KiCad

SoftwareInfoBox KiCad
Type:	EDA (electronic design automation)
Platform:	Linux, Mac, Windows
License:	GPLv2
Source:	http://kicad-pcb.org/
Input Formats:
Output Formats:	Gerber files
Users:	Patrick, Mitja

KiCad is an open source alternative to EAGLE, without any artificial restrictions. As a beginner, you might be interested in Fritzing as well.

Libraries

KiCad comes with an extensive library already. Sources for third party libraries are

• Github: sort of official and maintained KiCad library but there are many more, simply search for "KiCad library"
• vendors, e.g. Freetronics

Issues

• under OSX (10.11) the 4.0.2 Version has a lot of performance issues with the standard canvas. Try using the OpenGL canvas, however for Patrick this resulted in a reoccurring crash (3-2016).

Tutorials

• Patrick's KiCad seminar
• Hackaday - "Creating a PCB in Everything: KiCad"
  • part 1, part 2, part 3