The hypocrisy of that situation is that GC-Prevue's GWK file is really just a collection of imported Gerber layers. It takes less than a minute to import and set them up in a GWK, so what is the difference between a GWK file and a collection of individual Gerbers? I have to believe that these places (that don't want Gerbers or charge a surcharge for Gerbers) are simply playing marketing games.
-- Sincerely, Brad Velander.
I think that's the main reason. I don't think they charged for Gerbers originally, and I used to get the occasional phone call from them, as the software I was using didn't identify the layers automatically and I sometimes forgot to provide a file explaining what they were. The software I use now generates names like "Elsie_en_2(Silkscreen Top).gbr" so that it's quite obvious what they are. GC-Prevue is useful anyway for checking that a border has been included and that drill holes haven't. PCB-Pool don't mind them, but some other suppliers object to them.
Leon
Phi Dung Mo wrote: : The hypocrisy of that situation is that GC-Prevue's GWK file is really : just a collection of imported Gerber layers. It takes less than a minute to : import and set them up in a GWK, so what is the difference between a GWK : file and a collection of individual Gerbers? : I have to believe that these places (that don't want Gerbers or charge a : surcharge for Gerbers) are simply playing marketing games.
I do agree with you that refusing individual Gerbers seems silly. However, I wonder if the idea is that the .gwk file organizes the Gerbers into a defined stack-up order, and thereby minimizes the possibility of mistakenly mis-ordering the layers during manufacturing?
Yes, smart people name their Gerbers with names caling out the ordering sequence, and also provide a stack-up in the README & fab dwg. However, these PCB houses might be dealing with less-than-clueful students and hobbiests. Also, it is always possible for somebody in manufacturing to mess something up despite the most carefully crafted design package.
Stuart
I have looked at it but not tried it yet. Nevertheless I am tempted to say WOW! Did they drop a zero in the price?
I purchased RimuPCB, and found it to be the most intuitive PCB layout package I ever tried to use. I was productive almost immediately, and finished a 4-layer surface mount design.
There was *ONE SMALL* problem - the gerbers for the inner (plane) layers weren't generated properly. I sent an email to the developer, along with my files, and a fixed version was available in less than 8 hours.
Urbite
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