[SI-LIST] Re: Which tool is the best

Michael,

Every tool needs "calibration". This applies to measurement equipment,
simulation software and "common sense" aka engineering brain.

Let's do some failure analysis. Imagine a failed design. An engineer who
relied exclusively on his or her brain and "common sense" is shown the door
immediately. If an engineer has some design justification in terms of
non-predictive measurements or simulations, then there is a chance for
engineer to fix the problems and re-spin a design. 

So, the best brains can lose calibration if they are not coupled with
continuous practical experience. The fastest way to gain experience is
through failures. The cheapest way to find failures is through software --
you don't need to design and build anything, and you don't need any
measurement equipment. So, my vote goes for a painter with a brush, or a
signal integrity engineer with software tools.

Michael

P.S. I would like to comment on the "which tool is the best" discussion, but
as a tool vendor, I will resist.


----------------------------------------------------------------
Michael Khusid
Ansoft Corporation
SI/HF Application Engineer
 
25 Burlington Mall Road, 5th floor
Burlington, MA 01803-4100
 
Tel 781-229-8900 Ext. 134 
Fax 781-229-8624
---------------------http://www.ansoft.com ---------------------

-----Original Message-----
From: si-list-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:si-list-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Michael E. Vrbanac
Sent: Thursday, April 15, 2004 7:09 PM
To: fzanella@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Cc: si-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [SI-LIST] Re: [SI-LIST]: Which tool is the best

Fabrizio,

Well said.

Also when we talk about which tool is best, have we thought about
effectiveness vs. cost?  Its probably also important to mention that these
tools are not "free", very focused on their utility (a nice way to say 
"limited"),
and are not always necessary (although I am sure there are folks who'll
argue
with me on that one).  We like to argue about how much we can save on a
program if we simulate.  The counter to this how much can we save if we
don't
need to simulate?  And while its fine and good to show how many board turns
you can save by simulating, it may be just as good to ask, how many board 
turns
could you save if everyone used plain ol' common sense before they turned on
the simulator?  Those of you with a little gray showing in your hair know
what
I'm talking about.

Now all those tools that have been mentioned are really good and I'm
actually
experienced at a few of them but there is no substitute for a clever
engineer
using his brain instead of his pride (or something else) to get his designs 
done well.
And a poor design decision is still poor even if the person has the best 
simulator(s)
in the world at his disposal.

What's your salary per year?  How much do these tools cost per year 
(combined)?
Do you know you are your company's best bargain in that comparison?  Its is 
very
easy to outstrip what you are paid by the yearly cost of the simulators you 
might run.
So the issue comes down to "how many decisions you can make without the 
simulator"
measures your effectiveness in that comparison. Not only that, engineers 
are running
around meeting that tight schedule making critical decisions while the bulk 
of the time,
that simulator that sits out there on the computer still costs that 
maintenance fee even
while it "sits" around doing nothing.  That might remind you of some 
co-workers you've
worked alongside of, doesn't it.

I have often seen the paralysis that comes upon engineering teams these
days.
We cannot even make one decision without "we've got to simulate it".  While
certainly some situations do require such caution, others clearly do not.

But humans can mistakes, you say.  Indeed, but one bad model file can render
the world's best simulator worse than ineffective. It can be downright 
diabolical.
If one doesn't know better, it can actually make you think that you have a 
real
dependable answer and spend millions upon millions on a bad idea.  So if you
don't plan to use your brain, don't get any simulator.  Your company will 
thank you
while they are walking you out the door.

My vote is clear.  Use your brain.  Its cheaper, faster, really handy (its 
portable,
you know) and doesn't require a rechargable power source.  So don't leave
home
without it.  Now if you have the opportunity to couple it with some of 
these fine tools
and can justify the cost, that sounds like a winning combination to me.

Best Regards,

Michael E. Vrbanac


At 02:50 PM 4/15/2004, you wrote:
>I agree with Arpad's comment.  The best approach is to have multiple
>tools at your disposal.  There isn't one tool which can address all
>requirements.  Of the tools available today, a couple can be classified
>as being very good at SI simulations on boards - reflections, crosstalk,
>delays, I'll call these Class A tools.  There are a couple of different
>tools which are good at simulating power integrity, return paths; these
>Class B tools cannot compete with the Class A tools at SI simulations.
>Then there are Class C tools whose strength lies in high frequency (2.5
>GHz and above) analysis, using 3D solvers.  And let's not forget timing
>analysis, only one tool, mentioned in a previous email, performs board
>level SI and timing analysis.
>
>Fabrizio Zanella
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Muranyi, Arpad [mailto:arpad.muranyi@xxxxxxxxx]=20
>Sent: Thursday, April 15, 2004 2:18 PM
>To: si-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: [SI-LIST] Re: Which tool is the best
>
>A slightly different "opinion":
>
>You also have to know how to ask a question to get meaningful
>answers.  The original question was something like which tool
>is the "BEST".  Pretty soon we got a list of practically all
>available tools on the horizon.  So which is THE BEST if all
>are listed?
>
>Of course, the definition of BEST is relative, it all depends
>on what you want to do with the tool.  One may be excellent
>for one thing while completely useless for another thing...
>
>Arpad Muranyi
>Intel Corporation


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