Using the Hardware Debugger Interface

The Hardware Debugger interface consists of the elements described in this section.

Hardware Debugger Window

The main window is the background against which all other windows are displayed, as shown in the “Hardware Debugger Window” figure. By default, the main window displays a title bar, a menu bar, a toolbar, and a status bar. The Debug Control Panel is a dialog box that appears when your design is generated for verification. You can hide the toolbar, status bar, and control panel by selecting the Toolbar, Status Bar, or Control Panel commands from the View menu.

Figure 2.1 Hardware Debugger Window

Title Bar

The title bar displays the program name followed by the name of the currently loaded design.

Menu Bar

The menu bar, located at the top of the Hardware Debugger window, includes the File, Edit, View, Download, Debug, Cable, Window, and Help menus. You can also select menu commands by typing the letter underlined in the menu name while holding down the Alt key. Refer to the “Menu Commands” chapter for information on the menu commands.

Toolbar

The toolbar is located below the menu bar. It displays several buttons, which you can use to execute commands. To display a textual description of the toolbar button functions, place the mouse pointer over the buttons. This feature is called a tool tip. The tool tips display the name of the button function while the status bar provides more descriptive information. For more information on each button, see the “Toolbar Buttons” section of the “Menu Commands” chapter.

Status Bar

The status bar, located at the bottom of the Hardware Debugger window, provides command and processing information.

Control Panel

The Debug Control Panel is a dialog box that appears when your design is generated for verification or readback. This dialog box consists of buttons and fields that you can use to control aspects of the debugging session: readback snapshots, signal and signal groups displayed, design clocking, and design readback.

Commands and Dialog Boxes

You communicate with the Hardware Debugger by selecting commands from the menus, the toolbar, or the Debug Control Panel. Alternatively, you can execute commands from the Console window. Most commands display dialog boxes in which you specify information and options.

All dialog boxes have an OK button and a Cancel button. Most dialog boxes also have a Help button.

• Click OK to exit the dialog box and process the information specified in the dialog box.
  
  
• Click Cancel to exit the dialog box without processing the information specified in the dialog box.
  
  
• Click Help to display context-sensitive help for the current dialog box.
  
  

File Open/File Save Dialog Boxes

The standard file open and file save dialog boxes allow you to load a project file, a saved waveform, or a saved macro. They also allow you to save a waveform or a macro. This type of dialog box includes a file browser.

Filter Dialog Boxes

Filter dialog boxes allow you to specify criteria to select signals and groups for debugging.

To use the Filter dialog boxes, follow these steps.

1. Specify the pattern of the signal names to include in your display list by typing the characters in the field located in the Filter For Signals group.
   
   The characters can be alphanumeric or blank characters.
   
   
2. Include one or more wildcards (*) to do a global search on the specified string.
   
   Precede the character string with a wildcard to retrieve all signal names that end with the string of specified characters.
   
   Append the wildcard to the character string to retrieve all signal names that start with the specified character string.
   
   
3. Click Apply after specifying the filter criteria.
   
   The available signals list displays only the signals that match the selection criteria.
   
   
4. To clear the filter, click Clear or backspace over the information specified in the filter text box.
   
   

Selection Dialog Boxes

Selection dialog boxes allow you to specify specific values and selections.

Selecting Commands and Dialog Box Options

To choose a menu item, a toolbar button, or a dialog box option, you can use the mouse or the keyboard.

Using the Mouse

1. Move the mouse cursor over the object to select. Then, click the left mouse button to select the object.
   
   If you clicked on a toolbar button, a list box or a dialog box appears. If you clicked on a menu, menu options are displayed.
   
   
2. To exit a dialog box without making a selection, click Cancel or double-click the close box in the upper left corner of the dialog box.
   
   
3. To obtain help, click Help in the dialog box.
   
   

Using the Keyboard

You can use the keyboard to select objects on your screen, such as a dialog box button or a menu option.

1. To select a dialog box option, use the Tab key to position the cursor on that object and highlight it. Press the Enter key to process the selection.
   
   To exit a dialog box without making a selection, press the Esc key.
   
   
2. To choose a menu and display its commands, press the Alt key and the appropriate underlined letter key corresponding to the menu you want. For example, press Alt F to select the File menu.
   
   
3. Use the arrow keys to scroll down the list of commands in a menu or the options in a list box. Press Enter when the selection you want to use is highlighted or, in the case of a menu item, press the underlined letter corresponding to the menu command. For example, press the N key to select the New command of the File menu.