What's new in 1.5.3.BETA:

Major overhaul of the manual (but still more to do).
A new refcard.
Support for GerberX photo-plotters and NC drill files.
You can zoom in closer provided the layout isn't too large.
You can measure distances on the screen easily with a marker.
The rats nest feature is more highly optimized and doesn't
  require re-loading when you make element changes.
Improved resource file to give you more room to work in
  the layout area, plus some enhanced features to make
  layout less tedious.
Keyboard ability to move things very accurately.
A command line interface to any of the action commands.
Plenty of bug fixes.

Improvements added by Harry Eaton <haceaton@aplcomm.jhuapl.edu>
==========================================================================

- Reports to get information on objects and drilling holes

- a rats nest feature that uses a net list to assist in component
  placement and routing, and that also verifies the final layout.

- support for rubberband mode rotate operations

- added new polygon/pin/via piercing behavior 

- added support for REDOs (if your undo key repeats...) and
  greatly increased the number of things that are undoable

- a RS274X Gerber driver that works with all of the features
  and also generates NC Drill files.

- a lot of smaller features too numerous to mention

- several bugfixes...


Improvements added by Andre M. Hedrick <hedrick@Astro.Dyer.Vanderbilt.Edu>
==========================================================================

- a lot of nice stuff for GERBER plotters 'type' RS-274D and 
  a duplicate effort on an RS-274X type driver, but these don't
  support the latest polygon behavior and so are incomplete and
  not used for the time being.

- and more bugfixes


Many other also contributed a lot of hints, knowledge and experience
to the project. Thanks to all of them...

********* IMPORTANT NOTE **********
If you meet these guys, buy them a pizza, soda, beer or what ever they like

