EDA and the network

Digital computer networks are playing an increasingly important role in the evaluation, distribution, integration and management of EDA systems. Tools, libraries, design data, and a variety of both design and manufacturing services are accessible today via networks. Networks are also playing a central role in the integration of system design teams, teams that involve a variety of both business and technical disciplines as well as widely distributed geographical locations. Throughout the history of EDA, the architectures used to integrate and distribute computation and interaction have played a central role in the overall design methodology and so have had a major, indirect impact on the choice of the most effective tools, algorithms, and data structures. In this paper, a number of the factors involved in the choice of a suitable architecture for EDA integration are reviewed and a number of ongoing developments and challenges are presented.