PCB Guide 2 - Beginning the project

IN PROGRESS
This text will be removed once this page is complete.
Otherwise, please have much caution trusting any info on this page.

 

By this point, you should have a repository readied for the project.

Step 3. Creating the KiCad project

The previous page's setup should have created a folder in your home/Documents/GitHub folder with the project name.

 We will be doing all work here.

Launch KiCad, and you will be greeted with the main menu.

From the options, select New Project.

Browse to your repository directory.
Make sure to uncheck "Create a new directory for the project". Otherwise, you will have your project in a useless subdirectory.

KiCad will generate the basic project files.

The default project only has two files:

• The .sch file - Contains the schematic, or the electrical layout.
• The .kicad_pcb file - Contains the physical layout.

The basic workflow is to create the schematic first so that the electric side is all set, then to lay it out on a physical PCB based on that.

 

At this point, let's commit our changes.
Give the commit a name, commit, and push the changes.

Step 4. Add local libraries

KiCad ships by default with support for common electrical components, such as resistors, capacitors, microcontrollers, etc.

It does not ship with exotic things, such as Cherry MX footprints, very specific USB connectors, etc.

Let's take care of that.

 

KiCad supports two library install types:

• Global - The library is added to the computer. This means you only have to install the library once.
  However, this has the massive downside of requiring that the library be installed to view the project on another computer.
• Local, or Project-Specific - The library is added only for the specific project. This means you will have to install the library each time; however, the project can be shared instantly without any worry about compatibility or missing libraries.

We will be using project-specific libraries.