[Speakers] another SVLUG speaker proposal

[Michael Baxter]

Steve and Joyce,

I wanted to suggest another SVLUG speaker, for December 2002, or early
2003. I've been collaborating with the open source EDA community since
about 1998, when I discovered a state-of-the-art GPL'ed CAD tool called
Icarus Verilog.
http://icarus.com/eda/verilog/index.html

Icarus Verilog was written by a very talented geek named Steve Williams,
who frequently attends informal open source EDA (OSEDA) meetings that
are arranged monthly by Rick Munson here in Silicon Valley. I personally
have been using Icarus for real work for several years now, and it's way
cool. It's the only EDA tool that I use which regularly gets better
every single week. This is because the multi-platform source is released
early and often, usually on Sundays.

This compiler is really starting to take off, and has become very strong
through the open source development methodology. For logic design CAD,
it's the foundational equivalent of GCC. IMHO, as a power user of CAD
tools, it's the most important lead item in a world of increasing
options for open source electronic design. Icarus Verilog was recently
covered in Linux Journal for a second time, and is on the front cover of
the July 2002 issue #99, right up there with a picture of Yoda. This
article, and an attendant interview, is also now available for browsing
on-line:
http://www.linuxjournal.com/article.php?sid=6001

I think Steve would make an excellent speaker, and that the technology
used for his compiler represents subtle but important structural changes
happening in the world of CAD tools. This topic sure seems like it has
"Silicon Valley" written all over it. If you agree, and do have the
interest, then I'd surely like to collaborate with you and Steve
Williams to bring a speaking engagement to fruition.

Kindly yours,
Michael Baxter
Xilinx APD System Engineering Group