Hi,
We’ve got the automation stuff taken care of… thanks :). We’re just going to extend the current in-house DRC bot codebase with a few new modules so that we can generate panelized designs + write some new panel / status management code so status gets updated much more regularly.
Cheers,
–David Carne
heh,
Its been nearly 2 years since i wrote the first version. lol. Looks like i had not heard of design patterns or objects 
oh well, good luck.
Will be trying the new system soon!
Some of your front end code is still there - but the backend code [aka, the bot that generates the images / does DRC] is all new [written in C++/python].
Cheers,
–David Carne
heh cool.
I know Nathan started to re-write it (and comment it) while i was developing it. He was a little gonna learn php mission. Oh well, had better get back to work. Now I do use design patterns and objects in php, and by the looks of the 18 pages of documentation I just collated, its going to be a long night proof’ing it all.
I would be very sad if the service disappeared. (Been working on a couple of things for fab the last few weeks.) Im glad you guys are trying to make it work. I know the history of batchpcb has had its rough moments but as everyone knows it is a great service and something that shows sparkfun’s commitment to their market. As such, I buy other things from you guys and am always promoting you to my students and on other forums. (Come September Ill have 15 students wholl need new Arduinos!)
I admit, I got caught by the chinese new year thing and got a little itchy. Its hard… I mean I know full well about the time frame (which on most days Im absolutely fine with) and yet I still tried to squeeze an order in knowing better. I think we all have our moments of idiocy unfortunately that doesnt help with your labor costs.
BatchPCB is so unlike anything else. Its totally amateur: follow clearly written instructions exactly (or else it doesnt work) and accept indeterminate shipping times and lookie, you get a couple pcbs for $30! yea! So maybe there is way to reinforce this simplicity through the ‘storefront’ of the service? Sort of like the Arduino IDE puts a friendly wrapper over the avr gcc underpinnings. Its a good system as is but maybe theres too much ambiguity (?) that has to be made up for by man hours.
Cheers,
Brian
David, (and all others)
I would seriously hate to see Batch PCB go away.
I use your service a lot (well not lately…things have been slow)
I’ve never had a complaint (well…not any serious one anyway).
I’ve been out of the loops for a while, and just read this thread.
Pleeeaaassseee don’t let it go away.
James L
Hi 
I just want to say it would be a huge loss for BatchPCB to dissapear.
I have used the service just once, and despite a slightly longer than expected delivery, I will confinue to use them.
The main reasons I chose batchPCB was the price and the great quality finish!
Sounds like this automation thing is promising though!
Keep it up!
I would also vote to keep the service open.
One thing that may have been an issue for a lot of people, including me, is that no where on your site (that I can find) does it say what ‘panelized’ means. Having status updates means nothing if people can’t easily find what they mean.
Does it mean you received the order?
Was it added to a PCB Batch?
Does it mean it was sent it to China?
Does it mean… etc
So, I’m sure you had many people emailing asking just what that means. If you can add a guide to the different status terms (that’s easy to find) I think it would help a lot. However, I’m sure with the new automation stuff that will be completely overhauled from what it is currently.
Overall, I love the service, and will continue to use it in the future.
-Dave
I second that idea to have the Order Status levels defined somewhere, preferably in the FAQ.
Another possibility might be to have the descriptions defined in your database along with the labels (“order recieved”, “panelized”, etc) so that when order information is pulled by account_history_info.php, that script can also grab the description and maybe push it out as a javascript rollover-triggered bubble or even just plain text below the status level.
I just got our 1st order - we were really anxious to get them - and a few weeks seem like forever…
The price was great - and the turn-around-time was really not that bad.
When we got them, yesterday, we were like 2 kids in candy store! They were very nice looking, professional, and there were even a some extra surprises that were included.
I vote to STAY - we can’t wait to make some board changes, and run some beta units and place more orders. With the options, software, and pricing - this is a perfect place for people with small budgets - and those who need to test different units - without ordering a 100 boards…
Keep up the GREAT work! We appreciate it!
Gotta get my $.02 in!
I have used the BatchPCB service twice now, including once last night so it’s gonna be a while 'til my boards show. That’s fine, I have other things I can work on. Fire and forget. If you need your boards on a schedule, you’re in the wrong place. The last board I got was wonderful. It is hard to find proto services with SM/SS both sides and the boards I got were very professional and nicely routed. Too bad my design sucked, but that’s the point right?
I tend to submit small PCBs, less than 6 sq. in. so mine are really cheap. I would be more than happy to see the fee increased, even doubled. I paid less than $20 for a 3 sq. in. PCB last night all told, shipping, handling and service fee included! I would have happily paid double that (I still would, got a Paypal donate button?) in order to keep this service worthwhile for you guys to keep operational. I couldn’t get anything for $40 anywhere else, even without SM/SS and routing! Even if someone here knows where I could, I like the service here, the Eagle tutorial, and half the components are from SFE anyway, so I’m using their library!
Basically, do what you must to make it worth your while. If it ends up being more expensive that the cheapest fab-of-the-week some people might leave. Less work for you. Some of us will stick around because we know we will get a good deal and a nice board.
I also have to get my 2¢ in. In fact, I was a lurker following this thread (and others) who was compelled to register just for this reply!
The service is a unique and valuable service. The target customer base is well-defined and, unfortunately, never going to be the size of McDonalds’, for example. This will always be a challenge to making the profit you likely desire!
There are, of course, intangible values to this service as well. For example, I, personally, choose to buy products from SFE because of this service. (You could even imagine “frequent shopper” points from SFE redemable via BatchPCB to entice more of the same!). The ease, accesibility, professional results and just plain “coolness” of BatchPCB should encourage more projects, i.e., repeat customers (for parts and PCBs).
