>> Hey, and what about to drill directly the PCB,

> Such machines exist commercially. They are quite exepnsive
> (the cheapest I saw was ~IR=A38000)

I went to the Westec '99 tradeshow today (in the Los Angeles
Convention Center).  It's for machine tools, like mills,
lathes, bandsaws, etc.

I saw 4 different desktop sized computer controlled milling
machines.  Prices ranges from $1,500 to $2,500 depending on
size & features.  Looked like they could deal with pieces up
to about 6" x 10" (15cm x 25cm) -- that's an visual estimate.
Control was via either a serial or parallel interface.

All of them could easily handle copper clad board stock.

                                                Lee Jones