Low cost PCB layout software

I have had three packages I have purchased over the years.

Two are no logner available. :-(

All PCB packages will have a different user interface. This is really a pain. When you get use to useing one package, the same vendor will change their interface, or they will go under.

So, try some of the freeware packages just to get a feel for whats out there. Yes, you will burn up a lot of time.

I have just starting useing E.A.G.L.E software.

Their demo version will only allow you two layers and a small PCB, but it does work and you can send the Gerber files to anyone you like.

If you find anything you like, reply here so we can get a feel for how you evaluated those packages.

hamilton

Laying out boards is such a pain in the neck. As the layout s/w becomes more "featureful", the work becomes more difficult and more time consuming.

My opinion is that it isn't worth doing these things on your own. I had olimex.com do a several board layouts for me and the boards came out fine. They can do the manufacturing, too, at a good price, and I'm pretty sure they can provide you with gerbers.

There are a lot of other places to go for board layout, for sure. I just mention this place because I've worked with them before and they did a good job.

Mike

Check out Protel Autotrax and Easytrax. They are at the bottom of the page under freeware:

I started my company with Autotrax when I couldn't afford anything else. If you can find yourself an early dos version of Orcad, Autotrax will take it's netlist.

Autotrax runs under DOS, but that shouldn't be a big hassle if money is your major concern.

Hi,

Did you evaluate EAGLE

Pitch is neither here nor there, Eagle can handle any trace width/spacing you care to name.

The cheapest version is $50 but it won't do your layer requirement (basically, it is just permission to use the free version for commercial projects). But the pricing of the full package is very reasonable compared to similarly featured products. And the Cadsoft newsgroups are very active, so there is good peer support.

These packages are evil. Don't use them.

I agree; give Protel Autotrax a go.

There are some higher resolution display drivers available. It runs fine DOS full screen in windows.

The biggest problem I found is that display zoom; it would be nice to go another level or two in for very fine work (0.001 tweeking). It doesn't support burried vias and the copper pour could be better, but it's OK for fine pitch double sided boards.

I purchased Autotrax when it was first released probably 15 years ago and still use it. Autotrax can be used very quickly from the keyboard with little mousing. The manual editing, draging etc. is quick and easy. It's also quite easy to create new component footprints.

I've recently tried other packages looking for a replacement but haven't picked one yet. To get the same features you end up with a bit more at prices starting at $1000 to $1500 USD, and a windows interface that's quite different to Autotrax and I find slower.

Paul Bealing

I've used Eagle from CADSoft for a few months now and have been generally pleased. The trial version is free for download, but the board size is limited and the auto router dosen't work. This can be "fixed" by paying a resonable registration fee of 50 USD, or by other means. Their website is:

-J

It definitely does work, I've been using it for at least 5 years.

That's because it was developed on GNU/Linux.

I think if you can lay out pcbs, you can handle simple file operations with GNU/Linux, it really isn't hard.

PCB is "click and grunt" just like any other GUI cad app.

I have some pics of PCB at work on my site:-

Have a loom at EasyPC:

It's very easy to use and is inexpensive. I used it for years.

Leon

The autorouter is disabled in eval versions now? That is a new twist for 4.11. Download 4.09 - it's still available on their ftp site, and the autorouter works in eval mode.

Have a look at

Check out

One replacement for Autotrax I tried was Circuit/Traxmaker (now from Protel, originally from Microcode). It's interface is similar to "Autotrax for the Mac" which it was probably derived from. It has a lot of autotrax type stuff which make it eminently recommendable. But it also violates a lot of it's own interface guidelines i.e. it does lack consistency in it's interface. Anyway it is downloadable from the Protel website.

regards Andrew

I was talking with a friend of mine the other day. We were talking about winxp being fairly stable. "Yup," I said, "Its the most stable microsoft OS since DOS." -- Mike

Yes, it's not bad; I have the demo CD. Bad; the demo only runs for 5 or 10 minutes at a time for 30 days. Good: it imports Autotrax files. It's like a windows version of Autotrax with a few improvements. It's quite expensive for just the PCB layout considering Autotrax is free and almost as good. The Circuitmaker packet says it includes schematic capture and simulation but I haven't tried these.

