Post 9srU2udQb7opRM1LSi by sfcgeorge@ruby.social
 (DIR) More posts by sfcgeorge@ruby.social
 (DIR) Post #9srU2udQb7opRM1LSi by sfcgeorge@ruby.social
       2020-03-08T13:25:18Z
       
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       Tried to design a PCB and utterly failed* Eagle is way too complicated & the free version is too limited.* KiCad is almost as unintuitive as Eagle.* LibrePCB looks powerful & intuitive but I can’t get it to work.* Fritzing is beautifully simple but placement isn't precise.
       
 (DIR) Post #9srU2uuRZrQiI7yvz6 by sfcgeorge@ruby.social
       2020-03-08T13:25:19Z
       
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       Hence I’ll probably just hardwire. I’d love a PCB though.
       
 (DIR) Post #9srU2vshxndTJ2B3uy by james@ruby.social
       2020-03-10T10:42:12Z
       
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       @sfcgeorge what are you making?
       
 (DIR) Post #9srURxFi0GbwnVrpbM by sfcgeorge@ruby.social
       2020-03-10T10:46:41Z
       
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       .@james I’m making a custom mechanical keyboard (inspired by technomancy@hi.technomancy.us Atreus) 😄 It’ll have a laser cut metal plate, 3D printed case, and Bluetooth. Here’s where I’m at with the design:
       
 (DIR) Post #9srUnth1uwYO856r0C by james@ruby.social
       2020-03-10T10:50:43Z
       
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       @sfcgeorge neat! I've used Fritzing a little bit (with oshpark.com doing the manufacture) and it worked out well (i.e. the mistakes were all mine), but I totally agree about the other tools, the learning curve is insane.Good luck!
       
 (DIR) Post #9srV2Wsl0frFj6ZWhk by sfcgeorge@ruby.social
       2020-03-10T10:53:21Z
       
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       @james Mmm Fritzing looks lovely, such a well thought through UI. But as every component is at a precise angle and location to line up with the plate it would be a pain. Plus I’m having this bug where it doesn’t respect the precise values I’m typing in https://github.com/fritzing/fritzing-app/issues/3639
       
 (DIR) Post #9srVBlYhoPHjqqb6VE by james@ruby.social
       2020-03-10T10:55:04Z
       
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       @sfcgeorge yeah, I can imagine you have much more precise requirements for the keyswitch mounting positions than I needed.@infovore might have some pointers about resources for learning the more advanced tools, maybe?
       
 (DIR) Post #9srbcNuWRVMY3GsUfg by infovore@mastodon.social
       2020-03-10T12:07:06Z
       
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       @james @sfcgeorge well, I could happily do something in person one night at Somerset House if you're both around London - afraid I don't know where @sfcgeorge is based!
       
 (DIR) Post #9srbpjXRLIsktSRkeG by infovore@mastodon.social
       2020-03-10T12:08:04Z
       
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       @james @sfcgeorge I would have written less if I had more time. But I will happily help anybody over the difficulty wall.
       
 (DIR) Post #9srbpjtQ1aSlzcjIuG by james@ruby.social
       2020-03-10T12:09:33Z
       
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       @infovore @sfcgeorge ha!Thanks very much for all that, super valuable. Depending how things play out wrt social distancing, I'd certainly be up for something in person.
       
 (DIR) Post #9srcg68CaV0M1Sbwbg by infovore@mastodon.social
       2020-03-10T12:19:01Z
       
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       @james @sfcgeorge GOOD POINT I would also happily do a screen-share. I'm reading somebody's guide to building keyboards in Kicad right now and it's good, except there's some stuff it just skims over that would be different if a person was explaining it in person.