Open Letter From the Desk of the Autodesk EAGLE Support Team

Esteemed EAGLE Customers,

Particularly to those who have been creating and making with EAGLE for quite some time now, maybe from the very beginning, this letter is for you. This goes out to the pros who ask us to sign NDAs so we can provide them with technical support, thank you for giving us a glimpse into some eye-popping designs. And to the retirees who have picked up EAGLE and have started plotting new ideas, thank you for showing us that retirement is just an excuse to discover a new creative outlet and passion in life. And to the students who have carried EAGLE with them from the classroom out into the field, thank you for showing us that some tools are built to last, wherever life takes you.

Most importantly, to those who have helped us to build this amazing EAGLE community, thank you. To those who have tirelessly contributed documentation, ULPs, libraries, and some good old-fashioned knowledge, thank you. It’s been over 30 years since EAGLE was born in a maker’s garage, and we would have never made it here without your dedication and support.

Today marks a new day to celebrate in the history of EAGLE. This isn’t just the 31st year of EAGLE, today Autodesk EAGLE is turning one year old. It’s been a whirlwind of twelve months since we first joined the family at Autodesk. And before the ink was even dry on our transition we began to learn about a new vision for the future of your design tool; one that would bring engineers closer together all around the world. What we saw was a vision for true ECAD to MCAD integration, with EAGLE and Fusion 360.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here, we still have a long way to go. Our goal for this year was to make EAGLE the PCB design tool that it deserved to be, and so we have. Take for example the enhancements to the Group command, these improvements were requested over 6 years ago, and were delivered within 6 months of us joining the Autodesk team. Or how about slicing, a brand new routing engine, alignment tools, the list can go on. All delivered month after month, goodbye quarterly updates.

Make no mistake about it, EAGLE has never experienced development at this rate, and we’ve never had so many resources available at our disposal.

To date, we’ve updated EAGLE more in the past 6 months than we have in the past 3 years.

That’s 9 new updates since EAGLE 7.7 was released in November 2016, more than a dozen new features, and too many bug fixes to count. Many of these features and enhancements have been developed based on your feedback, and we want to hear more of what you want in the future.

Why? Because you’re a critical part of Autodesk EAGLE’s journey, and you know best how technology is changing. Look at the evolution of Arduino, or the craze of 3D printing, or the rise of electric vehicles. Change is a known and accepted variable in the world of technology, but if you can’t react to the coming change, then you get left behind. That’s why we need you. With your feedback, with your support, we can continue to grow EAGLE so that you’ll have new tools to adapt to the changing needs of electronics design as the world moves forward.

When molded-interconnect devices (MIDs) become an accepted design practice, we want to be there, supporting it fully in your tool. When every engineer around the world is designing IoT products, we want to be there, connecting ECAD and MCAD disciplines closer than ever before. But we can only do this with your feedback on how we can get you there in Autodesk EAGLE.

You see, EAGLE was born from a need for change, it’s an inherent part of its DNA. It all started 30 years ago with a designer who just wanted to convert his pen plotter into an etching machine and be able to layout his board with software that he could afford. EAGLE was born on the idea that change was needed to make electronics design more accessible, so it happened. What happened then was a revolution for PCB design software, and we believe that we’re keeping in step with this original vision to develop EAGLE as a PCB design tool for every engineer, today and into the future.

There are indeed big changes coming. We understand, we get it, we’re engineers too. We know that you can buy a resistor anywhere, but your software? That’s a different matter altogether; it’s a personal attachment, an intimate experience. It can be a means to tinker on a project rattling around in your head, or for others, it’s a viable way to sustain a livelihood and a business. We understand that the software you rely on each day is a serious component of your future.

For myself and the rest of our support team, we will continue to take the upmost pride in delivering the best customer experience possible. If there’s a change you want to see, raise your voice, we’re listening. You’ll find us on the forums, on the phones, on email. Listening, guiding, and troubleshooting when you need us.

This is an exciting time to be a part of Autodesk EAGLE’s journey. Just look at everything you’ve made with EAGLE back then, and imagine everything you’ll be able to make with EAGLE in the future. We can’t even imagine what you’ll create. So today our hats go off to you, our esteemed EAGLE customers. Here’s to everyone that has made a difference, no matter how big or how small. You’ve all made today possible, thank you.

Our Very Best,

The Autodesk EAGLE Support Team

Jorge Garcia	Edwin Robledo	Lourdes Vasquez
Carolina Prada	Richard Hammerl	Andre Schmeets