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A EULOGY FOR INDIVIDUAL INNOVATION

The New Generation of Programmable Logic
by John Hughes

Start ı A High Price to Pay ı The End Result ı Whatıs the Alternative? ı Sources and PDF

A HIGH PRICE TO PAY

Compare the pricing and usage patterns of VHDL to its software sibling Ada. When the DOD mandated the use of Ada in the early ı80s, it was viewed as a great step forward in programming language design, particularly for its intended venue, embedded systems. But the cost of certifying a compiler, along with the perception of a limited market, set up a scenario where only a few companies offered certified tools, and they wanted a second mortgage on the family house for them ($20,000 for an Ada compiler). And even though the compilers were certified, they were often clumsy, poorly designed, and difficult to use.

Escalated prices and limited availability have been cited as the main reasons why Ada, as good as it is, never managed to penetrate the larger programming market. Also, these reasons are why Ada is considered a curiosity by most mainstream programmers, embedded or otherwise, who have had access for years to inexpensive and plentiful C (and later C++) compilers for their projects. Even the fairly recent semi-revival of Ada brought on by the open source GNU GNAT tool is probably not enough to rescue the language from eventual obscurity.

VHDL was created around the same time as Ada for similar reasons of maintainability and ease of verification of large digital projects, and it shares many of Adaıs characteristics. Itıs powerful, flexible, enforces good design habits, supports simulation, and allows a large project to be built, tested, and documented in a modular fashion. But, even a restricted tool set offered by a hardware vendor for a specific family of devices will set you back at least $2000.

A nice high-end VHDL tool set with all the bells and whistles will run somewhere close to $10,000, and that doesnıt include any of the special software needed to do synthesis and routing onto the silicon. The actual total entry cost for everything you need to do a top-notch VHDL design can run upwards of $30,000 or more. Not many one- or two-person shops can afford that. And, itıs a rare individual who can justify coughing up what is equivalent to a down payment on a house for a set of tools.

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