FAQs

Note: See our new TIPS section for more on-line help. See our new page for tips on ZwCAD.

Yes, you can use a number of other schematic editors with SuperPCB. These include OrCAD, Tango, Electronics Workbench, and others. You need to produce a file either in Tango format or SPICE format. In these formats, the netlist can be converted to SuperPCB format using the NETIN utility which comes with SuperPCB (MA85100/MA85000 versions).

The SuperPCB autorouter always puts in square vias, but you can change the style of all pads (including the vias) by 1st selecting them and then going to the STYLE menu and entering new pad specs in the PADS section. You can also specify a round via for GERBER output by simply editing the shape field in the .APT file.

Important Note: In SuperPCB V5 or greater you can specify that the vias are round instead of square (go to the General settings under the Display tab and check the Round Vias check box). If the round via type is selected, then the Gerber files will also have round vias. Use of round vias allows tighter spacing on denser circuit boards.

Yes, you can in the full-up version of SuperPCB (MA85000). Go to the "editing" section of the SETUP menu and select "traces only". To select a net just go into edit mode and then click on any trace in the net---the whole net will then be highlighted with the edit color. You can change the width of all traces in the net by entering a new width value in the WIDTH item of the Style menu. You can also delete the net (all the traces and the vias belonging to the net), by pushing the Del key.

You can't rotate the designator separately from the part; however, you can have it rotate with the part, or you can have it always remain horizontal. To keep it horizontal, check the FIX control in the EDIT PART dialog box. This dialog box comes up if you double click (or use the right mouse button) over a part.

Load the file TITLE.PIC and edit this using SuperCAD drawing commands. You can change text in any of the title block boxes, but do not change any of the keywords: "date", "size", "title", or "sheet". These are keywords used by SuperCAD when it automatically updates the associated parameters on the schematics. Also, do not move the title block drawing on its drawing sheet; this will cause misalignment of the title block on a given schematic (when the title block is aligned properly, the upper left corner of the block is exactly at the library part reference location----this is marked with a small rectangle if the border display is enabled.

Once you have completed editing the title block, save it and then exit SuperCAD. When you start SuperCAD the next time, the new version of the title block will be there.

We do not have any software for the Macintosh. One vendor of Mac software is Capilano Computing (800-444-9064).

Our software is priced so it can be sold to individual users including electronics engineers and professionals, students and hobbyists. We feel this is a neglected sector of the market. There is a lot of very capable CAD software out there, but it is generally very expensive and difficult to use because it is geared toward high-end users. Our software, on the other hand is inexpensive, and very easy to use, even for infrequent users, AND it can do much of what the expensive software can do.

We charge for most upgrades----for an upgrade of a single program, the charge is generally $75; for a combination package, such as SuperTOOLS, the charge is $150; see our on-line store for details, or the latest newsletter.

To do this you need a copy of Microsoft Paint Brush (available on most Windows based PCs) and a program like Corel Photo-Paint which supports the GIF format. (If you have Windows 98, you only need Microsoft Paint Brush).

To create a GIF image, first start SuperPCB and go to COLORS in the SETUP menu; check the RGB box. Also make sure the clipboard mode (in the SETUP menu) is set for bitmap. Then load the artwork in question and draw an edit box around it. Enter "Ctrl C" on the keyboard, or click on COPY in the EDIT menu. Then start Paint Brush and enter "Ctrl V" on the keyboard, or click on "Paste" in the EDIT menu. At the prompt about enlarging the bitmap, click on YES. The image will then be transferred into Paint Brush. Now just save it as a .BMP file. Start Photo Paint, load the .BMP file, and then save it as a GIF file.

Here's an example:

Note: If you you are using FrontPage, you can paste artwork directly into a document.

SuperPCB can output artwork using Gerber files---these are files which can be sent directly to most board manufacturing houses via modem or over the Internet. Gerber format files (RS-274) employ a standard plotting language intended for high-resolution photoplotters, which plot directly on photosensitive film using light.

A Gerber format file describes a photoplot as a series of draft (”D”) codes (or commands) and coordinates. The draft codes control an aperture which is used for turning a light on or off. Coordinates define the position of the light flashes and strokes on the plot. This information is stored in an ASCII text file.

SPICE is the name for a standard kind of analog circuit simulator program. SPICE stands for Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis and traces its origins to the University of California at Berkeley.The Mental Automation SPICE program, mentalSPICE, was developed from code originally purchased from the University of California. SPICE analog simulators can be used to test a wide variety of circuits including passive networks, filters with opamps, digital circuit logic, power supplies, transmission lines, and others.

