MiniMig with AGA

[Franko]

I just don't think I could grasp it... I'll have to look at some example code and see how it map to hardware... but I can't do stuff like this without a strong visualization of what is really happening.

-edit- What does this project use? VHDL or Verilog?

Already I'm lost:

Erm... It looks like a Robot's shopping list to me...

[Karlos]

I just don't think I could grasp it... I'll have to look at some example code and see how it map to hardware... but I can't do stuff like this without a strong visualization of what is really happening.

-edit- What does this project use? VHDL or Verilog?

Already I'm lost:

Looks a bit like ADA

[ChaosLord]

Is this thread really this long?

No.

It is actually quite a bit longer than this.

[freqmax]

* VHDL, tough!, you have to eat shit initially but you can do the bit-flank-bang any way you want in the end. Get used to Cobol fingers(tm). Modeled after ADA thanks to DoD .. Doh!..

* Verilog, Modeled on the C language, Shoot from the hip! Fast way to bit-flank-bang heaven with limitations in advanced level.

Then there's the C++/C whatever to VHDL/Verilog translator. BUT interpreting programming languages is the wrong tool for the job. A shortcut that can make you suffer the brick wall.

[bloodline]

Looks a bit like ADA

Apparently that's what it was based on :-/ I've been looking over various VHDL tutorials for the last 15min and nothing is grabbing me... I think I'm just so ¨C¨ ingrained now... I can basically make sense of the listings, but I can't visualize it

[bloodline]

* VHDL, tough!, you have to eat shit initially but you can do the bit-flank-bang any way you want in the end. Get used to Cobol fingers(tm). Modeled after ADA thanks to DoD .. Doh!..

* Verilog, Modeled on the C language, Shoot from the hip! Fast way to bit-flank-bang heaven with limitations in advanced level.

Then there's the C++/C whatever to VHDL/Verilog translator. BUT interpreting programming languages is the wrong tool for the job. A shortcut that can make you suffer the brick wall.

Ok, yeah a few min with Varilog and stuff it making MUCH more sense...

[Franko]

@ bloodline

Here are some library pictures to help you visualize it... (well the library bit at least)...

[bloodline]

@Franko

I've just read through the Verilog 1 Day tutorial and it all seems to make sense, it's very C like except with concurrency... I don't know how one begins with VHDL though...

[Franko]

@ bloodline

Hmmm... never heard of VHDL, what's is stand for ? my guess is Very Hard Difficult Language !!!

(PS:Could someone start a new poll please, having that one stuck their about me all this time is like having some sort of wanted or warning poster about me and we're starting to get a bit paranoid... ta...

[Karlos]

Yeah, verilog looks like the ideal starting place. I guess once you are familiar with descriptions of hardware constructs, picking up VHDL may be a bit easier.

[yssing]

Ill stick to what I know for now.. php,c and basic.. Personally I can do with out to much headache..

I do admire those who know VHDL..

[yaqube]

Clock for clock, that makes your implementation about twice as fast as a real 68020/68030

Actually it's not mine, the whole CPU core was designed by Tobias. I only added caches to allow it to work at full speed. Despite it's not complete yet the job done by Tobias is excellent.

[freqmax]

Check out:
http://www.amiga.org/forums/archive/index.php/t-32854.html
http://opencores.org/project,tg68,overview

[joemango]

@little

No one is creating new hardware by extending the Minimig cores.  And backward compatibility is being maintained with previous real-hardware Amigas by both the Natami team and MikeJ on his FPGAArcade board.  It sounds like you may be a bit unclear as to what an FPGA really accomplishes.  The A500 core on a Minimig is simply a complete A500 recreated in software and loaded onto the FPGA chip.  New "virtual" hardware can be created as needed just by modifying the existing core and loading it onto the FPGA. Therefore everyone who owns and uses a Minimig can load the core-system of their choosing, whether it's an Atari, C64, A500, A500 AGA, etc....

And no one is concerned about x86 Aros running 68K Aros programs because x86 AROS was never intended to have binary compatibility with 68K AROS.  x86 AROS uses a variant of UAE to run classic Amiga software and it works just as well, maybe even better than WinUAE since it's integrated almost seamlessly into Wanderer/Zune (the AROS GUI shell).  The AROS devs ARE shooting for 68K AROS and classic-Amiga compatibility, which is well underway with the Kickstart replacement bounty.

And if you find that there's an application that doesn't behave well on one of the modified AGA/SuperAGA Minimig cores, then just revert back to a stock A500 softcore on your Minimig....problem solved.

As for programmers/developers being discouraged and not writing new applications for the FPGA Amigas and their proposed "extensions", well, it may be news to some, but that already happened about 10 years ago.  Viable commercial software development for the Amiga is dead.  Same can be said for next generation "real" Amiga hardware such as the X1000 and the Natami and Minimig.  The Amiga is and will remain a system for hobbyists.  No one is gonna get rich these days on ANYTHING Amiga, least of all programming for it.  But at least with a Minimig, Natami, or FGAArcade people can buy something to relive better times and still have the option to write software for a system that'll be around a lot longer than classic A1200s, A500s, etc.  Most classic Amiga users will admit that their systems are running on their last legs, held together with Scotch tape and a prayer.

Yeah.  We know.  How long did it take you to type that?

[Karlos]

Actually it's not mine, the whole CPU core was designed by Tobias. I only added caches to allow it to work at full speed. Despite it's not complete yet the job done by Tobias is excellent.

Damn fine work by all involved, then

[bloodline]

Damn fine work by all involved, then

Alright, I'll rephrase my statement... TWO guys in their bedrooms built a better CPU than Motorola's entire CPU dev team in the whole 80's...