[Ground-station] How are we set for layout tools?

[Hugh Blemings]

Hiya,

I realise I may be about to embark on a conversation almost as 
controversial as vi vs emacs, but...

Given the rapidly maturing feature set of open source layout tools like 
KiCAD and the like, is it realistic for us to use these instead ?

I've seen some pretty sophisticated boards done with the tools and get 
the sense they are approaching feature parity with the likes of Altium.  
The trick, I gather, for some of the more sophisticated features 
(RF/Stripline stuff, impedance/length matched traces etc.) seems to be 
to work off builds from the upstream project rather than what is 
installed in the distro of choice.

With the longevity of the Ground Station project and associated 
hardware, seems that favouring open tools may have merit vs placing 
ourselves at the mercy of the shifting winds of proprietary tools ?

Just a thought anyways!

vy 73
Hugh



On 27/7/20 6:29 am, Keith Wheeler via Ground-Station wrote:
> I've got a "Circuit Studio" (essentially Altium lite) install. I don't 
> think my subscription is up to date for new downloads but I've got a 
> perpetual license to use it. Did Altium for many years, Circuit Studio 
> is quite usable for me.
>
> On Sat, Jul 25, 2020 at 8:35 AM Michelle Thompson via Ground-Station 
> <ground-station at lists.openresearch.institute> wrote:
>
>     General call and survey.
>
>     Who is currently available for board layout?
>
>     What tools or upgrades do you need?
>
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