FS2 and Tektronix Introduce FPGAView(TM) Software for Tektronix MSO4000 Mixed Signal Oscilloscopes.

Solution Speeds Debugging of Xilinx and Altera FPGA Designs

PORTLAND, Ore. -- First Silicon Solutions (FS2), a division of MIPS Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:MIPS), and Tektronix, Inc. (NYSE:TEK), announced FPGAView[TM] software for configuring and real-time debugging of Altera and Xilinx FPGA devices using the recently announced Tektronix MSO4000 Series mixed signal oscilloscopes.

The new MSO4000 family of mixed signal oscilloscopes combines three powerful capabilities -- an advanced real-time oscilloscope, logic analyzer and the breakthrough Wave Inspector waveform search engine -- into one small and lightweight portable device for embedded design and debug.

FPGAView software makes debugging FPGA designs faster than ever. In addition to the MSO4000, FPGAView software is also available for the Tektronix TLA5000 and TLA7000 Logic Analyzers. The once tedious processes of defining and routing FPGA signals to the external logic analyzer connector, and mapping channels for the MSO or logic analyzer, are now handled by the FPGAView software. Using FPGAView software, design engineers can quickly and easily measure signals inside their Altera and Xilinx FPGA designs and select which group of internal signals to probe without having to recompile their design. The program also automatically updates the MSO or TLA logic analyzer channel names with the internal FPGA signal names selected.

"We are pleased to be working with FS2 to bring FPGAView software support to the MSO4000 Series mixed signal oscilloscope family," said Roy Siegel, director of marketing and strategy, Value Scope Product Line, Tektronix. "Designers are always looking for easier, more productive means of debugging their FPGA designs. FPGAView software and the Tektronix MSO4000 Series give design teams the ability to quickly and easily view the internal operation of their FPGA designs and also allow them to correlate these signals with other signals on their board."

"Our collaboration with Tektronix has proven to be an excellent combination, leveraging FS2's expertise in debugging IP and software along with the leading instrumentation features and capabilities from Tektronix," said Rick Leatherman, vice president and general manager of FS2. "The FPGAView product availability coupled with the MSO family of oscilloscopes will enable more customers than ever to increase their productivity and reduce debugging time when designing with Altera and Xilinx FPGAs."

FPGAView software runs on a host Windows-based PC and communicates with the MSO over Ethernet or a USB link, in conjunction with the TekVISA OpenChoice Instrument Manager software. For the Tektronix Logic Analyzer (TLA) family, the FPGAView software can either run on the analyzer or on a separate PC that communicates with the TLA over Ethernet.

The FPGAView software package works with any version of MSO4000 series software and Tektronix TLA5000 or TLA7000 series with Tektronix logic analyzer software version 4.3 or later. Altera FPGAView requires the appropriate JTAG probe for programming the Altera FPGA, either a First Silicon Solutions System Navigator probe, or Altera ByteBlaster or USB Blaster. It also requires the use of Altera Quartus II 5.1 or later for the Logic Analyzer Interface (LAI). Xilinx FPGAView requires a Xilinx Platform Cable USB programming cable and Xilinx ISE 8.2i or later.

Pricing and Availability

FPGAVIEW software for MSO Series is available now. Pricing starts at $1,990 U.S. MSRP. FPGAView software is available directly from Tektronix and FS2.

Product descriptions, data sheets, and trial software are located at www.fs2.com/fpgaview.html.

About First Silicon Solutions (FS2)

FS2, a division of MIPS Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: MIPS), provides silicon IP and design services featuring OCI([R]) (On-Chip Instrumentation). This includes custom development tools for programming, testing and debug of FPGA, SoC, SOPC, ASSP and ASIC devices. FS2 products help silicon vendors and their customers develop and more effectively market their products, reducing development cycles, and allowing them to focus on delivering all the potential of the system on silicon. Additional information is available at www.fs2.com.

About Tektronix

Tektronix is a leading supplier of test, measurement, and monitoring products, solutions and services for the communications, computer, and semiconductor industries - as well as military/aerospace, consumer electronics, education and a broad range of other industries worldwide. With 60 years of experience, Tektronix enables its customers to design, build, deploy, and manage next-generation global communications networks, advanced and pervasive technologies. Headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, Tektronix has operations in 19 countries worldwide. Tektronix' Web address is www.tektronix.com.

FPGAView, OCI and FS2 are trademarks or registered trademarks of MIPS Technologies, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Tektronix is a registered trademark of Tektronix, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.