VISULA 8 features three core areas of improvement: layout, library tools and CAM tools. Layout developments include enhancements to functionality associated with the use of starpoint components, which can now be simply added to a design. Thermal relief on vias has been extended to allow relief at 45-degrees as well as the existing 90-degree setting. Other layout features include allowing the user to display areas of different types using different colors, introduction of a 'necked width violations' report, identification of component pads that violate via keep-out areas supported by batch and interactive checking and the option of coloring trunk* items within the design.
 
Users can now print using the standard Windows printing dialog in the Databook Designer, in addition to the PostScript printing option. Tabular display option makes adding gate suffixes to elements within the Library Editor much simpler. Search results from the Library Searcher can also be output in CSV format.
 
Use of CAM tools allows the employment of standard page sizes for printing PDF outputs, and the user can specify the default plot file extension for post-processing output files in their MDF database.
 
Version 8 is free of charge for all current customers with a maintenance agreement.