
Component location and line routing (in the schematic capture) are manual,
but it's grid-based, so things line up.
Noel 
1:12 p.m.
On Dec 19, 2015, at 10:33 AM, Todd Goodman <tsg at
bonedaddy.net> wrote:
* Noel Chiappa <jnc at mercury.lcs.mit.edu> [151218 17:38]:
Not to mention it's open source so if you don't like the control you
have you can always change it as desired.
Thanks for the pointers, I'm going to check those out. I've been a user
(occasional user) of Eagle CAD for years now. It's a pretty good program; the only
thing I've missed is split planes. Perhaps those have been added more recently, I
haven't looked.
Some years ago I ran into an open source PCB layout program that had an interesting
approach to routing, yielding curvy looking traces instead of the more typical straight
lines and corners. Forgot the name, will see if I can find it again.
paul
From:
Brent Hilpert
I need to move to something newer but I
haven't evaluated current
schematic-drawing programs
Dave Bridgham got me started with KiCAD, and that seems like a pretty good
system to me. It has separate sub-systems for schematic capture; circuitry
checking; netlist generation; PCB layout; etc, etc. I've only worked with the
first three, but it seemed pretty good for them....
3139
days inactive
3140
days old
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