About This Writing Sample

VPQED Getting Started manual, Embedded Power Corp..

In six chapters, I describe how to use Embedded Power's VP/QED products to debug program code. This is not a manual on how to debug, rather it is a manual that shows how debugging techniques can be implemented using these specific products. Debugging Exercises are presented that illustrate how each variant of the product (186, 386, JTAG) is used to accomplish debugging tasks. I coordinate the Exercises with sample code provided on the installation CD.

Chapter 4 includes the Exercises for 186 processors. An Exercise for using the Hardware Event Analyzer illustrates how this product can be used to improve software performance.

This manual was developed originally as an on line Help file, using Microsoft Word - and distributed on the installation CD. However, many clients requested that a printed version be made available - so a PDF master was created in FrameMaker (using the bitmap graphics from Word because of time constraints) to generate inexpensive grayscale manuals on a Docutech printer. There is, unfortunately, some graphical degradation as a result of resizing in Framemaker, but it was an acceptable tradeoff, and our customers were pleased.

About VisualProbe Q.E.D. 186

VisualProbe Q.E.D. 186 is an in-circuit emulator (Q.E.D.) that is controlled by a Windows-based debugger interface product called VisualProbe.

The Q.E.D. in-circuit emulator replaces the microprocessor intended for use in the system under development with an identical microprocessor whose functions are placed directly under the control of the VisualProbe debugger software. Together, these products are useful with an array of AMD and Intel 186 microprocessors.

In simple terms, the combination of these two products provides what is essentially a microscopic real time, recorded, or freeze-framed view of microprocessor hardware states, its program code, and their interactions. This high degree of bus-level visualization affords users the ability to define specific conditions in the microprocessor that - if they occur - will trigger user-defined debugger responses.

In addition, the Q.E.D. unit can receive signals from other hardware devices present in the "target" system for use in the debugging/testing process.