In the first method, after you make a drawing of the symbol, you use the SAVE command in the FILE menu to both check the symbol for proper syntax (pin numbers, reference designators, etc.) and to save it in one of the symbol libraries. See the manual or help files for further details.

The second method is especially good for large IC parts with lots of pins. In this method, you enter the data using a text editor (for example, Notepad or Wordpad). For each pin you enter the pin number, the signal name, the signal type (a single letter, specifying whether the pin is an input or an output) and a terminal side indicator ("L" or "R").

Yes---You can use the SuperPCB library editor to draw the package footprint by first placing pads in the desired pattern. Also, you enter a reference designator string (e.g., "U" for ICs, "R" for resistors), and then draw a silk screen outline using rectangles, arcs and circles. After this, you use the SAVE command in the FILE menu to both check the package for proper syntax (pin numbers, reference designators, etc.) and to save it in one of the package libraries. See the manual or help files for further details.

No---Starting in 2000, we have discontinued selling the 16-bit software, with the exception of the "Lite" software that comes with a subscription to the Circuit Encyclopedia Web site (or in Volume 2 of the CD).

To make a connection to the ground or VCC plane, just place a thermal pad at the same location as a through-hole pad. For example, if you have a DIP16 package used for a 74163, part with VCC on pin 16 and ground on pin 8, then you would proceed as follows:

1) First set the current pad style to THERMAL (in the STYLE menu)--set the hole size to the same as that for the DIP16 and the X and Y sizes to the diameter (this is not real critical).

2) Set the view to the ground plane, click on the pad button and then click at the center of of pin 8 of the package.
(TIP: you can view pin 8 if the view is set to ALL layers, center the cursor at pin 8, push the minus key once, which sets the view to the ground plane, click to enter the thermal pad, then push the plus key to see ALL layers again).

3) Set the view to the VCC plane, click on the pad button and then click right at the center of of pin 16 of the package.
(TIP: you can view pin 16 if the view is set to ALL layers, center the cursor at pin 16, push the minus key twice, which sets the view to the ground plane, click to enter the thermal pad, then push the plus key twice to see ALL layers again).

Note that the autorouter does the same kind of operation if you check the VCC and ground check boxes in the setup.

Also note that the VCC and ground planes generate negative gerber masks. That is, you use the reverse image. This makes no connects everywhere there is a normal through pad. At the power locations, just thermal pads show up, and these are just thermal relief patterns which surround the respective pins; the plane actually connect to the pins.

To do this, first click on Copy Library Parts in the Utilities menu. The following dialog will appear:

Select the source directory (for example, device .con) and the part. Then select the destination (copy to) library from the destination list box. Click on copy to copy the part. Repeat the process for each part you need to copy.

In general part numbers and pin numbers are necessary because of the autorouter. You do not have to number pads if they are just used for mounting.

In Windows 95, when you first use the NOTEPAD editor to create .LIB files for the BUILD utility, it adds a .TXT extension. To prevent this, click the View menu in My Computer or Windows Explorer, and then click Options. Then do the following:

Batch autorouting is routing a whole board using a netlist input. The batch router software will connect or attempt to connect all the connections that need to be made. Depending on the complexity of your board up to 100% of the routing can be done automatically this way, If the batch router can't route a particular connection, the user can do the route manually when the batch router is done. (The router marks un-routed connections using "no-route" lines).

Incremental routing does not use a netlist to to specify the route. Instead the user draws a line between each pair of points that needs to be connected, and the router then connects the points using a series of traces and vias. You can think of this router as semi-automatic.

If you use batch routing you typically want to draw a schematic and get the netlist from it. If you use SuperCAD, our schematic editor, you get the netlist by clicking on NETLIST in the UTILITIES menu.

Can SuperPCB be used to make boards with parts on both sides?

The answer is yes. You can design boards with parts on both sides. SuperPCB supports a top and bottom silk screens (and for manufacturing has top and bottom solder mask layers, and top and bottom paste mask layers for surface mount parts) . Surface mount parts can be placed on top or bottom layers. Thru-hole parts can also be placed on either side. For a thru-hole parts on the bottom, be sure to set the silk layer control for the part to Bottom as shown.

Unless they are symmetrical parts, you will also need to mirror the bottom parts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Send mail to mentala@mentala.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 1988-2008 Mental Automation, Inc.

Frequently Asked Questions

Send mail to mentala@mentala.com with questions or comments about this web site. Copyright © 1988-2008 Mental Automation, Inc.

Send mail to mentala@mentala.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 1988-2008 Mental Automation, Inc.