If you have ideas, feature requests or other feedback, please let me know! Here’s what I’ve got so far.
Upcoming changes:
- Include board column and row numbering (1, 2, 3, 4 and a, b, c, d etc.).
Grand ideas / major features:
- Replace the user interface (some or all of it).
- Make the app more intuitive to use.
- Look nice and respond properly.
- Leverage user experience to make it as efficient as possible to draw layouts etc.
- Got ideas or requests? Let me know.
- Built-in community features, like layout sharing etc.
- My layouts available directly in the app.
- OS X app port.
Ideas and possible features:
- User interface and interaction:
- Workspace:
- Option of deleting more than one component at a time from the parts list.
- Select and move more than one component at a time.
- Component detail button: “Get next available name” (re-label component with first available auto-label).
- Better component model for the optocoupler?
- Change the outline color of a selected component so it stands out more? Suggestions?
- New UI elements:
- UI element giving a preview of the parts list without having to export to a png/pdf file.
- UI element giving a report of layout problems, like components still missing a value etc.
- Small UI element that indicates the current finger coordinate (column 16, row h or something similar) when touching the screen.
- Ability to show tantalum electrolytic polarity as well.
- File management:
- Revamped file management.
- Toggle between presenting layouts as cells (what the app does today) and as table entries.
- Implement support for the new iCloud Drive document picker.
- Able to solve iCloud file conflicts by creating separate copies of all layout versions rather than just choose a single one and get rid of the others?
- Show a small thumbnail image of each layout along with the name, date etc.
- Make it easier to create new layouts. Add a blank layout cell with a big “+” sign that acts as a “create new layout” button.
- When making a file copy (long-press menu -> “Make a copy”), show the filename dialog and let the user choose a name.
- In-app help/tutorial?
- Light/dark UI color schemes. Some people prefer a dark theme that doesn’t strain the eye as much. Also save battery power due to less screen back-light?
- Workspace:
- General app features:
- Other components that are currently not supported? What kind of components do you want to include in your layouts?
- Exported files:
- Include background grid with the circuit drawing in png/pdf output files?
- Ability to add watermark text to an exported layout file (semi-transparent text across the png/pdf file to help solidify ownership/author/source).
- User feedback:
- Ability to scale electrolytic physical size.
- Bigger font for text in notes and references box (I assume on an exported layout), making schematic references more visible.
- A dedicated socket component, visible also on the trace cut diagram?
- Visual marker when two components share a node.
- Add a “default component” that can be used as a placeholder when no existing component does the job.
- Off-board components and connections; pots, wires etc.
- Adjustable component transparency.
- Dedicated LED component, with color and size options.
- Size scaling of caps and resistors.
- Dropbox integration when exporting layouts?
- Export option for component placement- and trace cut silk-screen.
Personally not interested in strip board, but am very interested in schematic capture/entry. I cannot tell from your helps if this is a feature of your app. If not, I would certainly encourage it. If it _is_ already a feature, perhaps you ought to be more specific in your feature descriptions.
Can we have an option to have the vero strips go the opposite direction, like rotate them 90 degrees?
Graphics you can place on the board:
PCB Header Strips
PCB female sockets
Board mounted switches
Ability to mark solder points (for example under switching relays on the board)
Thanks Thomas,
I can understand the perfboard look would be useful, but could you explain “connector” a bit more? Would this be different from regular jumpers?
Hi Harald
Today I installed your app ad I found it very intuitive to use. It is working smoothly with the pencil and is very fast on my iPad pro 12. Thank you for this professional program, very good job!
Since I am not using only veroboard but sometimes also perfboard. It works also with this app however it would be nice to have a corresponding background image.
A component „connector“ would also be nice to have.
Great app. I’ve been using Veecad for years, but this is much better. You’ve done a excellent job.
just one request.
Would it be possible to mark the position of board pins or test loops, which take up only one hole?
I’ll add it to my list. Though I suspect it’s an elaborate feature, and might take a while to make it in.
PDF is not to scale, sorry. It’s set up to utilise as much of the available space as possible; so small layouts will come out big, while large layouts will be scaled down (yet still fit on a single page!).
Harald,
My request is that you can add option to add silkscreen images to the Export pdf. to do a silkscreen, you would need to remove the strips; leaving just the components, cuts, and the corner holes for registration purposes. I would like the component side and the mirror with the cuts, just like you currently do. These would also need option to be in black and white.
Harold,
Just curious is the PDF to scale, I have been looking at pcb production and came up with the idea of making a silkscreen for the vero using an ink jet printer. You print out the layouts on glossy paper and iron them on. This would make it much easier to place circuit components and for cuts, especially with a large number of cuts
Thanks for the input, Kinski. Suggestions have been written down 🙂
Love the app! Using it all the time now.
Some suggestions:
My first and biggest request would for the app to allow split screen use with another app. That way you can have a schematic open on one half of the screen for easy reference. Right now I have to keep switching between apps.
Other small things would be:
-Adjustable transparency of components.
-Different color options for wiring.
Thanks again!
Thank you very much for the feedback, Scott.
I’m making notes and will put it on my TODO-list. I pretty much agree with all of it; it’s just a matter of time and resources, of which I am severally lacking these days.
Hi,
Just reposted my earlier comment as I put it on the wrong page.
Could you give the text in the notes and references box a larger font? It would make references to other people’s schematics more obvious.
Otherwise I am really enjoying using this app!
Hi Harald
Been using this for a few days now; very easy to use! Great app!
In addition to what has been mentioned above, we need LED’s in the diode section, and the ability to choose colour and size.
It would also be good to be able to scale the sizes of all types of capacitor and resistors.
A more obvious symbol for a double-link when a couple of jumpers share a hole?
Dropbox integration for exported files?
Option to export files to show just the component value rather than the identifier and associated list?
I’ll be using this app a lot I guess; it’s brilliant. Much easier to sit on the comfortable sofa with iPad in hand rather than sitting out in my cold workshop in winter, Keep up the good work!
Cheers
Scott
Thank for the input, Alex. I’ve included this as a feature request as I think this is a perfectly reasonable option to have.
Hi Harald, first of all congratulations, really great app!
Been trying it out drawing this evening and the only thing I would be either making it possible for multiple components to have the same name or for their value to be displayed instead of the component name.
I’ve been naming them their value so it’s displayed on the layout, without having to refer to the parts list, but couldn’t do that with same value components.
That aside, cracking app! I found it to be very intuitive and I could finish a first layout with minimal effort. Great job!