Folder Structures

[a soBer Newt]

How you you like to set up your folders for projects, I am looking to get more organized and curious how others do it. Individual folders for Schematics, PCBs, Gerbers, Artwork, Metalwork, 3D parts ect ect ect or just toss everything into one folder, and call it a day.

 

[JohnRoberts]

I work across multiple different computers so project specific files tend to reside on the same computer as the related software. PCB files on same computer as layout program, 3D cad files on same computer as that CAD design software, microcode for microprocessors on same computer as development environment, etc. New component data sheets live in a project specific file on my mac. The mac is my only computer allowed to talk to the internets for security reasons.

These days I can go weeks without turning on one of my old PCs... I probably should wake them up periodically just to confirm they still work. I have one old laptop that refuse to wake up.

JR

 

[matriachamplification]

The mac is my only computer allowed to talk to the internets for security reasons.

My family and I are the same.

For organization, we are NO masters, but we are learning from some

We use Google Drive to start. It seperates Spreadsheets and Docs etc. making it easy for early organization.

 

[pucho812]

It all depends. For all the tech and studio stuff, I have a main folder with lots of sub folders. They break up into user manuals, service manuals, schematics, paperwork(set up sheets, etc), and so on.
For DIY projects I have a main folder and each subfolder is a specific project: tube mic pres, tube mics, fet compressors, and so on. Each of those subfolders is a specific project containing all the necessary bobs and bits related to that project from boms and artwork to gerbers and schematics.
Because diy projects cross mingle with the studio stuff, I do keep duplicates of schematics only in both spots because the tech folder is also shared to the studio cloud in read only access. I may cheif there but I like others to be able to read and access information so they can ask questions and learn. The DIY stuff of gerbers is backed up to another drive and cloud elsewhere.

 

[ruffrecords]

I do not keep any of my project data on any computer, It is all on USB sticks which I regularly back up. This way I am immune to computer crashes and if there is a fire, all I have to do is pick up a couple of USB sticks and run.

Cheers

Ian

 

[NOON]

My file management was getting ridiculous across a few different computers so I ended up buying a NAS (network attached storage for the non-IT nerds). It does a daily backup to a cloud service, so if my house burned down I can can still download copies of important files. (includes family photos, personal files etc etc) As well as the classic 'network drive' it has a feature for a shared folder that appears on several different computers. Every time one of them starts up it syncs it's shared folder with the others via the NAS. This way I can add, edit, whatever on any computer and they all stay up to date. Within that folder it's a bit of a mess due to years of having different folders on different computers and evolution of my working methods, but when I get time I'm slowly sorting them into categories, then projects, then I usually have sub-folders for PCB, metalwork etc (If I'm having a disciplined day, otherwise everything is just in one folder)

 

[Matador]

Similar to NAS, I use Git repositories to track all of my DIY design projects (both hardware and software). I have a main directory, with one sub directory for each PCB design, with schematics that I generally store in the same folders, unless they are blocks I use frequently in which case I have a custom library (also in Git) that also gets versioned in Git. Using Github, I can push changes and then pull them down to any machine I need to work on (mostly a Linux laptop and a Macbook Pro). It also conveniently takes care of backups to the cloud.

If I was still doing mixing projects, I'd likely use Git as well.

Kicad's backup facility is nice, however doesn't line up with major work milestones, so I tend to have 5 to 10 revision points for each project. Every once in a while, I want to tune a layout and end up making a major mess, so having specific restore points I can go back to (along with notes) is a nice way to work and not lose anything.