Another that was quite good was Protel For Windows (PFW). I've looked at version 2.8 (I think); again an improved Autotrax. Problem; I don't think it's free and no longer sold.

I think Altium should continue selling the last version of PFW for about $250 USD.

Regards Paul Bealing

Well, I have read all the replies and have looked at most, if not all of the recommended systems. Unfortunately I have not found any of them to be workable (or at least easily used).

The Eagle software from CadSoft seemed like it had the most promise, but I tried to download the older version 4.09 as someone recommended and could not get either release to install. Both complain of bad files even though I downloaded them twice. I then tried to download 4.11 and can't seem to connect to the server.

So at this point I am still looking. The Protel Autotrax software is very much a DOS package complete with a memory manager which did not seem to initialize correctly under Win2k. So I don't think it is worth trying to get it to work with a modern OS. Other packages installed ok, but are very limited including providing nearly no parts library. If they are going to limit the number of layers and pins, why don't they at least include a moderately complete library? My idea was to do a simple, small project to evaluate the tool. But with all the work required to learn how to create my own device footprints, it is not worth it.

I find it expecially odd when they don't provide a file save capability. If you can't do *any* useful work with their eval package, just how much time do they expect you to spend with it?

Eagle Cadsoft Can't download or install Autotrax Protel DOS based memory management Easytrax Protel Poor UI EasyPC Numberone Demo has no save or plot functionality Cadstar Zuken Not simple RangerXL Seetrax Still haven't gotten a password file (not sure if it is time limited or not)

I'll keep trying to download one of the Eagle versions. But otherwise I have found all of these demo programs to be lacking for my needs.

Hi, the eval package is just that, your not supposed to be able to do any useful work with it. Libraries: even the pro packages have allmost useless ones, you will allways have to build your own. You get what you pay for (if your lucky). If your really short of cash ask someone to layout a board for you, when you have some sales under your belt you will have the money to buy something worthwhile.

Ralph,

Eagle really is a good package. It'd be worth working through your install errors, if you've got the patience.

Cadsoft hosts newsgroups for product support, and I've been pleased with the user community as well. Before I bought, I scoured both to look for the chronic complaints and found there were no serious issues, and a lot of compliments - a nice side-effect of an open support forum. Here are their English newsgroups: news://news.cadsoft.de/eagle.userchat.eng news://news.cadsoft.de/eagle.support.eng

If you're like me, you'll dislike Eagle's mouse UI, but once you learn the keyboard syntax things go much faster (it also has some potent scripting capabilities). It does take a little training; the UI is not intuitive to newcomers. There's a tutorial you can download from Cadsoft's site - I highly recommend it.

The demo version is full-featured, but limited to ~4x6" board and 2 layers. (The board, traces, and PTH can exceed this dimention, but not component pads/holes.) The demo sadly does not include the PDF manual, which makes eval quite a bit harder.

And as someone else commented - when it comes to libraries, "Trust but verify" against datasheets. I've been very pleased with the extensive Eagle library, though I have found a few errors (like pad spacing on an SMT package). The good thing is... it's fairly easy to publish the corrections to the user community.

This is really bizarre. What OS are you trying to install on? Are you running antivirus software, automatic file restoration utilities or other weird programs that may be hooking file I/O?

My guess is that you probably downloaded with Internet Explorer, and the download silently timed out, so you have a partial file only. Try, try again :) Eagle has one of the least restricted eval modes you'll find.

Only a few companies set up the tools to prevent you from doing any work at all. Most allow you to do small boards with limitations on the pin counts or nets or similar. This is exactly what I want to do. But most of these make the process very hard by expecting you to make your own library of parts (unless you are still working with 1/4 watt axial resistors and DIPs).

My time is not worthless and I expect a vendor to allow me to truely evaluate a tool before I buy. I never said I was looking for a free lunch. I just want to buy one tool that I know I will continue to use rather than to pay for a tool and expect to have to pay for another one when this one doesn't work out. To ask me to spend time to learn their tool that won't even save my work, is not only a waste of my time, it is absurd! I couldn't even begin to evaluate a product if I have to start over every time I have to leave it and do some real work!