pcb design package

[Jim Patchell]

    I don't know about Protel99sE, but, in protel for windows version
2.7, you can select if you want the holes to show in the pads by
selecting an option in the main dialog box for the Print Final Artwork.

    Generating lot's of vias is pretty common in grid based
autorouters.  The autorouter that protel uses is shaped based and I have
found that it generates about 1/6 th of the vias that the best grid
router I have.  However, this is not always a good thing.

    -Jim


Heiko van der Linden wrote:

>  Hi All, I've was wondering which are good capture/autorouter
> packages? I have been looking at eagle, protel 99SE and ultiboard
> andsome problems I have seen is that the output created by ultiboard
> is not the quality I expected to get. It gives edges on cornersand
> tracks. Another problem is that the router generates a lot of vias
> which are not nice to drill.Protel 99SE looks very nice but it doesn't
> generate output with holes in the pads so it makes life very difficult
> if youhave to drill the holes in a prototype.I have been playing
> around with Eagle which seems nice. But again the autorouter generates
> a lot of vias.Are there any packages around $450 that work good for
> synth-diy. I would like to hear how other programs performwith respect
> to via's, quality of output, speed and the quality of the
> libraries.Protel 99SE doesn't have a footprint for standard potmeters
> (like crappy Piher black pots). Greets,Heiko