Most experts agree that assertion checkers added by designers havesignificant impact on detecting problems early in the functionalverification process. The designer is the most familiar with the intent andlimitations of the design and is in the best position to define where theyare needed during simulation. Additionally, with checkers in place, formalverification can begin at the earliest stage and at the "sweet spot" forformal verification. Designer-provided assertion checkers result inincreased communication between the designers and verification engineers.For example, when a designer-provided checker fails, both the designer andthe verification engineer have a common point of reference.

"Nearly all designers can add assertion checkers manually. This rarelyhappens because the time required for creating, debugging, attaching anddocumenting them is difficult to justify when considering the typical chipdesign schedule. The availability of assertion libraries reduces that time,but not nearly enough for wide scale use by designers. With Zazz, attachingand documenting the library checkers that cover most of the designer'srequirements, takes less than a minute each. This level of productivity andthe low cost of Zazz make designer provided assertions highly effective,"remarked Howard Martin, Zocalo President.

About Zazz

Zazz is Linux-based and supports any mix of Verilog 1995, Verilog 2001 andSystemVerilog design files. The Zazz Front End includes an advancedincremental parser, elaborator and design viewer. An existing design or newdesign can be read into Zazz where it is parsed, elaborated and graphicallydisplayed. The design may then be modified with the editor of choicewithout leaving Zazz. The design viewer provides superior designpresentation and navigation. When a design is modified and saved, it isincrementally parsed and elaborated. The incremental feature, along withthe built-in modification monitoring quickly updates the graphical displayand gives immediate feedback about errors. The Zazz Front End providesdesigner productivity advantages even when assertion libraries are notbeing added or used.

Integrated with the Zazz Front End, Assertion Library Support softwareprovides:

--  Ease of selecting checkers from assertion libraries.--  Ease of binding the checkers to the design file.--  Ease of configuring the checkers.--  Ease of exportation and management of bind files.--  Automatic creation of verification plan documentation.    

Support is provided for Accellera's Open Verification Library (OVL),Cadence's Incisive Assertion Library (IAL), Mentor's Questa VerificationLibrary (QVL) and Synopsys' SystemVerilog Assertions Checker Library withCoverage Level Reporting.

Availability and Pricing

Zazz is available now. The list price is $4,950 for a one-yearsubscription. Through September 30, 2009, single copies are available at avolume purchase price of $2,950. Visit www.zocalo-tech.com to see a demoand download a free 14-day trial. If the project is not ready to moveforward with the full Zazz capability, the Assertion Library Support isautomatically disabled and the Front End capabilities of Zazz remain forcontinued use at no cost.

About Zocalo Tech

Zocalo Tech, Inc., incorporated in 2006, is focused on productivitysoftware for quick and easy creation, use and reuse of assertion checkersworking seamlessly with any popular functional verification flow. Zocalosoftware, marketed under the name Zazz, has been architected and developedfrom the ground up with one goal in mind: increased productivity forengineers adopting and utilizing Assertion Based Verification. For moreinformation, please visit www.zocalo-tech.com

Notes to editors:

Zazz is a trademark of Zocalo Tech, Inc. All other tradenames andtrademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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