Draft:Free or open source design tools

Tools which may be useful to participants in engineering studies, research and development. Please add tools and concise evaluations as they become available.

• http://opencircuitdesign.com/xcircuit/

Looks extensive, useful and increasingly so. Not terribly easy to install and maintain for a computer neophyte.

• http://z88.uni-bayreuth.de/english.html

Finite element analysis package. Freeware with C source code downloadable. Program documentation available in English, German and Greek.

• http://www.eetimes.com/news/design/resources/opensourcelinks.html

List of links to open source or free engineering assets.

• http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/School_of_Mathematics:Software

List of Free Math tools maintained by the Wikiversity School of Mathematics

• http://edu.kde.org/kig/

GUI based geometry editor. Includes some analytical functions, geometric shapes, conic sections and exports to several formats including SVG. Good for sketching and diagrams.

• http://edu.kde.org/kmplot/

Math analysis and plotting tool for Linux/KDE desktop environment. Superimposes functions on precise plots and allows export to bmp, png, and svg.

• HeeksCAD

3D CAD tool

• FreeCAD

Computer-aided engineering platform (CAD, kinematics, analysis)

• Electric Editor VLSI CAD system. Available under the GNU Public License.

Latest version at ftp://ftp.gnu.org/pub/gnu/electric .

• Alliance CAD tools available under the GNU Public License.

• LearnChemE Screencasts

Screencasts created by faculty at the University of Colorado to help students study engineering topics. Also includes resources for instructors.