I started out using Protel 98, I Then upgraded to 99SE and I love it. Protel has free upgrades and no yearly licensing fees. Once you've created your schematic you don't need to export it out to another PCB program, which in some applications does not always have a "clean" tranfer of data. I've used Pads & Workview Office now(Innoveda) and had many problems with importing and exporting data between the two programs. I don't work for Protel but I find it to be the best for the money I've spent.