> Hi, > > Gschem has a well-defined, well-documented, easy to parse file format. > So has PCB. > > Would it be possible to share the same file format for both programs?
In the practical world, since both programs were developed separately at different times by different teams, it just didn't happen that way. As for changing it now: Nobody wants to re-invent the wheel. As for the theoretical possibility of sharing a file format: The two programs have different goals, and handle different types of objects. I suppose that there is some overlap in the way the objects are handled (e.g. symbols are like footprints, rotation is needed, etc.) so that some things could be similar, but I would also imagine that there are enough peculiarities to each program's domain of operation that the two file formats could not be identical. BTW: You can get the file format docs here: gschem: http://geda.seul.org/docs/current/fileformats/index.html PCB: http://www.brorson.com/gEDA/land_patterns_20050129.sxw http://www.brorson.com/gEDA/land_patterns_20050129.pdf Stuart
