what is difference between normal xschem and docker with xschem? @Stefan Schippers @Harald Pretl

Can you please iterate what you mean by “normal xschem”? In our Docker image,

xschem

is installed with many other components, like PDKs. If you need them, you might benefit from using our Docker image. If you only need

xschem

, you can install just that on your machine, based on @Stefan Schippers instructions.

xschem standalone is just a schematic editor, with no process-specific devices. If you just need to do some pcb design or test generic circuits you can use xschem standalone. If you need to use sky130 (or any other available process) xschem must be installed with all components provided by the technology. A docker image in this case provides all the necessary data and libraries and all the required additional tools (layout editors, simulatotors etc).

@Harald Pretl What is the pros and cons of using docker based open source design compared with traditional flow where everything needs to be installed manually. Where is the design data generated through docker's browser based flow stored ?

@vks If you want a relatively hassle-free solution, go for a Docker image. The Docker mounts a local folder into the VM, so all your data is stored locally (and this is actually the only RW folder; everything else is RO). If you are into Linux, you can compile the required tools and install everything but expect a few hours here and there to maintain it.