Kicad Questions for the kicad guys

So as part of the new year I am  trying out kicad. I had a few questions to some of you kicad gurus

1. Why is it when I add a .lib file that is additional to the ones provided by kicad, I have to add it to every project?  Is there anyway to have it  saved into the list so it is always there. I have it in my library folder with all the other kicad folder.  I have searched the web and can't seem to find an answer. While it is not a deal breaker especially for a free trial, it would be nice to see if I can resolve this.

2.  Can anyone explain to me how to import .mod footprints of devices? I followed instructions and they are in the list but the moment I try use them, I get an error.

pucho812 said:

So as part of the new year I am  trying out kicad. I had a few questions to some of you kicad gurus

1. Why is it when I add a .lib file that is additional to the ones provided by kicad, I have to add it to every project?  Is there anyway to have it  saved into the list so it is always there. I have it in my library folder with all the other kicad folder.  I have searched the web and can't seem to find an answer. While it is not a deal breaker especially for a free trial, it would be nice to see if I can resolve this.

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For starters, which version of Kicad are you using? You should be on 4.0.5, start here.

See the "Getting Started in Kicad" manual, accessed from Kicad's help menu. Section 2 has the instructions.

To change the default schematic libraries, you have to modify the kicad.pro "template" project. Where that lives depends on your operating system. On Windows, it's in C:\Program Files\kicad\share\kicad\template and in modern Windows, since it's in Program Files, you have to be an administrator to edit it (no problem).  The libraries are listed in a section [eeschema/libraries].

2.  Can anyone explain to me how to import .mod footprints of devices? I followed instructions and they are in the list but the moment I try use them, I get an error.

Click to expand...

The .mod footprints are obsolete, the new libraries use something called .pretty libraries which contain .kicad_mod files.

What exactly do you mean by "import footprints?" Does pcbnew know about your footprint library table? See the pcbnew manual, section 2.