FEATURES
This book offers a number of special features.
Side-by-Side Coverage of Verilog and VHDL
Hardware description languages (HDLs) are at the center of modern dig-
ital design practices. Unfortunately, designers are evenly split between
the two dominant languages, Verilog and VHDL. This book introduces
HDLs in Chapter 4 as soon as combinational and sequential logic design
has been covered. HDLs are then used in Chapters 5 and 7 to design
larger building blocks and entire processors. Nevertheless, Chapter 4 can
be skipped and the later chapters are still accessible for courses that
choose not to cover HDLs.
This book is unique in its side-by-side presentation of Verilog and
VHDL, enabling the reader to quickly compare and contrast the two
languages. Chapter 4 describes principles applying to both HDLs, then
provides language-specific syntax and examples in adjacent columns.
This side-by-side treatment makes it easy for an instructor to choose
either HDL, and for the reader to transition from one to the other, either
in a class or in professional practice.
Classic MIPS Architecture and Microarchitecture
Chapters 6 and 7 focus on the MIPS architecture adapted from the treat-
ment of Patterson and Hennessy. MIPS is an ideal architecture because it is a
real architecture shipped in millions of products yearly, yet it is streamlined
and easy to learn. Moreover, hundreds of universities around the world
have developed pedagogy, labs, and tools around the MIPS architecture.
Real-World Perspectives
Chapters 6, 7, and 8 illustrate the architecture, microarchitecture, and
memory hierarchy of Intel IA-32 processors. These real-world perspec-
tive chapters show how the concepts in the chapter relate to the chips
found in most PCs.
Accessible Overview of Advanced Microarchitecture
Chapter 7 includes an overview of modern high-performance microar-
chitectural features including branch prediction, superscalar and out-of-
order operation, multithreading, and multicore processors. The
treatment is accessible to a student in a first course and shows how the
microarchitectures in the book can be extended to modern processors.
End-of-Chapter Exercises and Interview Questions
The best way to learn digital design is to do it. Each chapter ends with
numerous exercises to practice the material. The exercises are followed
by a set of interview questions that our industrial colleagues have asked
students applying for work in the field. These questions provide a helpful
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PREFACE
