Experiences with the MacTester in computer science and engineering education

Teaching students the complete process of circuit design, simulation, implementation, test and debug is a daunting task. Even though design description tools and circuit compilers have kept up with the increasing levels of integration found in current implementation media such as FPGAs and microcontrollers, it has become increasingly difficult for students to test and debug the complex hardware projects enabled by these modern tools and devices. In this paper we describe an inexpensive digital circuit testing environment that greatly simplifies the test and debug experience. This environment, consisting of the tester hardware and its corresponding software, enables students to experience the challenges of testing and debugging without the expense of costly commercial hardware testers or the drudgery of setting up ad hoc hardware test jigs. The MacTester has been in use in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington for three years in both undergraduate and graduate hardware design courses as sell as independent study and research projects.