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Fucking FPGAs

Name: How do they work ? 2012-10-13 2:54

Hi /prog/
I've heard many things about FPGA lately, and I would like to buy one just for fun. The problem is, I'm a CS student, so I barely have enough money to buy food.
What's a good FPGA board to begin with, without being too costly ?

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 3:03

le arduino ecks dee

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 5:59

Maybe something like Digilent's Basys2? It's got everything you need to get started, and it's pretty cheap if you're a student.

The cheaper boards usually don't have any on-board buttons etc. so you have to hook it up to external electronics to do anything at all. If that's OK go look on eBay.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 6:17

>>3
I'm not a US student, so I'll pay the full price for Digilent's Basys2.

I've also heard of Pluto FPGA ( http://www.knjn.com/FPGA-RS232.html )but they are using RS232 (serial port ?)
As my computer doesn't have any serial port, are there RS232/USB adapter linux-friendly ?

Also, I'll check Ebay, thank you.

Name: Cudder !MhMRSATORI!fR8duoqGZdD/iE5 2012-10-13 6:45

FPGAs are all more costly and if you're not familiar with them, less useful than a microcontroller. Get a 'duino or something like that first.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 6:50

>>4
You don't get the full discount if you're not in the US, but you can still get it for cheaper than full price. If you're in Europe, it costs about €55+postage from here: http://shop.trenz-electronic.de/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=1_114_123&products_id=598

The Pluto boards are too bare-bone to be a starter system IMO. Something with on-board buttons and LEDs is better, but if you really want to go down that route a package like http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/190501213198 is better value, as you get the stand-alone programmer instead of having to use some proprietary interface.

USB-serial converters using FTDI or Prolific chips work with Linux.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 7:17

xilinx spartan or bust

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 7:29

>>7
No, fuck Xilinx. They've got so much useless middle-management that have nothing better to do than to make it as difficult as possible to use their parts. It's a fucking ordeal just to get to the stage of being allowed to download their fucking shitty buggy bitrotting piece of crap design software, which they distribute as a 4GB uncompressed TAR file because fuck you. Every interaction I've had with Xilinx have left me apoplectic and raging as they make clear that they don't want you as a customer and that you should be fucking happy for the privilege of being allowed to pay for their products.

Over at Altera you just enter a fake email address and click "download".

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 8:27

>>8
And in both cases you need to rape your wallet if you want to even start developing for their most interesting/recent platforms. Every fucking FPGA producer does this, and it's pissing me off that you can't even get their software for free. Meanwhile they're all up in arms about OMG PROTECTING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY CUZ U CAN TOTZ OWN IDEAZ N STUFF.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 8:32

>>1
why not ask your CS dept to borrow one. Or you classmates or engineering club/dept.

Heck, steal it if you must.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 8:38

>>3
Basys2 is good, but consider that if he wants to go on and do more advanced stuff, he will have to replace it eventually. Might as well go with Nexys3 from the get-go and save those $59 in the long run.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 9:08

>>11
That is true, but odds are he'll have killed the board through static electricity long before that. If you go up to the Nexys3 price range, you have a lot more options anyway. At that point I'd go with an Altera board from Terasic, just so I wouldn't have to deal with Xilinx.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 9:56

If the OP just wants to get a taste of digital logic programming a cheap CPLD board or module is also a valid option. CPLDs are good at different things than FPGAs, but are also cheaper and a lot simpler.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 13:31

Actel/Microsemi make some pretty cheap boards.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 17:22

THERE IS NO OPEN SOURCE TOOLCHAIN FOR FPGA; THEREFORE, THE MANUFACTURER'S PROPRIETARY TOOLCHAIN POSES A SECURITY AND PRIVACY RISK SINCE IT MAY CONTAIN BACKDOORS AND SPYWARE

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 17:42

>>15
Awesome FUD, Bud.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 17:53

>>16
Prove me wrong, faggot. You ain't got shit on me.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-13 18:34

>>1
just build your own cpu out of transistors on a 16 by 16 meter bread board that stretches across the ceiling of your room with all the modules dangling.

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-14 1:06

At first I thought le 'duinos were nice, but after finding $2.5 AVR microcontrollers and $5 ICSP/USB programmers I guess it isn't needed at all...

Name: Anonymous 2012-10-14 12:47

>>19
Not needed, but convenient (power supply, serial port etc.) Nothing says you have to use the boards with the Arduino programming environment, they work just as well with AVR Studio or plain old GCC.