Yellow is top traces and orange is bottom traces, no colour change because they are copper.
Questions: One for a dime… Three for a quarter…
If a part is difficult to select, select it in a different view, the part will be selected in all views. Then go to the other view and grab a hold of it while it is selected.
To select with a mouse box: start outside of the board with your mouse cursor then drag it in across the board and the parts you want to select…
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Thanks steelgoose.
I think this software is what I’ve been looking for for a very long time. Getting to know it better (just started yesterday).
Here’s what I think, unless you’re doing a pretty simple circuit –
Start with the PCB view lay down a few parts at a time then organize the schematic – do all the traces manually. (actually think I like the yellow and orange a lot now). rinse and repeat.
This is a very cool program and fills a void between something that’s overkill like Eagle etc and the low end or online stuff that forces you to use a specific pcb service.
Liking Fritizng a lot – will have to donate more.
Not to keen on the hassle of wire placement and these bendpoints business. trying to run a wire buss between a row of 12 chips and have spent an hour on it with no sucess.
Why when you set a bendpoint does it actually distort the wire? You have to play with it to get it to bounce back to the grid. I set my grid at .05"
Maybe I’m not understanding – you have to put in a bendpoint to connect a wire to a wire? Seems the only way to do it. Kinda weird they call it a “bendpoint” – it seems like it’s also an important “contact point”. don’t like this wire business at all.
All the programs have quirks, and because Fritzing does more than any other program there is more quirks.
In places you will have to delete a wire to the bendpoint and reconnect it, rather than loosing the whole wire and starting again.
There is a learning curve to everything…
When you grab a hold on your bend points, hold the shift key down and one of the sections will snap to 45 or 90 deg. You can always turn the grid off if you want. If you double click a bend point it will delete. You can also set the trace width… individually, Unfortunately you can’t set it globally, they default at 24 mil.
After you get your parts on the board and run some traces, it is best to complete your schematic. Sometimes when you connect a trace to a bend point it is not actually connected to the pin unless it is in the schematic… although, they may have fixed the issue… If the schematic is connected properly it will make it easier to connect all of those traces. Don’t forget to use your vias, they make life a whole lot easier…
You can’t set track width globally before you stat, but you can Routing/Select All Traces, change the inspector track width, and the change it again to the width you want after you are done.
You can click on a connection and everything connected will light up yellow.
Just found out if you double click on a contact with a ratsnest in PCB, it becomes a trace automatically.
If you hold down the ctrl key first then grab the bend point, it will disable the grid snap for adjusting that trace. If you hold down the alt key and click on a bend point, the bend point becomes a connection for drawing a trace instead of moving the trace bend point.
Ahhhh… the secrets of Fritzing… 
Great – yes holding shift makes the trace nice and straight.
steelgoose one thing I need to get an answer on before I go any further.
I’m using Fritzing over my antique THT only software so I can do SMD and send the board out to have assembled.
Obviously it exports gerber for the PCB but does it also give the assembler the files they will need?
I did see that generated html link for parts – like that. – thanks so much for your help.
You will need to drop another quarter in the slot… 
That is a good question, there is a text file in the gerber (???_pnp), that names the parts and location… but not really what the part is. They would also need the BoM. In the Inspector window, there is a place to enter a part#… you can change that number or fill it in if it is blank.
You would really need to check with the assembler to see what they need. I assume this is a proto and will be hand assembled.
Nope – need quantity so pick and place.
Fingers crossed I can use Fritzing – I’m halfway done with the board,
Also – seems like setting the grid to .025 really makes the wire/bendpoint manipulation much easier. I had it on .05
Says they need Centroid data ? (machine file for placement I guess)
I guess that html link it makes is the BOM ?
Never had a board assembled before.
Practice make perfect… It takes awhile to learn all of the idiosyncrasies… What are you making?
Another little tid-bit of precious knowledge… Using your shift and trace. When holding your shift, one end will snap to either 45 or 90 deg. The starting end of your trace is the dominate end, that is the end that will snap. If you delete your trace and redraw it starting from the other end, then the other end will snap to 45 or 90… When you add another bend in the trace, the 45 or 90 will continue from the starting end. Starting all of you traces from the same connector or dip, this will make it easier to lay out your traces…
actually steelgoose, now that I set the grid at .025 no issues at all – snaps perfectly no matter what.
don’t have to “goof” with it at all. any thoughts on that machine file thing? I’ll have to find out one way or another and go to another program if I can’t generate these machine files for the assembler.
really liking this however.
wonder if machine files are part of the gerber – or maybe you can generate them from gerber files?
running up a bill here – I owe you at least 1.75 - thanks for your help
Hmmm, that might be something to research… never had a need for that. My best guess is to check with Seeed, that is what they do. I suppose it depends on quantity; short run, big run, and a few other factors.
mbb,
Did you set your grid to .025 in or mm?
To answer your question about the machine file. Upon an Extended-Gerber(rs-274X) export, there should be a file (name of project)_pnp.txt that should have the information an assembly house will need to place your components on the PCB. IE assemble that for you. If you do an export you should be able to confirm this.
Good luck!
DOH!.
Just found out that if you want a 1N4007 - FZ only has a 1N4001 - etc, you pull the 1N4001 into a view and just change the part# label in the Inspector.
I’ve been editing the original part and saving it as a new part with the new label.
Looks like you can change a lot of info in the parts Inspector, just by typing it in.