> > Combined in what way? Personally I write HDL (verilog), draw schematics, > layout PCBs, and write embedded software - I doubt many Protel customers do > all that as individuals although many will as companies. What use is a VHDL > or C compiler to a guy like... Don wrote >Over the last 6 or so years of going to Surface Mount Conferences in Australia it has been my experience that there a re a lot of people percentage wise who do just that ( Smaller operations who can't afford to employ a specialist for every step of the process ). At risk of relating the obvious. There appears to be a divide, on one side lies the PCB draftsman who gets to specialise in Layout & Documentation. On the other lies the Engineering/Technician bods who get to, or have to, do the lot from end to end. Apparently the latter is also a bit of an Australian 'trait' embedded in the psyche from the earlier years where the 'Tyranny of Distance' was all too real ( Have a look at a globe and it will be clear... ) Once more manufacturers use 'Soft' micro's with external specs similar to the current embedded engines then the '1000 and 1' variations will disappear from their inventory as it is cheaper to make 1 chip type in 3 or 4 package sizes and supply the peripherals as VHDL. Currently the devices are not quite there as they don't have all of the required functionality in the one chip ( SRAM, Flash, low power ) yet at a competitive price. I would expect to see this point reached sometime real soooonnnn. To take the conversation full circle, at this point the success of the device in general production will rely on a low cost integrated tool set to deal with all aspects of the Design process for the chip. Cheers Don Ingram > According the to PCD mag. Protel recently purchased Tasking in hopes to sell a do all pkg. In this article there was mention of a recent partnership with P CAD. This partnership was to bring on line board pricing to Protels pkg. Who knows maybe Protel is going to add a fast path to this web sight or have a on line Lib. Your guess is as good as mine. Ted Ted Tontis Engage Networks Inc. [EMAIL PROTECTED] PH 414.273.7600 Ext. 7607 <http://www.engagenet.com> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To post a message: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * To join or leave this list visit: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/subscrib.html * - or email - * mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=leave%20opentopicforum * * Contact the list manager: * mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
