And of course we are all aware of the problems associated with the typical SoC development flow, which goes something like this: Start with a product specification; create the detailed architectural specification; generate the detailed RTL representation. And THEN begin to ramp up the software teams on the driver and embedded software development.

If you are lucky, you may have access to C/C++ models of various portions of the system earlier in the flow than the RTL, but life can still be incredibly painful when it comes to hardware-software co-design and co-verification.

Good news!

The good news is that more and more folks are starting to seriously address this issue. For example, I was very interested to hear the recent announcement that Synopsys and Virtio are collaborating to make our lives easier.

Synopsys is, of course, one of the "big-boys" when it comes to the hardware side of the fence. By comparison, Virtio specializes in creating virtual platforms of SoC systems on which software can be developed. In fact, with a library of over 1,000 CPUs and peripherals, Virtio platforms can encompass the entire SoC along with the board (system) in which it resides.

The end result is a virtual platform that runs up to 50 MHz and can therefore be used to develop full-up software applications. In some cases, the virtual representation runs faster than the real thing. In one example, a real cell phone took close to a minute to boot up, while the equivalent Virtio platform performed the same tasks in under 10 seconds!

So the new flow is as follows: Once again we start with a product specification, but from this point both the detailed architectural specification and the virtual platform start to be developed in parallel. Thus, the software can be under development at the same time as the RTL is being tied down. This flow promises to shave 6 to 9 months off a typical SoC timeline.

Of course it's one thing to have a hardware development suite and a virtual software platform from two disparate vendors, and quite another to get them talking together. This is where the intensive collaboration between Synopsys and Virtio — resulting in a tightly-coupled solution from beginning to end — promises to really make a difference to the software and hardware development engineers in the trenches.

And the fact that Synopsys have made a "substantial investment" in Virtio means that everyone as a vested interest in really making this work. At the moment everyone is talking about limited customer availability in Q3 2004 with general availability close behind in Q4 2004. Having talked with folks from both Synopsys and Virtio — and having been exposed to their overwhelming enthusiasm for what they are doing — I have no hesitation in awarding them both an official "Cool Beans" from me!

EEdesign editor locked up in jail!

And now for something completely different! As part of a fund-raiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Telethon, the local police are going to come round to my office at noon on Thursday 19th August to take me off in a police car and lock me up in "Jail".

In order to regain my freedom in a timely manner, when I get to "Jail" I need to be able to present them with $3,000 (or more) in bail (all donations are tax-deductible and will receive an official "MDA Receipt").

If you wish to make an individual or corporate contribution, I'll be real happy to take anything you feel like giving. Simply send a check (made out to the "Muscular Dystrophy Association") to my address below, and I'll send your receipt by return post.

Clive Maxfield
PO Box 6603
Huntsville, AL 35824

Thanks in advance for your support for this truly worthy cause. Until next time, have a good one!

Clive (Max) Maxfield is president of Techbites Interactive, a marketing consultancy firm specializing in high-tech. Author of Bebop to the Boolean Boogie (An Unconventional Guide to Electronics) and co-author of EDA: Where Electronics Begins, Max was once referred to as a "semiconductor design expert" by someone famous who wasn't prompted, coerced, or remunerated in any way.