Digital design class, on any laptop.
Verilog, tests, waveforms and FPGA builds in the browser, so every student starts from the same place on the first day.
For students
- Nothing to install
- Simulation, waveforms, synthesis and FPGA builds run in the browser on macOS, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS, so lab software is never the first assignment.
- Free where it counts
- Everything that runs on the student's own computer is free, with no time limit.
- Answers from their own design
- The assistant reads the student's files and runs their tests before it explains, and cites the run it used.
- A pass they can trust
- A test passes only when two simulators agree, so a lucky race in a testbench does not read as working code.
Labs on real boards
Pin maps checked against the vendor's for iCEBreaker, ULX3S, Tang Nano 9K, OrangeCrab and Tiny Tapeout, so a lab moves from simulation to the board without retyping a pin.
Help that points at the cause
When a test fails, Why this value walks from the wrong output back to the line that produced it, so office hours start from the cause, not from a screenshot.
Questions
Is it free for students?
Yes. The editor, simulators, waveforms, synthesis and FPGA builds are free for everyone. The Student plan, $20 a month with a school email address, adds stronger assistant models and a larger allowance, shared with Spice++.
Does it run on school Chromebooks?
Yes. It runs in Chrome on ChromeOS, with nothing to install.
Which boards can a lab use?
iCEBreaker, ULX3S, Tang Nano 9K, OrangeCrab and Tiny Tapeout, each with a pin map checked against the vendor's files and a starting project with tests.
Can I use it for a whole course?
Yes. Write to contact@surfplatforms.com about licenses for a class and invoicing for a department.