FPGA VAX update

[Michael Sokolov]

Brad Parker <brad at heeltoe.com> wrote:

> it's good to fight the good fight, but in the end you'll need to fit
> your design into either X or A's part (I'd pick X) and you'll need to
> use their tools to do it, which mean you'll use widows if it's something
> of a small/reasonable design or unix if it's bigger.

No, fortunately I won't have to use Losedows.  In the absolute worst case,
i.e., if I can't find a free open source solution, and I can't convince
anyone to let me have a pirate copy of their Xilinx Foundation CD, I would
just have to fork over some $$$ for a legal copy of the full version and
order one for, say, Solaris instead of Losedows and get a used SS5 just
to run it.  Still better than descending to Losedows.

Or if I go the Altera route, I may be able to get a version of A's fucking
Quartus for Linux/x86 through the company I currently consult for, and
then pirate it.  (I don't see how one can effectively enforce copyprotection
under Linux.)

> I like the idea of holding out for something that will work in the PD
> but I'm not sure you can do that today.

What we need to find out is whether that reverse-engineered project to
generate Altera SOFs by open source means that my coworker told me about
really exists or if he was hallucinating.  This question was the main
point of my original post and it still stands.

> At some point you need to find
> out if your design will "fit" into a particular part and you need to use
> the right tool to find out.

If the project I referred to in the previous paragraph exists, it would
be the right tool.

> We're talking "pre-synopsis" right now, but at some point you'll have to
> graduate to "real tools".

The REAL tools are the free-as-in-speech open source ones.

> As you know, the size of your design dictates what tools you'll need to use.

I don't see what does size have to do with it.  If a tool can compile a
traffic controller, it can compile a full CISC CPU.

> I'm going to guess that an entire vax dictates a certain footprint.

Aside from the issue of tools, the FPGA that seems to have the closest
size and feature set to the needs of my current VAX project is the
Cyclone II family from A.

MS