# Protoboard Editor: Quick Guide

> The user guide for Protoboard Editor (https://sadmanbishal.com/Protoboard-Editor), a free
> browser-based editor that pairs a schematic editor with a stripboard
> (Veroboard) layout editor and an automatic layouter. This is the markdown
> version of https://sadmanbishal.com/Protoboard-Editor/guide.

## Workflow

1. **Design the schematic** on the left. Add components from the library and draw wires between pins to define nets.
2. **Place components on the stripboard** on the right. Drag them from the unplaced tray onto the board, or run auto-layout.
3. **Resolve conflicts.** Place cuts to isolate strips and add wires to connect separated nets.
4. **Done.** When all nets are complete and there are no conflicts, the board is ready to solder.

## Schematic editor (left pane)

### Adding parts and wires

- Drag components from the library onto the canvas. "Create Custom Component" at the bottom of the library makes your own; it is saved with the project.
- Click a pin end to start a wire, then click pins, wires or grid points to route it. The wire tool (W) also starts wires on empty grid.
- Click a component label or a pin label to rename it. Labels can be dragged out of the way.

### What counts as connected

- Whatever touches is connected: a wire end on a wire, a pin on a wire, two pins on one point. Wires that merely cross stay separate.
- A filled dot marks a junction; a small hollow square marks a loose wire end.
- Connected pins form a net. Nets can be renamed and recoloured in the sidebar.

### Flags and net labels

- Ground flags (G), power flags (P) and net labels (L) join everything of the same name into a single net, so GND and VCC need no wires across the sheet. Double-click a flag to rename it.

### Selecting and editing

- Click selects; Ctrl+click toggles; Shift+click adds. Wires are selected and moved like parts.
- A selection box dragged left-to-right selects what it fully encloses; dragged right-to-left it selects everything it touches.

### Parts that are not on the board

- **Mount off board** (floating menu) is for pots, switches and jacks mounted on an enclosure. The board gets solder pads or a connector for their wires instead of the part itself.
- **Exclude** (E) keeps a part in the schematic but ignores it on the board and in net checks, so you can draw a full circuit and build only part of it.

### Legacy wiring rules

Schematics drawn before the "touching means connected" rule set follow the rules they were drawn under, where only wire ends connect. Drawings that mean the same thing under both rule sets were converted automatically. The rest show a "Classic wiring" link in the schematic header that previews every change the switch would make before applying it. The switch is optional and undoable.

## Stripboard editor (right pane)

### Placing parts

- Drag components from the Unplaced tray onto the board. Strips take the colour of the net on them; a red strip carries two nets and needs a cut.
- Two-pin parts such as resistors and LEDs have flexible leads. Drag a single pin to reshape them.
- A part that puts two of its pins on one strip, such as an IC, brings the cuts between them when placed. Those cuts move with the part and leave with it.
- Hovering an incomplete net in the sidebar highlights its strips.

### Tools: select, wire, cut

- The tools on the left edge of the board decide what a click does. Escape always returns to select.
- **Wire** (W): click a hole, then another. Wires already in a hole are ignored, so a chain can start from the same hole.
- **Cut** (C): click a hole to drill it out, or click between two holes to cut the copper there. Cuts work under parts. Clicking a cut again removes it.
- **Select**: move parts, and click a wire or cut to drag or delete it. Dragging a wire end moves just that end.

### Rows and columns

- Right-click anywhere on the board to insert or delete the row or column there. Deleting unplaces parts sitting on that line; parts that merely span it shrink.

### Footprints and packages

- Select a placed part and use the floating menu. **Package** picks the real body (for example a 1/4 W or 1/2 W resistor, TO-92 or TO-220). **Edit Footprint** resizes the grid and moves the pins of ICs and connectors to match a physical part.

## Auto-layout

Click **Auto-layout** above the unplaced tray. The layouter places every part, picks the board size, and adds the cuts and link wires. If anything cannot be completed, a pop-up explains what and why.

- **Lock the board size.** Click the padlock next to Rows or Cols to keep exactly that many. A locked board cannot grow, so a few slanted or crossing wires may remain.
- **Lock parts.** Select placed parts and press L to keep them where they are. Layouts containing locked parts come out somewhat larger.
- **Settings** (gear beside the button): new layouts every run, drilled cuts only, no stacked wires, allow standing parts, extra room between parts, effort, and processor threads. Effort (Quick, Normal, Thorough, Very thorough, Exhaustive) sets how many layouts are tried and how long each one searches, scaled to the size of the circuit; the panel shows how long a run will take on the machine. Processor threads sets how many layouts run at the same time; it changes how long a run takes, not the board.

Full explanation of the algorithm: https://sadmanbishal.com/Protoboard-Editor/how-auto-layout-works.md

## Printing and assembly

- **Print** in the project toolbar builds an assembly guide. Print at 100% and check the calibration ruler so the holes match real stripboard.
- The **component sheet** shows the top side: lay it on the board and push the leads through. The **cut sheet** is mirrored for the copper side and marks every cut.
- The **BOM** lists quantities, values and reference labels; off-board parts get a wiring table.
- Options: colour or black and white, reference and pin labels, and a view or edit QR code linking back to the project.

## Exporting

- **Export > Raw project** downloads the whole project as JSON. It can be restored from the Import menu.
- **Export > Netlist** writes a KiCad netlist containing parts, values, pin numbers and nets, so a prototype can become a PCB. Most parts map to stock KiCad footprints; the rest ship as a small footprint library in the same zip, added once under Preferences > Manage Footprint Libraries using the nickname shown in the pop-up.
- A netlist holds connections, not drawings. Netlist import is not supported.

## Saving and sharing

- No account is required. The first save returns a unique link; bookmark it to return to the project.
- An account collects projects in one dashboard and adds sharing: an edit link for full access and a view-only link.
- Anyone viewing a shared project can fork it into their own editable copy.

## Keyboard shortcuts

### Both editors

| Key | Action |
| --- | --- |
| W | Wire tool on and off |
| R | Rotate the selection |
| Delete | Remove the selection |
| Escape | Cancel, then clear the selection, then put the tool away |
| Arrow keys | Move the selection one step (Shift: five) |
| Ctrl+Z | Undo |
| Ctrl+Y or Ctrl+Shift+Z | Redo |
| Right-click drag | Pan the canvas |
| Scroll wheel | Zoom in and out |

### Schematic

| Key | Action |
| --- | --- |
| G / P | Ground flag / power flag at the cursor |
| L | Net label at the cursor |
| M | Mirror the selection |
| E | Exclude or include the selected parts on the stripboard |
| Enter / Backspace | While drawing a wire: finish it / undo the last segment |
| Alt+Delete | Remove whole wires, all segments included |
| Ctrl+click / Shift+click | Toggle / add to the selection |
| Ctrl+A | Select everything |
| Ctrl+C / Ctrl+V / Ctrl+D | Copy, paste at the cursor, duplicate |

### Stripboard

| Key | Action |
| --- | --- |
| C | Cut tool on and off |
| L | Lock or unlock the selected parts for auto-layout |
| Right-click | Insert or delete the row or column under the pointer |