Makerchip-app

Overview

This repository enables open-source Verilog/SystemVerilog/TL-Verilog development using the Makerchip integrated development environment (IDE). Though Makerchip is cloud-based, this project wraps Makerchip with the look, feel, and function of a desktop application for local development, using a "virtual desktop application" model.

It's quick, easy, light-weight, free, and very powerful.

TL;DR

• Install: pip3 install makerchip-app
• Run: makerchip design.tlv (in the foreground)

What's a "Virtual Desktop Application"?

The Makerchip IDE itself runs as a web application, and your compilations and simulations run on our servers. You edit your code in a browser window (in what browsers refer to as "app mode"--a browser window without browsing). Your code auto-saves to the cloud, and this makerchip script auto-saves from the cloud to your desktop. You get the best of the cloud and local development.

Pros of this virtual model (vs. local application):

• minimal local footprint
• minimal system requirements
• platform independence
• security (a web application does not have access to your system)
• always-latest features
• compute resources and maintenance on us (for compilation and simulation)
• a desktop development use model using an application that is not freely available to run on the desktop (and if you don't care about free, here are some other options)

Cons:

• reliable internet connection required
• not for proprietary code (your code is not protected)
• not for large-scale simulations (you can do integration testing outside of Makerchip)
• platform stability and support is outside of your control and not guaranteed (though we are motivated by our user base)

Dependencies

- Google Chrome
- Python3/Pip3

Install

pip3 install makerchip-app

OR, from the git repository itself:

git clone git@gitlab.com:rweda/makerchip-app.git
cd makerchip-app
pip3 install .

Basic Usage

makerchip design.tlv   # Run first in the foreground to accept license;
                       # subsequently background (with '&' on linux/MacOS) is fine.

For complete usage instructions:

makerchip --help

Code Templates

Makerchip requires certain code structure to interact with the simulation environment. So if you are starting from scratch, you might want to use --from_url to start from one of these starting templates. For example, to start with the default Makerchip template:

makerchip --from_url 'https://gitlab.com/rweda/makerchip-app/-/raw/master/starting_templates/makerchip_default.tlv' design.tlv

Help

Feel free to contact the Makerchip team.

Enjoy!