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ACCount82 t1_j9f4zc3 wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in Nobody can stop you from printing circuit boards by Vucea

If you can design a basic schematic, you can design a basic PCB. And if you can open and understand schematics for some development boards, you can design a basic schematic.

That being said - it's still way beyond the skill level of an average guy. Sure, it doesn't actually require a PHD - but most people don't even know how to use an Arduino board.

But for those who want to get into hobby electronics or even embedded proper? There's never been a better time to do so.

Cheap and capable PCB fabs, free open source design and simulation tools, downloadable datasheets, open SDKs, readily available components and hardware tools and plentiful resources on how to use all of that. 20 years ago this just didn't exist. 40 years ago, "hobbyist PCB" involved hand drawing the traces, manually etching copper with corrosive chemicals and drilling all the holes - for projects that today would be considered basic.

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yiannistheman t1_j9fdraa wrote

I started off my career after college as a hardware engineer. I loved prototyping (although analog design wasn't my thing). I ended up moving in a different direction career wise, but today I'm always amazed by the level and sophistication of open source tools for simulation and design. You could DIY back in the day too, but like anything else CAD tools and existing fab options got to the point where just about anyone with a bit of training could have a professionally crafted PCB built at a very low cost.

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