FPGA Development Board Hardware and I/O Features - Rapid Prototyping of Digital Systems - page 53

NOTE: If you ever switch a design to a different board, you will need to
change the device type, redo all of the pin assignments, and then recompile for
the new FPGA device. The voltage levels on FPGA pins can vary (3.3V or 5V),
so be sure to check for the proper voltage levels when selecting an I/O pin to
interface external hardware to the board.
Do not connect high current devices such as motors or relay coils directly to
FPGA I/O pins. These pins cannot provide the high current levels needed, and it
may damage the FPGA's.
2.4 Obtaining an FPGA Development Board and Cables
FPGA boards are available for purchase from Altera's University Program at
special educational pricing for schools and students ( www.altera.com in the
University Program area). The newest board, the DE1, is ordered, produced,
and shipped directly from the manufacturer to minimize cost
( www.terasic.com ). Other DE2 and DE1 accessories such as a camera module
and a small 320 by 240 color LCD panel are also available. Some UP3 add-on
boards such as an A/D card can also be found at www.slscorp.com .
A Longer Cable for the ByteBlaster on UP3, UP2, and UP1 boards
For use with the UP3, UP2 or UP1 boards, a longer 25pin to 25pin PC M/F
parallel printer cable is useful since the 1 foot Byteblaster II cable provided
with the boards is often too short to reach the PC's printer port. All 25 wires
must be connected in the printer extension cable. Any computer store should
have these cables. A three-foot well-shielded cable works best. Avoid using
extra long cables or very low-cost cables without good shielding as they can
cause problems. The newer DE1 and DE2 boards come with a newer USB-
based ByteBlaster that has a longer USB cable, so no additional cable is
needed.
A DDITIONAL REFERENCE MATERIALS AND DOCUMENTATION FOR EACH
FPGA BOARD CAN BE FOUND ON THE B OOK ' S DVD IN THE
\ B OARD \C HAP 2 SUBDIRECTORIES .