Mentor Blogs

It has always seemed obvious to me that a particular characteristic that makes embedded software different from desktop programming is the close relationship with hardware. As most embedded devices are custom designs, the hardware platform is something of an unknown. So, it is clear that the development of the hardware and software should be done in a cooperative fashion. Mentor Graphics is unique … Read More

Development Tools, Debugging

Last week I wrote about a test harness for applications using an RTOS. The idea was to have a library of functions corresponding to the API calls of a particular RTOS. Specific tasks of an application, that are under test, would be linked to this library to enable the code to be executed on a desktop computer in a useful way. I had some feedback on this posting from a couple of people, talking about … Read More

Debugging, API, RTOS, test harness, Nucleus

I was talking about OS-aware debuggers and someone asked me whether I could suggest a technique for unit testing of code for a multi-threaded application. It took me a while before I could fully understand what they were after, but it did become clear eventually. They were considering an environment where a number of engineers were working on an embedded application [using Nucleus]. Each guy was developing … Read More

Nucleus, test harness, Debugging, RTOS, API

If you met someone in a bar, say, and you got talking, they are likely to ask what you do. You will probably reply that you are an embedded software developer. [Actually, in my experience, this can be a bit of a conversation killer. You might be better saying you are an airline pilot or a brain surgeon.] If they carry on talking with you, they might ask you what that job entails and you would probably … Read More

Development Tools, Debugging, JTAG

Embedded software development tools are important to all developers and a topic that I frequently discuss [like here]. The way such tools are described by vendors is interesting. For example, there might be a reference to an “optimizing compiler”. That is rather meaningless, as all compilers are optimizing to at least some degree. For an embedded compiler, the important factors are the quality … Read More

RTOS, Development Tools, Debugging, profiling, Nucleus

PROLOGUE: Over the weekend, I was thinking about a recent visit I had with an advanced ASIC team manager who told me that they had optimized most aspects of their verification flow to such an extent that most of their remaining effort was spent in debugging. So, I decided to work up a draft blog on debugging. However, this morning, when I was preparing to post my blog, I noticed that Richard Goering … Read More

OVM, Debugging

There are many way to skin a cat, so the saying goes… (well, at least in English… I’m sure each nationality / language has something similar). So when your debugging and verifying your IC design with LVS, what information do you use? Are you a text report kind of engineer, pouring over the text files that Calibre LVS generates? Are you an RVE wiz, preferring to do things in a GUI? Or do you use a bit … Read More

Debugging, RVE, LVS