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Re: gEDA-user: Introduction and some questions/thoughts on gEDA/gaf...

Paul Bunyk wrote:

Is there a way to get access to guile interpreter from within the main
gschem window? (I know that I can run gnetlist with -i flag). Besides
the fact that having a scheme interpreter in a separate window is
convenient even to run as a calculator, hopefully more scripts will be
written if interactive session becomes available. Those who've used
DFII/Skill will know what I mean... ;-)


indeed.

Hierarchical netlisting support... I understand that gschem is mostly
used for board-level design (where there are only two levels of
hierarchy: package and board); Stuart's example of a "transistor with
parasitics" is on the other end of the spectrum, but still spans only
two levels. For anything more hierarchical that this, two things are
essential, IMHO: easy automatic generation of symbols starting with
pins on the schematic view and allowing gnetlist recursively netlist
subcircuits encountered in the top-level schematic. I'm wondering if
anybody is working on it, I'm eager to help.

This is one I'd really like to see. It would take some rework on gnetlist internals. By this I mean that the hierarchy is flattened by the time the database is available to the backend netlisters.

Even though I haven't had any experience with hierarchical designs at the board level, I think there is some real value in having that. Here is just one reason. Wouldn't it be neat to have a filter design tool which generated a schematic and layout for you. Then you could instantiate those into your schematic and layout, but it would be nice to maintain the hierarchy.

Also, I've seen some system level simulators which could work nicely with gschem, but again, lack of hierarchical netlist hampers it some.

Of course in the IC world, hierarchical netlisting is pretty much a requirement.


-Dan