yo, Mr. FPGA Engineer

B

Brannon King

Guest
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
 
Brannon,

If I start a timer, and see how long it takes to successfully answer a
question, Xilinx Hotline wins most of the time over this newsgroup. As
it should. The hotline is not well suited to questions like: how do I
compare two different FPGAs?

But, this newsgroup does offer what other people might think, and what
they have knowledge of. Hence it is valuable.

Peter, and I read this newsgroup for Xilinx, as well as other Xilinx
employees who read it for other reasons than replying.

If you are a student and use Xilinx, there is a student forum dedicated
to answering questions, and supporting you (see our website for details).

Austin

Brannon King wrote:
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
 
Interesting question.
I am a Xilinx engineer, and I have posted a few thousand times on this
newsgroup. I think I am one of the three most prolific writers here.
And I almost always include the name Xilinx in my signature...
So, what is your real question?
Peter Alfke, Xilinx Applications
=========================================
Brannon King wrote:
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
 
Hello,

Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum?
Click to expand...
Yes, a fair number of engineers read this forum,
including myself... It is very interesting to
see what kinds of questions people need answered.

And actually post answers?
Click to expand...
Fewer. I post occasionally when I feel I can
offer some useful information.

Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
My personal opinion follows. If you have an issue
with a Xilinx product (silicon, software, ipcore...)
the first place I would go is to the Xilinx Support
team. They exist to help you. Your case is logged,
and if it needs to get escalated to the development
engineers, it will be.

Eric
 
Brannon King <bking@starbridgesystems.com> wrote:
: Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
: actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
: support emails?

Do _you_ read the forum? Do you use the archive?

--
Uwe Bonnes bon@elektron.ikp.physik.tu-darmstadt.de

Institut fuer Kernphysik Schlossgartenstrasse 9 64289 Darmstadt
--------- Tel. 06151 162516 -------- Fax. 06151 164321 ----------
 
Open a webcase. That's the "right" approach, but not necessarily the
fastest path to an answer. This also enables an escalation mechanism that
would take the question to the appropriate group/individuals if the first
line can't handle it. I don't work for Xilinx, so this description might
not be entirely accurate. That's what it looks like as a user.

I've given up posting on the forums in the Xilinx site. I don't know what
you have to do to get a question answered there. Besides, for the right
questions, this newsgroup provides significantly more resources than that
approach. In general terms, I'll do a Google search of this NG before I
attempt to find anything in the Xilinx website.

--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Martin Euredjian

To send private email:
0_0_0_0_@pacbell.net
where
"0_0_0_0_" = "martineu"





"Brannon King" <bking@starbridgesystems.com> wrote in message
news:bu6tqr$4rp@dispatch.concentric.net...
Let me clarify this question a little bit. I didn't mean for it to be
offensive. What I'm wondering is if FPGA producers mind doing support
through this medium, and if they feel it's effective. I recognize most
support issues go through specific support channels. Is the forum, though,
a
primary support channel? Is this a method to actually get at the
engineers?
For example, my questions about the Xilinx mapper would be easily answered
by an engineer who works on the project, yet I doubt few others in the
world
actually know the answers, including Xilinx tech support -- they would
have
to get it from the engineers. So what is the correct route for that
information? 100% of my posts to the Xilinx Forum have gone unanswered.
About 70% of my posts to this forum have gone unanswered, though I would
say
70% at least get commented on in this forum. I recognize some of that may
be
my fault, i.e., the question is too stupid or too hard or too specific or
not enough info, etc.


"Brannon King" <bking@starbridgesystems.com> wrote in message
news:bu6qgu$4ro@dispatch.concentric.net...
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum?
And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
 
Let me clarify this question a little bit. I didn't mean for it to be
offensive. What I'm wondering is if FPGA producers mind doing support
through this medium, and if they feel it's effective. I recognize most
support issues go through specific support channels. Is the forum, though, a
primary support channel? Is this a method to actually get at the engineers?
For example, my questions about the Xilinx mapper would be easily answered
by an engineer who works on the project, yet I doubt few others in the world
actually know the answers, including Xilinx tech support -- they would have
to get it from the engineers. So what is the correct route for that
information? 100% of my posts to the Xilinx Forum have gone unanswered.
About 70% of my posts to this forum have gone unanswered, though I would say
70% at least get commented on in this forum. I recognize some of that may be
my fault, i.e., the question is too stupid or too hard or too specific or
not enough info, etc.


