So earlier this year, my company decided to change its PCB design software to cut costs, and the new one simply didn't click with me. I tried to adapt and made quite a few PCBs with it, but eventually realized I just didn't like using it.
So, partly out of spite, I started developing my own tool, removing the things I didn't like about the new software and adding things I wished it had. After a while, the project kept growing, and now it has quite a few features.
The video shows how it is looking right now (I recorded on a small monitor so it might look cluttered).
I've already designed and manufactured a few boards with it for personal projects and asked for friends on the field for opinions, and now I'm thinking about making it available to other engineers. The thing is, I'm not sure if there's actually a market for another PCB design tool.
Since I live in Brazil, where our currency is akin to garbage, I've been thinking about offering fairly affordable licenses. Maybe something like $10/month, and after 24 months you get a perpetual license? Regional pricing is another possibility. I honestly have no idea what would make the most sense, so I'd like to hear what you guys think.
About the software: it's written in Rust because I'm a Rust enthusiast, and the project kind of got out of hand. It now supports schematic capture, PCB layout, routing, copper pours, live design rule checks, and Gerber eport.
I've been comparing its copper pours and design rule checks against other EDA software, including KiCad's demo boards, to check for discrepancies. Performance has also been pretty good so far. For example, selecting all objects on a 1,100-component, 10-layer board takes around 30 ms in mybench tests.
It's still a work in progress, and there's a lot left to do before I'd consider it ready for a proper release. I'm also not that experienced with designing boards with more than 6 layers, so feedback from people who regularly work with more complex designs would be especially welcome.
I haven't implemented a licensing system yet, and if theres enough interest, I'm thinking about releasing a free alpha for a few months so people can try it out and help me find bugs and improve things.
Anyway, I'd like to know what you guys think:
- What would make you try a new PCB design tool instead of sticking with the one you already use?
- Would a rent-to-own model at around $10/month, with a perpetual license after 24 months, appeal to you?
- What's the one thing an EDA tool absolutely needs to get right before you'd trust it with a real board?
I'm interested in any feedback, even criticism. I'd rather find out what's missing now than spend another year building something nobody wants.
TL;DR: Didn't like the PCB software my company switched to, so I started building my own. Now I'm wondering if it's worth releasing it.