i use altium designer for all my work ,
it can be way over kill for small projects , and the learning curve
is really high ,
as they say , it did design the electronics for the mars rover
.
some pcb plants offer file conversions for you for 50$ thats the way to go
simply lets them do their job and you dont have to worry about
gerber files and pointless stuff.
pcbexpress/ sunstone / pcbpro.com (same company)
will do this , they are more expesive i find , but have a great option
for 'design review' they will calll you and tell you if something is wrong.
i think they also provide free software to do this .
when i was first starting i um some how :evil: got all the software from
every pcb layout company and tried them all ,
i ended up with protel (altium designer)
but....
in all honesty i could of designed the la2a pcb using 'easytrax'
i dont use auto routing or schematic processing , and every thing is done
by mind and hand.
hell i dont even use 'nets' for my connections.
a computer will not negotiate aesthetics.
and often it is these aesthetics that form a more accurate
and clean design .
'neatness promotes accuracy'
(to quote a hi-rank member)
pcb design for analouge equipment can be a trial and error process.
tube and hi voltage designs are another issue ,
i would reccomend the most basic software ,
design something simple with it from start to finish ,
then run a proto type with pcb express. etc.
or home etch etc.
then you will learn what 'more' you need from a design program ,
even though i use one of the more advanced programs to design ,
i only use three buttons and a mouse ,
sometimes i feel with altium designer that im bringing a gun to a knife
fight.
hope this helps ,
g