XCircuit

XCircuit

XCircuit is an open-source schematic capture program for UNIX systems. It can be used to draw circuit schematics and electrical network diagrams easily and cleanly.
schematic-capture circuit-design electrical-engineering

XCircuit: Open-Source Schematic Capture Program

XCircuit is an open-source schematic capture program for UNIX systems. It can be used to draw circuit schematics and electrical network diagrams easily and cleanly.

What is XCircuit?

XCircuit is a free software application for UNIX systems used to draw publishable-quality electrical circuit schematic diagrams and related figures. It can handle diagrams of substantial complexity and can output files in a variety of formats for high-quality reproduction via commercial printers.

Some key features of XCircuit include:

  • Intuitive graphical user interface for drawing schematics quickly
  • Automatic wire routing and component placement
  • Support for common diagram elements like wires, capacitors, resistors, logic gates etc.
  • Flexible export options - EPS, PDF, SVG, PNG etc.
  • Extensive component libraries for analog, digital and RF designs
  • Advanced editing features for diagrams like aligning objects, grouping components etc.
  • Writes standard netlist files that can be used for PCB design and circuit simulation.

With its ease of use, clean output and wealth of features for schematic drawing, XCircuit is considered one of the best open-source EDA tools available.

XCircuit Features

Features

  1. Schematic capture
  2. Netlist generation
  3. Bill of Materials generation
  4. Printing and plotting
  5. Hierarchical designs
  6. Subcircuit library
  7. Autorouting
  8. Simulation interface

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Free and open source

Cross-platform

Powerful features

Active development community

Cons

Steep learning curve

Limited native simulation features

Less polished than commercial tools


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