Homebrew PCBs

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Anthony Toft <toftat@c...> 
wrote:
> > decide.  I really like the idea of printing the traces with my 
printer,
> > making a negative, and exposing and etching my own boards.
> 
> PCBExpress can't do this directly, they add a grey background and 
dots
> to the printout to prevent it. You can futz with the image and 
remove
> this but it's a pain, especially as you don't have the elements that
> make more complex boards more simple. Like transferring netlists, 
(most
> useful) the DRC (pretty useful for double checking your work) and
> autorouting (quite useful to get you quickly to 90% done)
> 
> I switched from PCBExpress to Eagle and never looked back (except to
> transcribe some older projects) yes the user interface is a bit 
klunky
> but it's livable with
> 
> -- 
> Anthony Toft <toftat@c...>


Anthony is correct.

Express only offers a simple output and even if you bring it into 
PAINT and remove all the dots and get a picture that looks like a 
board, it will not have the exact pin hole layout.

If you plan on going the Toner Transfer route, you would be well 
served to use one of the free versons of the softwar or just do it in 
your cad program.

Dave