From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-1.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 109fba,baaf5f793d03d420 X-Google-Attributes: gid109fba,public X-Google-Thread: fc89c,97188312486d4578 X-Google-Attributes: gidfc89c,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,97188312486d4578 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-Thread: 1014db,6154de2e240de72a X-Google-Attributes: gid1014db,public From: "P. Cnudde VH14 (8218)" Subject: Re: What's the best language to start with? [was: Re: Should I learn C or Pascal?] Date: 1996/07/31 Message-ID: <31FF57AE.52BFA1D7@sh.bel.alcatel.be>#1/1 X-Deja-AN: 171222216 references: <01bb73e3.1c6a0060$6bf467ce@dave.iceslimited.com> <1996Jul20.124025.122789@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> <01bb7b06$311fabc0$87ee6fce@timpent.airshields.com> content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii organization: Alcatel Telecom mime-version: 1.0 newsgroups: comp.lang.c,comp.lang.c++,comp.unix.programmer,comp.lang.ada x-mailer: Mozilla 2.02 (X11; I; SunOS 4.1.3_U1 sun4m) Date: 1996-07-31T00:00:00+00:00 List-Id: Alan Peake wrote: > > >it would be as if EE students were taught IC design in the first > >course, and were only given resisters, capacitors, ohm's law, > >etc. in their senior year, almost as an afterthought! > > Well, it may be going that way. Most of the logic design in my department is > now done in a Hardware Description Language; no-one needs to know about > gates and counters anymore. All they need to know about capacitors is what > types to use for bypassing the gate array chips. This level of hardware > abstraction is a bit like OO in programming. The class libraries will contain > most functions that the programmer is likely to need in much the same way as > the HDL elements are the building blocks for the array chip. > > Sure, there is a need for a few people to understand the nuts and bolts, but > these few will be writing the libraries and designing the silicon i.e., making > the tools. As long as the rest of us can use the tools, what does it matter > how they work? > > Alan As a project leader in IC design at Alcatel, I agree fully with Alan. Software knowledge is being considered more valuable than knowing how a transistor works. This will even become more and more the case in the future. And I see no problem in giving first a course in IC design and only later going to transistors. Abstraction is the point which is difficult to learn. When we design a new asic we almost never think about resistors etc, understanding the behaviour of the chip is where the real problem is. To my oppionion the same holds for software design. Assembly language is no longer really needed. If you have the knowledge it can be usefull, but is it really worth the effort ? -- ____________ Peter Cnudde \ / Alcatel Telecom \ ALCATEL/ Switching Systems Division \ BELL / Microelectronics Design Center \ / \ / F. Wellesplein 1, B-2018 Antwerp \/ BELGIUM e-mail : cnuddep@sh.bel.alcatel.be Phone : +32 3 240 82 18 Fax : +32 3 240 99 47