OL3.AUG–RP
Verilog HDL still alive and well
A recent survey shows that the Verilog hardware description language
(HDL), along with its related tools and services, experienced a 20% growth
rate in 1992–the largest single growth year in its history. The survey,
conducted by Open Verilog International (OVI), an organization that
supports and promotes the use of Verilog HDL, used actual data from
Verilog HDL tool vendors to determine the number of new seats, new
customers, revenues, and new products in 1992. The survey found that 400
new Verilog HDL customers emerged and 2,000 new Verilog HDL seats were
added during the year. Estimated revenue for all Verilog HDL-related tools
and services was over $150 million. A further boost for Verilog occurred
in June, when the IEEE accepted OVI's request to begin the standardization
process for the language. Often overshadowed by VHDL, Verilog nonetheless
has been used for more top-down designs than any other HDL. According to
Bill Fuchs, OVI chairman and president of Simucad, Inc., “The 20% growth
in the Verilog HDL market indicates that the EDA community has selected
Verilog because of its efficiency and proven track record for successful
designs.” Proponents point to the language's superior gate-level design
capabilities and simulation performance as among the reasons for its
continued success. As for its use in higher-level design, supporters claim
that Verilog has essentially the same capabilities as VHDL–the language
most often seen as typifying top-down design. Currently, over 91
Verilog-based products and services are offered by 56 vendors. In
addition, more than 30 semiconductor companies support the language with
over 170 libraries. For more information, contact OVI at 408-353-8899 or .
–Richard Pell Jr.
CAPTION:
The market for Verilog HDL and its related tools and services grew 20% in
1992–the largest single growth year in its history.
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