Design printed circuit boards with KiCad
Boardwalk
© Lead Image © Shamain, 123RF.com
KiCad helps you design printed circuit boards with up to 32 layers, checks for optimal placement, and supplies schematics and assembly diagrams in the popular Gerber format for submission to PCB manufacturers.
KiCad was originally launched as simple schematics software; today, it supplies blueprints for components used at the CERN nuclear research center in Geneva, Switzerland. Accordingly, CERN's scientists are actively involved in the development of KiCad, which is available for Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS, and Windows [1].
Schematics created with this program are suitable for importing into other programs, depending on the format. KiCad comes with numerous features and, unlike the free versions of commercial counterparts such as Eagle Light Edition or Target 3001!, there are no restrictions on its use and scope. See the "Basics" boxout if you are a newcomer to the field.
The program is available for many distributions. You can download the latest version from the project page, where you also will find the source code if you want to compile the software yourself.
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