Diptrace is easy to learn and pretty powerful. I definitely found it easier to learn then Eagle. In the end though, I ended up switching to Eagle because it has a much larger library of components and has become a defacto standard with the Arduino community. Eagle is definitely more powerful then Diptrace.
I never tried DesignSpark. KiCad never worked properly on my OSX box.
--
Aaron Turner
http://synfin.net/ Twitter: @synfinatic
https://github.com/synfinatic/tcpreplay - Pcap editing and replay tools for Unix & Windows
Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary
Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.
-- Benjamin Franklin
Aaron Turner
http://synfin.net/ Twitter: @synfinatic
https://github.com/synfinatic/tcpreplay - Pcap editing and replay tools for Unix & Windows
Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary
Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.
-- Benjamin Franklin
On Tue, Oct 29, 2013 at 10:50 AM, <beefyzee@...> wrote:
Hi Mukundan,
the last two or three weeks I've been learning Diptrace. The free version has a 300 pin limit but no board size limit, and you get a pretty good auto-router too (I like that bit). There's 2 pdf books available, the tutorial guide and the training manual.
The main thing I found about this software is EASY TO LEARN. Year ago I tried the very popular Eagle but gave up on it. With Diptrace I was on my way in a very short time.
Good luck with your choice.
---In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, <homebrew_pcbs@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
Dear Experts,I intend to start using a PCB tool to make my own homebrew PCBs. I have used PADS long ago, and even PCAD. But I'm looking for a free E-CAD tool (primarily schematic and PCB). I have looked at various options, but am unable to decide which is best worth the investment in time to learn the tool.I need a tool that has the shortest learning curve, but not at the expense of features. Could someone please advise me? I have sort of narrowed down on DesignSpark and KiCad.Thank you in advance!Mukundan