"Brannon King" <bking@starbridgesystems.com> wrote in message
news:bu6qgu$4ro@dispatch.concentric.net...
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
 
Brannon King wrote:

Let me clarify this question a little bit. I didn't mean for it to be
offensive. What I'm wondering is if FPGA producers mind doing support
through this medium, and if they feel it's effective. I recognize most
support issues go through specific support channels. Is the forum, though, a
primary support channel? Is this a method to actually get at the engineers?
For example, my questions about the Xilinx mapper would be easily answered
by an engineer who works on the project, yet I doubt few others in the world
actually know the answers, including Xilinx tech support -- they would have
to get it from the engineers. So what is the correct route for that
information? 100% of my posts to the Xilinx Forum have gone unanswered.
About 70% of my posts to this forum have gone unanswered, though I would say
70% at least get commented on in this forum. I recognize some of that may be
my fault, i.e., the question is too stupid or too hard or too specific or
not enough info, etc.
Click to expand...
On the few occasions when I've had a problem, I've opened a Webcase and
had a reply in a day or so.

Leon
--
Leon Heller, G1HSM
Email: aqzf13@dsl.pipex.com
My low-cost Philips LPC210x ARM development system:
http://www.geocities.com/leon_heller/lpc2104.html
 
Brannon,

The programmer working on the fiendishly difficult mapper code is
unlikely to read this newsgroup. Further, the question you are asking
today is three year old code to them.

Bottom line: ask the hotline. If the tech support folks don't know,
they know where to go ask.

One reason why Peter and I look so intelligent (other than we really are
intelligent!) is that we have hundreds of even smarter people working
right near us.....

Austin

Brannon King wrote:
Let me clarify this question a little bit. I didn't mean for it to be
offensive. What I'm wondering is if FPGA producers mind doing support
through this medium, and if they feel it's effective. I recognize most
support issues go through specific support channels. Is the forum, though, a
primary support channel? Is this a method to actually get at the engineers?
For example, my questions about the Xilinx mapper would be easily answered
by an engineer who works on the project, yet I doubt few others in the world
actually know the answers, including Xilinx tech support -- they would have
to get it from the engineers. So what is the correct route for that
information? 100% of my posts to the Xilinx Forum have gone unanswered.
About 70% of my posts to this forum have gone unanswered, though I would say
70% at least get commented on in this forum. I recognize some of that may be
my fault, i.e., the question is too stupid or too hard or too specific or
not enough info, etc.


"Brannon King" <bking@starbridgesystems.com> wrote in message
news:bu6qgu$4ro@dispatch.concentric.net...

Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
 
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
Not much more to say than has been said -- various Altera employees monitor
this newsgroup, and we try to post responses when we know the answers and
have the time. But Altera tech support (hot line, mysupport.altera.com) are
the preferred ways for you to get support. Not only do you get escalation,
tracking, etc., but there's also a better chance your question will be
answered, and answered correctly. Tech support has access to a database of
problems and resolutions, and chances are you're not the first to ask your
particular question.

Regards,

Paul Leventis
Altera Corp.
 
"Brannon King" <bking@starbridgesystems.com> wrote in message news:<bu6qgu$4ro@dispatch.concentric.net>...
Just curious: Do any Altera/Xilinx engineers actually read this forum? And
actually post answers? Prefer the forums on your websites? Prefer tech
support emails?
Click to expand...
I, as well as many other Altera folks read this news group. While I
can't speak for my colleagues on comp.arch.fpga specifically, I
read/answer questions relevant to my area of expertise, but only if I
have time. This isn't one of my official duties per se, but I am
interested in seeing people succeed in using our products, that's all.

Jesse Kempa
Altera Corp.
 
Paul Leventis (at home) wrote:

But Altera tech support (hot line, mysupport.altera.com) are
the preferred ways for you to get support. Not only do you get escalation,
tracking, etc., but there's also a better chance your question will be
answered, and answered correctly. Tech support has access to a database of
problems and resolutions, and chances are you're not the first to ask your
particular question.
Click to expand...
Sorry but I find the ¨Find Answers¨ on the Altera website too general.
Rarely an answer for problems that arise in the life of a design
engineer. The other side, with ¨Altera.com Account¨, where you need a
password to log in, also a bit circuitous. And it requires JavaScript
activated.

I find that Xilinx does it better when giving answers in the Newsgroups too.

Janos Ero
(Altera user since 1993)
 
Brannon,
I find with most of my Xilinx questions I go to support.xilinx.com, the
data sheets and figure it out myself. I have been working with their parts
for years. I also have relationships with local FAE's some of who are
excellent design engineers. I don't like their support over the phone and
have had schedule slips because of it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Welcome to EDABoard.com

Sponsor

Back
Top