Staying Current—The Designer's Dilemma

This year's online holiday shopping frenzy illustrates how effective a keyboard, mouse, and an Internet connection have become to consumers. Analysts are predicting that more and more people will log on to e-retailers this season and not make the trek to traditional suburban shopping malls to wrap up their shopping. It's less stressful, probably cheaper, and far more comfortable.

Less obvious, but equally remarkable, is how reliant the designer community has become on the Internet as a means of staying current. Gathering information on new components, design trends, or state-of-the-art Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software has never been easier. Gone are the days when we'd call a company for material and wait impatiently for it to arrive. With a click of the mouse and a few keystrokes, the same information has popped up on our computer screens almost immediately.

In many ways, we electronics designers have only ourselves to thank for this phenomenon. After all, it's the electronics software and hardware developer community that produced the backbone of the Internet network infrastructure. Without us, there wouldn't be high-speed Internet access, Internet appliances, or PCs.

When the Internet first burst on the scene, pundits heralded the demise of industry forums, technical conferences, and trade shows. How wrong they were. However vital and instantaneous the Internet, its research-gathering capabilities and information have become, they will never replace face-to-face communications.

Attending an industry event has become an important—no, make that critical—means of staying connected and keeping current. A technical conference can offer numerous benefits. It's a forum for learning and continuing education. Through paper sessions, tutorials, or panels, designers are able to get updates on technical developments and anecdotal information on new techniques or emerging design methodologies.

Designers can gain knowledge and explore theories. A technical conference offers a means of participating in a variety of sessions, which can reshape current thinking. A technical conference paves the way for designers to learn from experts.

An industry panel can be informative, yet entertaining, presenting a lively exchange of practical, useful information and experiences. The debate can often be exhilarating—particularly when two or more well-prepared participants with differing opinions argue their points of view.

A technical conference is a place to connect with other professionals, or make important connections. Most important, designers can network and find out what's happening in the industry.

I attend a variety of technical conferences, seminars, and workshops each year to exchange ideas and stay connected. My area of specialization is hardware description languages (HDLs). As a result, I use industry events to watch for breakthrough technology and emerging design methodologies.

The electronics industry is in the midst of another major change. As form factors shrink, designs are growing more complex and problems are getting worse. Time-to-market demands and design complexities create new challenges. What better way to share experiences and insights than at a technical conference?

The yearly International HDL Conference is one such technical conference. Small and intimate by design, it offers an opportunity to explore the state of the art in HDL design. It's the one place HDL-based electronics designers can pick up on new EDA software, methodologies, and technologies, and meet their peers, along with industry leaders.

The conference, sponsored by Open Verilog International (OVI), VHDL International (VI), and the VHDL International Users Forum (VIUF), includes day-long tutorials, paper, and panel sessions. It will be held March 8-10 at the Doubletree Hotel in San Jose, CA. Please join me and other members of the electronics designer community. I look forward to meeting you.