Re: gEDA-user: Postscript PCB lines

[Xtian Xultz <xultz@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Em Qui 02 Mar 2006 11:53, DJ Delorie escreveu:
> > Dj, I looked a lot at your files. The result is absolutelly
> > awesome. I didnt understood what are those fat black lines around
> > the design.
>
> Alignment marks.  When you do a double sided board with toner
> transfer, you need them.  Or you can use them to put down a strip of
> masking tape to act as an "edge guide" to help position your board.

Hmm, I made one double sided board with toner transfer (and said to myself to 
never do it again), because I use laserfilms and they have a great deformatin 
with heat. I used the holes (I first made the holes with my drill, then I 
transfered onde side and then the other). The board what big, it was about 2h 
a.m. and I had to show the board working at 8 a.m. and was not only the 
circuit, but firmware had to work too, and I didnt tested no one. Was a long 
night. Very long. Dont want to remeber :D
I tryed to make another double sided board some weeks ago, but using a board 
with photoresist in both sides. To do it, I made the holes again to fit on 
the two films, then I fixed them with clips and I placed the board inside, 
like an envelope. But didnt worked because my UV light was not good and I was 
tired, then I sended the board to the fab. At home I cant metalize the 
holes... someone knows how to do it?

> You don't have to print them if you don't want to.  If you don't print
> the outline (another option), you should print them, so you know where
> your board is.
>
> > Maybe it is strange to you, because AFAIK you allways made your
> > boards from the gerber files, but it is cheaper to me made my boards
> > from the ps files
>
> I've used the PS files to make boards before.
>
> > the films in another print bureau that only accepts gerbers, but I
> > dont know why when I have a line on the silk over a pad, those
> > prints dont cut the
>
> We've talked about that.  PCB was assuming it could clip silk, but the
> fabs don't really support that.  I've changed HID so that it prints
> silk over pads on the screen, which is what the fabs do anyway, and
> it's up to you (and drc?) to avoid that.  The PS files will have silk
> over pads now too.  I wish PCB could deal with it automatically, but
> until someone adds the heavy math to just not print silk where it's
> not wanted, this is the best we can do.

Thats a good news. Because so, the program becomes WYSIWYG :D
I just need to redraw my parts... :)

> > So, what I will say is not a must have, but is just a sugestion: to
> > have an option on the print dialog, to print in one file or separate
> > file (please, inside an directory), I think that is better to have
> > more options.
>
> I'll add it to the list.
>
> > Anyway, the work you are doing is absolutelly awesome. I am just
> > afraid about if the work you are doing in Lesstif will be usefull,
> > because IMHO the Lesstif are tremendous ugly and outdated. But its
> > just great.
>
> Have you tried it?  Lesstif is neither ugly nor outdated, it's just
> not what you're used to.

IMHO, Lesstif is ugly yes. Well, I am very ugly too... and Xaw is ugly too.
I just think that Qt or GTK are visually much more attractive, themeable, 
etc...

> And the whole point of HID is that YOU get to choose which gui you
> use, and everything else stays the same.  Both GUIs use the same print
> engine, the same gerber plotter, the same autorouter, etc.

Thats a good thing, I mean. 
Its good to have option, but I think how much problem is to have some 
duplicated (or triplicated, or more) work to make the same thing, i.e., to 
draw the GUI for the PCB core.