Homebrew PCBs

Alan,
	Wow! You've really done your homework. I appreciate the offer, and all of the information. This is gold! However, in the meantime, it looks like my board may be taken up commercially, which is exactly what I want - I don't have to do any of the 'business' work, but yet anyone can buy completed and tested boards. Even though setting up the process to sell bare boards myself may be really simple (I'll take your word for it), for every minute I do that rather than write a line of code, my mood goes south. I'm very unhappy doing anything but being a developer. Not a renaissance man at all. Not that I'm proud of it, but it's just the way things are. I'll let you all know if/when this comes to pass. In the meantime, there's quite a bit of software to write! ;-) About the different package variations - I'm really only doing the larger ones to prove to myself that I can. You're quite right that a generic board is a much better idea, but the kids only need 8 output bits (to emulate a parallel port) so anything over that is 'extra'. So the small boards are the only ones that (for now) will be built, and the larger ones are just for my 'practice'. I drool at the challenge of soldering that QFN myself.

*Brian

  Mainly sending to the list since a few others might like the PIC 
pattern, just skip the rest of the message after that if you don't have 
interest in how to sell prototype boards without much hassle..  
Considered not sending since enabling isn't in my best interest, but 
this type of pattern is common enough anyway so it's not that big of a 
deal..

  For Brian, if you want to do this, I am placing a board order around 
the end of this week or beginning of next, my board is simple and done 
just doing tweaks for size and fit..  They allow combined shipping, if 
you forward $80 (the $69.99 and ~$10 will add on my shipping..) by 
Paypal to me and the board pattern by the time mine goes out, it will 
economize things for you by another $20 for the 200 sq inches total.  In 
fact since your board is simple I will finish it off for you and add a 
232 pattern and maybe another desirable item or two that won't increase 
board space.  My stuff is making money, so you can have the ecomization, 
but I'll keep 3-4 boards for my use, and send your order on 2 day 
priority with insurance once it gets here.  Takes 3-4 weeks for them to 
get here though.  Should be able to make 40 boards easily enough, maybe 
50+ with a little squeezing, and they part them and come in a nice 
stack..  I would fund it myself but every spare cent is going into items 
for an upcoming convention, $80 now for me is hundreds less worth to 
sell then, so it'd be a much later date before I'd do a set of these 
even to sell.  Most of the details are below..

Alan