If you want to eventually learn to use gEDA for hobby use you can by all means. I'm just providing an opinion as someone who has been designing PCBs using Eagle for a number of years. Right now my rough count of PCBs of various designs produced and sold is about 25,000. Not exactly Sony but enough to have a pretty good idea what works when trying to get an electronics company off the ground. I learned Eagle using the free version years before actually starting a company, and then when I bought the pro version it paid for itself with the first design.
At that count, I suppose it would!
I did try gEDA, and Orcad, and PADS, and Pulsonix, and Autotrax, and Diptrace, and several others. Right now Eagle has the best balance of features and cost for me.
Haven't heard of some of those others - do any of them work under Linux? Do they offer trial versions?
You cannot realistically start a business while being worried about a $1000 investment into a production tool that indisputably has value.
For me, right now, I can't justify it mainly because I don't know how to use it, nor how it compares with gEDA (or anything else); I'm in the very beginnings of planning a business - there probably won't be any need immediately for any kind of schematic or PCB capture - but maybe later on if the business works out...
Starting up the business we both had to put in $10,000 each that we didn't necessarily have to spare and could reasonably expect never to see again. Risk is always there.
Hopefully with the business I am working on starting (will be sending out the forms to secure the tradenames tommorow - still working on my business plan, but I do have my domains), I won't have to invest any huge amount, but I am hoping to see a greater return on what I have "invested", which isn't really much. I am not currently looking for this business to replace my job, but more for it to be a learning experience, and if it doesn't turn a profit - then I haven't lost much, and probably gained more in knowledge. With that, I can't plunk down a lot of cash for much; but as I said, I don't expect to need custom PCB designs or such immediately...
One time on another forum I saw someone ask if it was OK to make people pay for a kit product before he even produced and shipped them, afraid to invest any of his own money. That is the mindset destined to throw in the towel on a startup before it even has a chance.
I am attempting to start my business as cheaply as possible; if I can make $200.00 a month off of it, I will be happy - I am just hoping it doesn't turn wildly successful overnight - that could possibly sink it. Fortunately, the product that forms the "raw material" to sell for the business should be relatively easy to get (with a bit of work)...
I really don't want to point fingers because you have valid points on a philosophical perspective, and companies like EMSL do use gEDA, but by your own admission earlier in the thread you haven't even designed any PCBs yet. I highly recommend just trying a few packages, make the same design in each.
As long as the package works in Linux, I am game for it; I appreciate your advice as always...
