Altium

Envision – what's new, changing and over the horizon     Welcome to the May 2010 issue of Envision. With Altium Designer Release 10 on the horizon, this is a special instalment where we give you a preview of new advanced features in this latest release. Make sure you take a look at the first article (below), and check out the free webinar. As usual, there’s much more – find out how design refactoring makes best use of your IP, and read about what we mean by a platform-based approach to development.       Find out how to get your designs right, first time, every time     Altium Designer Release 10 just is just around the corner and we’re very excited about the new design configuration and design release technologies it delivers. These new capabilities are so significant that we’ve lifted the lid on Release 10 to give you a sneak preview, via a great new Webinar. Read all about it here, and make sure you watch the free on-demand webinar. Read the full story       Making hard-drive ASIC verification a whole lot easier     Global semiconductor manufacturer STMicroelectronics knows that the market success of the ASIC devices it produces is bound to the quality of their real-world testing and verification process. This relies on an ability to create accurate, custom PCBs for new ASIC chips in short timeframes, so the board design tools need to keep up. An upgrade was the way to go. Read the full story       The benefits of a platform-based development approach     While the traditional electronic design process has evolved on the basis of collecting separate tools together in a chain, a platform-based approach that uses a single model of the design data offers enormous advantages over that conventional solution. But what does a platform architecture really mean, and how does it deliver the promised benefits from design through to production? Read the full story       Webinars and Seminars: learn and discuss the latest design technology   There’s almost always a current technical event being hosted by Altium, or one that Altium is contributing to. Whether it’s showcasing new Altium technology, stimulating discussion on design techniques or hosting global web events, we’re always looking for new ways to help make design easier and more productive – for everyone. Check out the Events page for more information.     What's happening, right now?   See what’s happening at Altium, in real-time. Follow us on twitter to find out about the latest news, events, videos and design tutorials. There’s so much going on, can we actually condense it to 140 characters or less?

MAY TECH TIP Refactoring designs, the right way While it’s traditionally a concept associated with the software development domain, 'refactoring' is a very useful process to apply in the electronics design domain. Altium Designer has built in refactoring tools that help you reuse and reapply design IP in an efficient, easy way. In this tech tip, find out what it’s all about and how it works in Altium Designer.   Keeping Rover circuit boards in check Responsible for developing many of the circuit boards for NASA’s Mars Exploration Rovers, Altium customer DKB Resources has been featured in a recent NASA Tech Brief that focuses on design data management. Read how Altium Designer is a key part of complying with NASA’s stringent data management requirements.   Touch sensor apps arrive Read how Altium has partnered with Atmel to bring touch sensor configuration tools into the board design space. (PDF)   Development boards  Vote now to nominate (and possibly win) your favourite development board.   Meet the Envision team There are real people behind the creation of Envision, and we've stopped hiding.

	KEEP IN TOUCH No matter where you are in the development process, we're here to help. Contact Altium in your region at www.altium.com/buy/contactus	COMMENTS Questions or comments regarding Envision? Email us at envision@altium.com WANT MORE? Previous issues of Envision are available at www.altium.com/community/newsletters	SUBSCRIBEReceived this link from a friend or colleague? Subscribe to Envision update alerts at www.altium.com/envision