KiCad 5, create new Symbol as copy of existing one - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 07, 2018, 07:47:24 am
content: Hi everyone,it's me again with a KiCad QuestionThis time specific to the Symbol Library Editor.I am trying to create a custom Symbol for a Mosfet in SO-8 Package. Specifically the SI4848DY.To make this easier for me, I thought to copy an existing MOSFET to a new symbol. Reading the documentation (http://docs.kicad-pcb.org/stable/en/eeschema.html#creating-library-symbols) this looks like a straight forward process.The issue is, that I do not see the button to create a new symbol from the loaded symbol. In fact, it looks like several buttons behave differently than it is described in the documentation.Is this just outdated documentation, or could there be an issue with my installation? I cannot imagine an issue that would just cause a missing toolbar button though...If it is outdated documentation, how do I copy an existing symbol to edit it? I can export and then import the symbol, but that can not really be the best way to do that.

author: PartialDischarge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 07, 2018, 08:21:29 am
content: I just right click the existing item, select copy. Then go to the new library you want to paste it, right click and "paste". Afterwards you just have to edit and chage the name.

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 07, 2018, 08:31:27 am
content: Thank you, that workedSo this seems to be a case of outdated documentation...

author: 741
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2018, 11:33:37 am
content: HiKicad 4 had a button "Create a new component from the current one". I can't see it in Kicad 5.I do not know if the feature was removed deliberately and if so, why.RegardsStephen

author: hermit
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2018, 03:22:19 pm
content: Quote from: 741 on August 12, 2018, 11:33:37 amNot sure. I haven't played with 5 much yet but it may have been to reduce duplication of effort and clutter. That option would simply allow you to choose the library you wanted to duplicate from and then 'enforce' that it wasn't trying to over write the original? The library structure is changed some in V5 also so maybe it became less of an issue? I follow the forum but it got pretty busy sometime before V5 dropped and even busier since. BUT, I haven't actually built the stable V5, let alone used it so that's my guess.

author: donotdespisethesnake
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2018, 03:28:59 pm
content: Quote from: 741 on August 12, 2018, 11:33:37 amWell, users complain about the idiosyncratic interface instead of conventional "copy and paste" paradigm, so it was changed... Of course now people used to the old interface are confused.Overall I think the new interface is cleaner, pretty soon you won't remember the old one

author: PartialDischarge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2018, 03:46:37 pm
content: I've been using 5 for a bit more than a month. Haven't got to the pcb part yet, just designed 3 schematics and its great. Graphic in Macos are even better than in windows, like very smooth.My only complain is that I cannot take measures on the footprints while choosing footprints from the library.

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2018, 05:24:26 pm
content: Oh yes, that would be a great feature in the selector. What I have noticed is, that there is an implicit 2.54mm grid in the viewer, and the coordinates of the cursor are shown in the status bar. That can give at least a rough estimation of the size.I find the copy/paste thing easy enogh, my problem was that the documentation is not updated yet. I have to wonder what else is not up to date in the documentation...

author: PartialDischarge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 12:31:32 pm
content: Quote from: MasterTech on August 12, 2018, 03:46:37 pmok, just discovered that you can measure distances in the footprint selector, just press 'space' and the dimensions x,y at the bottom reset to 0. So it is easy to make relative measurements