Eagle: am I on the right track?

[Rockhorst]

I don't use pads with supply pins anymore...just vias in layout. Actually, the only supply pin I use now is ground. Everything else I'm just naming nets and using flags to label them. This is a MUCH better way to do it than supply pins.

Ah that explains as usual, I'll go for the obvious question: why is it much better?

[culturejam]

I don't use pads with supply pins anymore...just vias in layout.

So do you just crank up the drill size once you've dropped the via? And then I assume you copy the enlarged pad and rename for the next use?

[madbean]

Ah that explains as usual, I'll go for the obvious question: why is it much better?

The main reason is that using flags to name nets means you can have as many unique supply pins as you want. For instance, I've had a few layouts where I've had as many as six supply lines that need to be hooked up. Using pins means you have to have a unique supply pin for each in your Eagle library. Anytime you want more, you have to create more pins in the library. Doing it the other way way gets the same result without having to use any supply pins. You just draw a net, name it, then use the flag to identify it. If you name another net the same thing, Eagle will automatically ask you if you want to connect them together. This is really convenient!

[madbean]

I don't use pads with supply pins anymore...just vias in layout.

So do you just crank up the drill size once you've dropped the via? And then I assume you copy the enlarged pad and rename for the next use?

The only vias I usually copy are grounds. The other ones, IN, OUT, 9v, etc are just used once. So, in layout I set my via parameters (47mil drill, 86mil diameter), drop them in and then name them. Eagle then connects the nets for you and you can route the trace however you need.

For layer vias, I do something similar but it's even easier. I set the parameters (.35mil drill, auto diameter) and start routing the nets. When I want to drop a via, I first route the trace up to the point where I want to insert it, single click once, then use the middle mouse button to change to the other layer. Once you do this, Eagle drops the via for you automatically