[time-nuts] Schematic capture, anyone?

Mark Kahrs mark.kahrs at gmail.com
Fri Feb 24 14:07:32 UTC 2012


I'll add my $0.01 (depreciated).

I am working on a project with Eagle.  I started with the Gnu cad
stuff but like many free software projects, it has multiple user
interfaces and clunks.  I tired of it and switched to Eagle.

Eagle also has quirks but has the ability to switch back and forth
between schematic and layout.  I have added parts with the XML format
and while painful, it's not impossible.  Also, the user library of
scripts is very useful: there is one that converts the schematic to a
SPICE netlist (suitable for LTSpice with a little massaging).

If/when I need a larger board than the free version then I'll have to
decide what to do.  But for the time being, it's OK.

(And, as I like to say, when it comes to advice, you get what you pay for).

On Fri, Feb 24, 2012 at 2:49 AM, Chris Albertson
<albertson.chris at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Thu, Feb 23, 2012 at 10:52 PM, Charles P. Steinmetz
> <charles_steinmetz at lavabit.com> wrote:
>> I've been using LTspice for schematic capture and simulation at home.  Will
>> the PCB CAD tools being discussed (Eagle, DesignSpark, FreePCB, etc.) import
>> netlists from LTspice?  Or do folks prefer to do the schematic capture in a
>> CAD tool and export that netlist to LTspice for simulation?
>
>
> LT Spice is basically just the normal Spice simulator with a schematic
> capture program acting as a front end.    LTspice can export standard
> Spice net lists and can save to it's own file format too.  The spice
> net lists don't have any graphical information and don't have
> footprints.
>
> I find I don't  need to move data from a simulation to a design
> program because to rarely simulate exactly the target circuit.  You
> usually have to Spice specific stuff components like signal generators
> or maybe some parasitic capacitance for realism.  These parts only
> exist in a simulation not on the PCB.
> Chris Albertson
> Redondo Beach, California
>
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