Uploaded May 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
While documentation exists for 1970's and 1980's calculators and computers, unfortunately they exist in bitmap formats. As I started converting parts of the Apple IIgs schematic to KiCad, I realized something. There are benefits to "preserving" historical schematics in a living, active, and open format. In this talk, I talk about my experiences in converting scanned PDFs into KiCad, the project behind that motivation, and to encourage help from others to preserve history with KiCad.
Slides available here: kicad-kicon.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/James-Lewis-Preserving-History-with-KiCad-KiCon-2019-v4.pdf
About the speaker:
James, AKA the Bald Engineer, has a background in electrical engineering and is a teacher at heart. You might have read a tutorial on his blog or watched a video on his "AddOhms" YouTube channel. He is also a frequent contributor to Element14 and Hackster.io. As a fan of making things blink, beep, and fly, KiCad is a staple in his electronics toolkit.
KiCon 2019 was a conference for people who use and love KiCad. For more information: kicad-kicon.com
Produced by NDV: youtube.com/channel/UCQ7dFBzZGlBvtU2hCecsBBg
While documentation exists for 1970's and 1980's calculators and computers, unfortunately they exist in bitmap formats. As I started converting parts of the Apple IIgs schematic to KiCad, I realized something. There are benefits to "preserving" historical schematics in a living, active, and open format. In this talk, I talk about my experiences in converting scanned PDFs into KiCad, the project behind that motivation, and to encourage help from others to preserve history with KiCad.
Slides available here: kicad-kicon.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/James-Lewis-Preserving-History-with-KiCad-KiCon-2019-v4.pdf
About the speaker:
James, AKA the Bald Engineer, has a background in electrical engineering and is a teacher at heart. You might have read a tutorial on his blog or watched a video on his "AddOhms" YouTube channel. He is also a frequent contributor to Element14 and Hackster.io. As a fan of making things blink, beep, and fly, KiCad is a staple in his electronics toolkit.
KiCon 2019 was a conference for people who use and love KiCad. For more information: kicad-kicon.com
Produced by NDV: youtube.com/channel/UCQ7dFBzZGlBvtU2hCecsBBg
