Peter Baxendale wrote: > On Thu, 2009-05-14 at 13:25 -0400, al davis wrote: > >> Educators typically use simulators very poorly, as if they >> themselves don't understand. In most cases, the total use is a >> few specified runs with a couple of graphs, that you do after >> everything else is done. A more appropriate use of simulators >> is to explore things that you can't see with real measurements. >> There is a lot that you can find out about a circuit that you >> can't measure in a practical way. >> >> Students need to learn to be flexible, and they need to learn to >> use computers effectively, not just by kicking the GUI a few >> times. EE's, even analog designers, need to learn some serious >> programming. >> > > You're right, of course. In mitigation let me say that the particular > course for which I use swcad (LTSpice) is 4 x 2hr sessions for a dozen > students who've never seen an electronic cad package before. I try to > give them an understanding of the process from design to schematic to > test by simulation to pcb. I use gschem/gattrib/gsch2pcb/pcb and swcad. > The choice of swcad was a compromise to give me a better chance of > fitting it all in. It just gives them a taster for what might be > possible using simulation. >
IMHO that was a smart choice. Whether we like it or not, nearly all of those kids will be owning Windows-based laptops plus some maybe with Apple. It is best when they can simply use the simulator on their own laptops so they have a chance to keep working on a problem over lunch or on weekends. -- Regards, Joerg http://www.analogconsultants.com/ _______________________________________________ geda-user mailing list [email protected] http://www.seul.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/geda-user