Lastly, I echo the “teaching aspects” of the service as posted by previous people. I would have LOVED to had the chance to make such boards as part of class projects. Perhaps it is even possible to “spin off” this company as a not-for-profit educational venture??? The tax savings alone may be more valuable than automation!
And iff customer volume is what you desire, then ADVERTISE!!!
I only stumbled across SFE as a by-product of my new interest in PICAXE products. Otherwise I never would have heard of you! Ad space in college newspapers, for example, is pretty affordable! (But the best advertisement may be through us cheap professors…)
With all that said, I have to admit that I have used the service for the first time only recently and am anxiously awaiting my board (totaling $23). I decided to use the service because of price, first and foremost; but also because I could have a professionally-made board, including multilayer with silkscreening, rather than the “amateurish” one-sided, poorly drilled thing I would have made for myself. Even if the first version doesn’t work (should I start a pool?); I’m far more likely to keep this as a personalized $20 bookmark than anything I would have done myself!
Good luck with the service!
And let us know how it goes.
i never look at this section in the forums. it makes me sad to see this thread here.
I dident read this whole thread and i dont know what the complaints were that lead you guys to feel like your not getting anywhere with this service, but their wrong.
Its been clear to me from the start that BatchPCB is a serive for thoes of us doing garage projects, not corporate protos. The long lead time is expected as a trade off for the cheep price. And thats 100% ok with me. Like the tutorials say for Eagle: you submit a design and get started on another project while you wait for that one to come in.
I looked for many services before settling on this one for my little projects. When I could not find anything I tried doing the homebew PCBs, and thats a nightmare. Then I finally found batchpcb and i love it. my 2nd order just arrived on sat and i have a 3rd one brewing. I ty for the service because otherwise i would not be able to afford doing something i love so much.
Well…might as well jump on the bandwagon and give my feelings on this. I’ve used Sparkfun for prototyping for a couple of years now, and probably for about a dozen or so different designs. I can only say that this is an invaluable service for the hobbiest, both for learning and the cost. I can’t imagine what I’d have to pay to get these prototypes made anywhere else (well, I could but it would be a LOT).
I would have no problem with an increase in administration fees if that’s where the loss is coming from. Some ideas that might make it a little easier on SF could be as follows:
$25 admin/processing fee
Limit to no more than 2 different designs per order.
No more than 2 prototypes of one specific design.
That’s just a couple of things I could suggest. The fact that people complain about length of time in getting an order is just plain ignorance on the part of the customer. How many times do you have to spell out that it’s approximately 18 days!! If it’s more, oh well…and if less, great. If you don’t like it, go spend a few hundred somewhere else where you have to order a minimum or a prototype board that is extraordinarily expensive. Your choice.
So, in a nutshell, I’d love and hope that this service remains. SF has provided nothing but GREAT service, and not just in the PCB arena. Keep up the good work!!
Ill post another reply… I don’t think that its needed to cut back on the quantity, number of designs, or anything else.
People just need to get over themselves and their inability to read your rules/regulations. I don’t know how many times you state it is not a time-sensitive or guaranteed service - it was designed for small quantity orders.
I like the fact that I can order 1 board - or 100 boards. And I understand that if they are not here in 48 hours - that I won’t think your some company out there to rip people off.
The very first order I had - I was MORE than impressed with the service - and I will continue to tell everyone I know about it who may need a board - PCBBatch Rules!
Keep it up!
Eric
I’ve ordered a few boards (mostly many many revisions of the same board). I think this service it great. I don’t really have much time to mess with electronics as work is always keeping me busy, so I don’t mind the wait. A friend and I are trying to do a project (typical robot stuff) together and I very much hope to use this service to make the board (or even board stack).
Yay, Batch-PCB!
I also vote for keeping the service available.
I have used the service once, my 2nd designed doesn’t meet the 8mil requirements. I have to find a different supplier this time, I have an offer of US$ 50 for the design + US$ 35 for shipping from ezpcb.com, but if I could have made use of the SFE service, it would have been less than half of that.
I am still finding ways to get my design ready for batchpcb.
JD
The DRC actually only checks at 6.9, so you can get away with a bit, but this tolerance is designed a bit on the low side because of some approximations the DRC bot uses internally, which may cause you to have DRC violations if you run at exactly 6.9 trace/space. Stick to 7/7.1 and you should be OK.
For the record, We’ve decided to keep the service available. We are planning some website frontend changes such as we’ve talked about, but they’re a ways down in the list for our web guy [The SFE website pays the bills, so it gets first priority ;)].
Cheers,
–David Carne
busonerd:
For the record, We’ve decided to keep the service available. We are planning some website frontend changes such as we’ve talked about, but they’re a ways down in the list for our web guy [The SFE website pays the bills, so it gets first priority ;)].
I’m glad to hear you are keeping the service. I just discovered SFE and BatchPCB! I sent in my first board order, just a single proto, last week. I love that I can have boards made for a reasonable fee, even though it means I have to wait a bit to get them. That’s okay, I can find something else to work on while I wait. Sure, I’d love to have them next day, but that’s just not reasonable at this price. Thanks for creating a service that caters to hobbyists!
I suppose it’s a bit late for this thread but I’ll add that I would very much like to see the service kept in place.
I got my feet wet with the great products and service from the Sparkfun group. It’s great to be able to go to people you like and trust when moving to the next steps.
Thanks for keeping BatchPCB alive!