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Tina simulator + PCB layout (anyone tried the new version 7.x?)

P

Paul E. Schoen

Jan 1, 1970
0
At a TI seminar last year, I learned about a simulator program called Tina.
There is a free limited version on the TI website, and the www.tina.com
website has several demo versions and a range of packages from about $30 to
$900. I bought the low end 6.x package a while ago and have had good results
with the simulator portion, and the schematic editor seems pretty good, but
not quite as good as the PADS-Logic product I have been using for many
years. Their new 7.x design suite apparently has an improved schematic
editor, better simulation features, and a full featured PCB layout package
including an autorouter. They even have a 3-D rotatable board view!

I am now using PADS-PCB, but Mentor Graphics has been bleeding me dry with
their $700/year support. I don't need all the functionality of the PADS
products, as my boards are generally fairly small 2 sided thru hole designs
with a few SMT parts. Also, I only design 2-4 boards a year, so it's hard to
justify this expense, even when they provide new releases about twice a
year. They just keep adding high end features I don't use, and won't fix the
annoying anomolies that I have reported.

I was wondering if anyone has used the Tina product for any of its
capabilities, and can comment on any problems, limitations, success stories.
etc. There may be another NG more for PCB design, but this seems to be an
excellent complete electronics design package at a reasonable price. I have
evaluated several other packages, notably Electronics Workbench, but found
various limitations and problems.

Thanks!
 
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