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Date: Fri, 26 Oct 2012 10:56:33 -0700
From: Colin D Bennett <colin AT gibibit DOT com>
To: geda-user AT delorie DOT com
Subject: Re: [geda-user] Trace width - best practices?
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On Fri, 26 Oct 2012 00:11:45 +0200
Kai-Martin Knaak <kmk AT familieknaak DOT de> wrote:

> Colin D Bennett <colin AT gibibit DOT com> schrieb am 24. October 2012:
> 
> > > This is the tricky part. You want to divide a net in high
> > > current and low current parts. This calls for modifications
> > > in the data structure. The current data structure assumes
> > > that every segment of a net is equivalent.  
> > 
> > Actually, being able to break a net down into some more
> > structure would be helpful for a lot of other things as well.
> 
> Sure. But the price to be paid in terms of data structure
> modification and changes to the file format seems pretty high.

Perhaps if we leave the concept of "nets" alone, and just provide a
way to have a "null connection element" to join nets at a point on
the PCB.

You can do it today, but it requires inserting some footprint
(e.g., like a solder bridge) and 

(a) manually adding a silk text element to short the pads, or

(b) drawing an actual line between the pads to short them, but
    then PCB will highlight the two nets as being shorted in a 
    very unhelpful way (usually highlighting other pins on the
    nets as shorted).

    Someone has in the past suggested putting this
    shorting line on another layer that is only moved into the same
    layer group right before gerber export... but this is
    error-prone since there is no DRC or "all nets routed" check to
    remind you to do it each time.

Regards,
Colin