KiCad

I currently use a UK cad package Boardmaker 3.

I am looking for a package that will run under windows and linux on an eeepc.

KiCad looks interesting. Anyone tried it? Anyone running it on an eeepc?

Reply to
Raveninghorde
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I have, not on an eeepc but I see no reason why it shouldn't work on it. However, I had to shelve it for now because it has a rather ugly looking drawing frame embedded in the code, can't change to your own. Also some issues with Auto-Numbering on parts with multiple devices such as the LM324. There are times when I need to control which section goes where, but gEDA was a lot worse in that respect.

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Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/
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Reply to
Joerg

Do you want both schematic capture and PCB layout?

Cheers

Ian

Reply to
Ian Bell

Joerg - what do you use now? I think from your post you have tried KiCad and gEDA tools. Find anything that seems to fit your requirements?

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Joe Chisolm
Marble Falls, Tx.
Reply to
Joe Chisolm

I tried Kicad PCB but I'm not impressed. Drawing and editing tracks is not very easy.

You could look into PCB (available for both Windows and Linux). Just remember to turn on the DRC check.

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Failure does not prove something is impossible, failure simply
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Reply to
Nico Coesel

Cadsoft Eagle. Almost the perfect CAD software like Orcad SDT was but with one rather serious flaw: No hierarchical sheet structures :-(

Unfortunately no. I want to test-drive MicroCad (from Winqcad). Probably that is not for you because it's Windows-based. Then I have very slight hopes that Cadsoft fixes the lack of hierarchy because they hinted as much in one of their forums. However, they were recently acquired by Farnell. Hopefully that acquisition doesn't go down the route of most of the others ... Orcad has IMHO never again ever reached the performance and most of all reliability levels of the old Orcad-SDT after they were bought. I used to be a loyal customer and have brought them tons of follow-up business but now it's not even on my list anymore.

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Regards, Joerg

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Reply to
Joerg

*Two* serious flaws: Now that Cadsoft's product is DRM'd, you can't trust anyone else's devices/symbols/footprints lest your work product become infected.
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Yup. If you go proprietary / closed-source, count on your app's vendor being purchased and the product being deprecated.

Reply to
JeffM

On Sat, 10 Oct 2009 09:18:34 -0700, Joerg wrote: [snip]

Thanks for the info. I may be stuck having to keep a windows box around. I'll look at Cadsoft Eagle again.

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Joe Chisolm
Marble Falls, Tx.
Reply to
Joe Chisolm

I think that one's overblown by the press and some web sites. I use Eagle since half a decade and haven't had one DRM issue. Not one. And I do get lots of schematics and models and whatnot from others, mostly clients. I guess they are all honest guys and use legit SW.

One should not expect the product of an illegal copy to be functional. IMHO Cadsoft has the right to protect their product. OTOH their license is ultra-generous. It's ok to use the stuff on PC plus laptop and they don't bug you with those dreaded dongels or MAC-locks. That alone puts them above most other CAD vendors. They trust their clients, plain and simple.

Let's hope not this time ... but in general that's what happens.

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Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/
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Reply to
Joerg

Cadsoft Eagle does come in a Linux edition. Not sure if they'll keep doing it after this Farnell acquisition.

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Regards, Joerg

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Reply to
Joerg

Joerg

Have you ever tried EDWinXP. I just found it,debating whether to give the demo a try.

It seems to have a lot of features for a pretty reasonable price Non Commercial Licenses start at $60.00 to a max of $270 for the Pro versions.

Doesn't support Linux.

The sites here.

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Reply to
Hammy

I bought an earlier version of Edwin. I replaced it after one project because it had crap design rule checking. It allowed clearances to be set to zero and the first boards made had several signal tracks connected to the ground plane.

Hopefully they've fixed that by now.

Reply to
Raveninghorde

This is OT.

Joerg I found a command line tools for using the GW Instek GDS series of oscilloscopes under Linux. It's here.

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Reply to
Hammy

This version doesnt allow a zero clearance, I just tried to set the clearance to zero and it flipped back to the default 8 mil.

Reply to
Hammy

There is usually something on ebay fairly cheap.

Reply to
Johnty

To all: Beware of scumbuckets selling ECAD apps. ...especially this dirtbag.

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*-*-the-ethics+uu-uu+suckers

Reply to
JeffM

..how about 6 mil?

Reply to
Robert Baer

Sounds more like 'user error' to me than a shortcoming of the software. Most PCB software I know allows to set the clearances to 0 and/or create gerbers without checking the entire design for shorts.

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Failure does not prove something is impossible, failure simply
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Reply to
Nico Coesel

Hi Joerg,

Don't forget the past! I remember the time when Eagle starts to support books with "How to install Eagle" that is obvious only needed fot those that didn't get a printed manual delivered to anyone that payd for the software. Like other programs the success of Eagle is based on the thousands of illegal copys on private PCs making this software to a quasi-standard. This is similar to MS-DOS, that was very long poor against DR-DOS/GEM and others, but "standard" on every PC but seldom payd on private used PCs. Same with WORD 4 and 5. Wordperfect was allways the better software but everybody had Word on is PC it was easy to get and easy to install without any problems. Beeing a de facto standard will give the softwarehouse much more money back than all the unused tools around.

That's the problem I see there: They don't trust them. If they would, they would fix this for their paying customers and would block the possibilities for crackers. Why should a customer have such problems that a cracker don't have? This is the invitation to use the cracked version of the software, isn't it?

Marte

Reply to
Marte Schwarz

It allows down to 1 mil. In fairness you should be setting up the design rules,you cant really blame the software if you neglect to set the design rules.

I ran through some of the examples of the demo EDWinXP 1.7. The software seems kind of buggy it crashed a couple of times once when opening the help! It also froze up a couple of times during install.

This could be because of my firewall "Online Armour" the "HIPS" feature has caused problems with other software.

Reply to
Hammy

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