To operate them and download to them, that you have a PC with a parallel port or serial port, etc. I don't believe the so-called "Willem EPROM Programmers" will program PALs or GALs.įor older programmers, be sure you can obtain the MS-DOS software PALs and GALs, but they may be limited to specific brands (like Lattice on TL866A). Buyer beware of course: some of this stuff takes a few weeks to arrive from Asia or thereabouts, and may not be in English! Some of the "chinese" PROM programmers claim to support One can find GAL programmers as kits or products for $50-$100 (and up of course), from eBay sellers.
There's discussion about Linux USB device features, and in discussion with me he's reported progress on resolving some Windows issues. He says perlblast works with USB/parallel dongles.
The Perl code is based on galblast Perl requires a Perl interpreter to run Perl programs. Page for his Perl-Tk software version he calls "perlblast". In Oct 2018, I was contacted by Kees Schoenmakers, who referred me to his Eagle PCB CAD files are apparently included on site. There's also a C-sourced program to operate it, runable in Windows 3.1/95/XP.
For instance,īruce Abbott' site shows two variations of the GALblast hardware he calls ATFblast. Look around the Web for variations of it. Note in 2015, updated 2018: galblast design and software has been replicated or modified a few times. For some time and up to 2018, an updated version is at GALBlast Version 1.6 Manfred Winterhoff at is not available. Programmers on Ebay and elsewhere, as below. GALBlast designs as described below ELM programmer as below and various hobby-class "Project: GAL programmer" by Manfred Nosswitz, Elektor Electronics (magazine), May 1992 They sell CD-ROMs of several years' issues. This is similar to old-style PIC (Microchip controller) programmers.Įlektor magazine published a GAL programmer. They mostly use a PC's parallel port and run under MS-DOS. Thanks to Alexander Voropay for some of these Web links.Īdditional Web sites list PAL and GAL programmers and resources, such asįor programmers, in 2013 or so I simply Web-searched for "gal programmer" and found the following inexpensive build-yourself designs. S100computers has some GAL documentation and PALASM
Web Archive has retained a copy of PALASM 4 V1.5 which covers AMD brand MACH logic. It appears to work in DOSBOX under recent Windows OS's. PALASM 2.23d for MS-DOS may be found at this link. The brouhaha page above says: "There are additional links to MS-DOS executables at these sites as of 2009". He provides the original FORTRAN sources from MMI to convert logic equations to JEDEC code which can be used by PAL programmers and simulators. An early software tool to create these files is called "PALASM". PAL's and GAL's are programmed, after determining the "logic" they will implement, by some kind of "assembler" from logic equations to either an Intel HEX format or a JEDEC format file. Old stocks seem available and not too expensive. Of course pulled PALs, programmed only once via fusable-links, are useless for reuse. GALs which are reprogrammable are sometimes available as used pulls. Many such parts are still available as unused old stock. What's called by some "simple" PALs and GALs and PLDs, appear to be out of production except by Microchip who purchased Atmel. So the era of small PLDs really comes to an end now."Īs of late 2019, my general impressions are these. Smaller MACH CPLDs, but all of them are in QFP packages, and many of The related process is being closed, I think they will produce a last Need to order /now/ to really get the parts. Since these have been so widely used, they have promised shipment up to 2014 - but you In 2011, Tilmann Rey told me: " Lattice has just discontinued all GALs. Details on how they work are not discussed on this Web page. This Web page discusses resources for reading and programming them. There's old-stock from surplus IC sellers and arcade game parts resellers. Major digital parts distributors like Digikey and Jameco stocked such parts at least to 2015. The "GAL" devices are modern equivalents, easier to find and sometimes easier to program, some are reprogrammable. Later PALs were programmed like UV-erasable PROMs but are usually not reprogrammable. The devices themselves are bits of logic with fusable links programming them consists of burning up appropriate fuses. They were used Tilmann Rei's GIDE IDE interface (16V8, 20V8) in Compupro S-100 boards and in other microcomputers and minicomputers. PALs and GALs in DIP packages with 16, 18, 20 pins were used in the mid-1970's, 80's and 90's to replace simple random logic.