Hey,
I'm sure there are a bunch of noob threads like this, but I couldn't quite find what I was looking for... So I'm totally new to gEDA, and no I don't want a "free for 50 pins non-profit" tool (it's a religious issue
), and I cannot really use kiCAD (as I'm on OSX and it's a glitchy mess on that platform).
So far it doesn't look all that horrible, but there's just too much of it.
For example, I don't quite understand the concept of components in gEDA, like how do you define one, how is it converted to a PCB footprint - do I need to place a specific sized SMD resistor in gSchem to get that footprint in PCB, or is that something I annotate later on? The same applies to pinouts on ICs and stuff.
Is there some online resource or book that just goes through this all from bottom up? Most of the online tutorials are very basic, dropping a few resistors and wiring them up, and not really touching on the stuff that can make or break actual work.
...also, what about the CAM and DRC files most prototyping services offer for Eagle? Can these be used in gEDA? If not, how can I do the same by hand?