Re: alternatives to EAGLE cad?

x @[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 wrote:
>Lately I've been annoyed and frustrated with EAGLE.
>
Heh.  Doesn't even sound like you've encoutered
their lock-you-out-of-your-own-work-product DRM yet.
http://groups.google.com/group/comp.arch.embedded/browse_frm/thread/f794e82d26b59e18/d7cf4149edb93ac7?q=*-*-website+reuse+paying.*+*-I-will-switch+cracked-*+*.would.not.help.*+zzz+after-*-*-version-*+copied+*.*.unlock.*.designs+*-*-*-*-exchange-*-*-*-*-third-party+reused+qq+*-*-single-bit-*-*-*-*+useless+*-*-*-projects-could-no-longer-be-opened

(I'm becoming increasingly disenchanted
with closed-source software of all stripes
--well, mostly the antics of the cor****ations.)

>After using EAGLE's "backwards" interface all these years,
>I guess a 'normal' interface is difficult for me to use ;)
>
There's that too--though it's usually not a huge deal.

>[...]I'm hoping to find a more time efficient PCB cad system.
> -Dave Pollum

If you use Cadsoft's scripting capability,
I don't think you will find a package much more time-efficient.

With all the acquisition / knife-the-baby activity in the ECAD
industry,
I'm not confident that ANY current payware offering
will still be available/sup****ted 2 years from now.

Depending on your needs, there are several GPL'd offerings:
http://kicad.sourceforge.net
http://geda.seul.org
(Often called *Windoze-hostile*
--though there _are_ folks using it under Windoze.)

http://www.freepcb.com
(Requires seperate capture app[1])
http://tinycad.sourceforge.net
(Requires seperate capture app[1])

Even if there are time-efficiency gains, for several weeks
learning the interface/quirks of a new app will eat those up.
..
..
[1] LTspice produces compatible netlists.