I have been using open source tools for creating PCBs for over a decade. Created > 20 professional circuit boards multiplied by a number of revision. Here's how I use my tool chain.
The base of my tool chain is:
- TinyCAD for schematic drawing
- pcbnew from the KiCAD set of applications
- Netconv, my own tool for convering net list between TinyCAD and KiCAD formats
- A text file that holds the connections between article numbers and footprint names
One other component I use is a PDM system that holds product data, specifications, BOMs, data sheets etc. for all boards, components etc. The PDM system has also been in professional operation for over a decade, but is not open source so I can't share the code or functionallity here. I wrote the PDM system in 2004 and have added small features to it ever since when needed.
To be continued...