printed circuit boards

Hi Jeff,

If cost is your main concern and you are looking to build single projects or prove-up models (initial stage prototype to deside if cost of full prototype is worth it). A prototype board like at

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is your quickest, easiest solution.

Doc

Reply to
DocBrown
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Well, PCBExpress is free and very, very fast to learn, so not much of an investment. But it is quite limiting.

Reply to
Walter Harley

Since I am just tinkering with a wild-assed idea I'm going to go with ExpressPCB. (I had no problem getting it going in a blink.) If the idea shows promise I'll hire one of you professional PCB guys to coalesce what I expect to be several ExpressPCB boards into a single card.

...Jim Thompson

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|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
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Reply to
Jim Thompson

Jim, one new thing I've noticed is that four and six-layer PCBs are finally getting the same low prototype prices that two-layer boards have long enjoyed [but only from some firms]. Just something to keep in mind during your layout process.

Thanks, - Win

Reply to
Winfield Hill

"Jim Thompson" schreef in bericht news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com...

well

James, and other Express users,

I ever checked it out for myself:

- Installed a HP LaserJet 5P/5MP Postscript printer and set it to print to a file

- Printed the required layer using this printer to file test.ps

- Opened test.ps using a plain text editor (notepad will do for small files)

- Removed all but one of the dots of the grid. They look like

0 0 scol L ; : N 1222 3130 7 7 rp C 0 0 scol L ; : N 1282 3130 7 7 rp C 0 0 scol L ; : N 1342 3130 7 7 rp C

- Closed the file and reopened it by PSP at 600dpi

- Removed the grey background by color replacer

- Saved test.*** This way I got a clean artwork image ready to be printed by a 600dpi laserprinter.

I still have no intention to use it this way but at the time it looked like the challenge it wasn't.

pieter

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Reply to
petrus bitbyter

[snip]

"Posterize" (2-levels) is easier to do than "color replacer".

I notice something else as well: Reduce hole sizes to give an accurate "center" for your drill.

...Jim Thompson

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|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
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Reply to
Jim Thompson

Sent my first order to ExpressPCB Friday afternoon. Boards arived Airborne Tuesday morning. Amazed at the speed and the quality. I will use them again although they ar a bit pricey. Frank

Jim Thomps> >

Reply to
Frank Pickens

This summer I have worked on my first wholly owned electronics design project.

I used CadSoft's EAGLE, and I like it a lot.

I shipped EAGLE files off to Olimex according to the instructions on their web site. They emailed a .pdf of a fax form, and required that I sign it and FAX it back. Money quietly moved from my credit card to them, and boards quietly arrived at my house. It was professional. It was satisfying. I never had that post purchase let-down, though there was a missing week spent in customs. Now I am am an international player. :-)

Now, these are my first boards and my judgement is biased, but they were beautiful. They're still beautiful. I think the process of learning EAGLE and making the board was far preferable to wiring the circuit up on a breadboard. And even though, or perhaps because, I am a chemist, I wouldn't even consider etching at home.

Also, I bought a board from someone who published in Nuts & Volts a couple of years ago. Power and ground were shorted on that board. I didn't really care, because I just wanted to see and hold a board in preparation of my project, but the fact that they said their board house was crummy, and Olimex worked perfectly for me, has made me a little cautious about looking for references -- don't go just with price. Drop a prospective supplier an email, and if you're not really happy with the tone and response time, remember that it doesn't get better after they have your money.

One advice: occasionally drop in a pair of vias 0.100" apart, so you can cut traces, or solder in wire-wrap wire, or touch a probe tip. It IS a prototype, right? Just keep ease of debugging and modification in mind.

These boards have served their purpose well. I have programmed the PIC, made some decisions about the circuit. Now that the circuit is connected to power, programmer, daughter boards, and comm lines, I can see how some connectors should really go on another side of the board. Stuff that would have escaped me if I had breadboarded it. And it is tidy. I would have had a mountain of wire on the breadboard.

One of the regulars here pointed out to me that my design wasn't finished until I had manufacturer's part numbers. I was grumpy, but he was right. A Mouser web page was mighty handy.

... I have now modified the board, since all of the worrisom aspects of the software have been proven on the Rev. 1 prototype. I sent the Rev. 2 prototype boards back to Olimex yesterday. There are differences in hardware, and will need changes in software, but the confidence level at this point is very high and probably justified.

I have been into the libraries, and made custom parts there. For example, I have made a 'PIC-Hobby' pad layout that gives an extra row of pads adjacent to the PIC-16F877, so that hobbiest can make more modifications to my board. I also changed the silkscreen layers to the 10mil that Olimex wants (they will fix it for $5, but as I am McIntosh I chose to spend $500 of time to avoid the charge)

Reply to
Aubrey McIntosh

I have two 'half Eurocards' made with the freeware Eagle license. At one time, I wanted them put onto a single Eurocard. It turns out that the design ended up being much cleaner as two half cards, but the question may be useful anyway.

Can someone merge two routed half eurocards as a service for me with the commercial license? Is this request too close to the edge of the freeware license agreements? (I stay squeaky clean.) It is just a straight cut and paste, the two boards have matching connectors. The boards are completely routed, but there would be airwires between the connectors when they are merged, and those should become routed.

Reply to
Aubrey McIntosh

Aubrey:

Is it really that hard for you to come up with some $$$ to buy a license? I have found CadSoft to be helpful when begging them for a little extra discount now and then, for hobby use.

Are your boards for commercial or hobby purposes?

Good day!

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Reply to
Chris Carlen

I have also used ExpressPCB three boards $63 but no mask or silk. If I sent a file today (Sunday) the boards would arrive Thursday (at least in the US) and there is no mess to clean up and no chemicals to spill or children or pets to get into. even if you don't have them build the board there FREE download will do schematic and layout and you can print the PCB on your printer and use the printout for doing the home PCB thing. (ICY!)

again

poor

commercial

Reply to
Mark Mcmillan

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