> Geoff Harland wrote: > > > It is not as if Altium need the additional funds to keep their shareholders > > from rioting. So the question is what their users will get in exchange for > > these additional payments. (It has been a long time since SP6 was released > > for Protel 99 SE. And since the time it was released, two SPs have been > > released for use with P-CAD 2001.) But to pay almost $US2k a year, when a > > seat currently costs almost $US8k, certainly seems steep. > > That seems to be my big question also. It also seems tough to swallow > that it is cost effective to maintain two PCB design packages. The > required duplicate resources to maintain and upgrade both just doesn't > make sense. ATS may be a precursor to a unified Design package. > > Jim McGrath
I can't remember where I saw it, but I seem to recall reading somewhere that Altium had visions of providing a Client application, from which either Protel servers or PCAD servers could be launched (presumably depending upon what package the customer had purchased). Even though that does not in itself equate to a total merger of Protel and PCAD, there are definitely assorted developments which suggest that they are converging. Protel is supposedly targeted for engineers who do a variety of tasks, while PCAD is supposedly targeted for those who doing nothing else but CAD work. However, the difference in price between these products has narrowed, and the announcement of the ATS package increases yet further the similarities between them (as PCAD 2001 users have previously had the option of a "PCAD Total Support" package, which at ~ 20% of the cost of a new license per annum, translates to ~ US$2k / year). Adding certain new features to Protel, such as being able to define new layers as required, would result in yet greater similarities between Protel and PCAD. There are assorted aspects which are (currently) notably different, but ... Regards, Geoff Harland. ----------------------------- E-Mail Disclaimer The Information in this e-mail is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended solely for the addressee. Access to this e-mail by anyone else is unauthorised. If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying, distribution or any action taken or omitted to be taken in reliance on it, is prohibited and may be unlawful. Any opinions or advice contained in this e-mail are confidential and not for public display. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To post a message: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * To leave this list visit: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/leave.html * * Contact the list manager: * mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * Forum Guidelines Rules: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/forumrules.html * * Browse or Search previous postings: * http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
