One component that Logicly users have long requested is a tri-state buffer. I’m very happy to announce that Logicly 1.6.0 finally adds support for tri-state buffers, buses, and a high impedance (or hi-Z) signal. In the screenshot below, you can see a multiplexor built with the new components:
The new Tri-State component will act like a normal Buffer when its enable input is High (true), passing on its other input value unchanged. However, if it’s enable input is Low (false), the Tri-State component will output the new hi-Z signal. This is a special signal that is meant to be used with a Bus, the other new component added to Logicly in version 1.6.0.
The new Bus component allows you to combine multiple connections together into one. When a Bus component receives a hi-Z signal in one of its inputs, it will ignore that input completely. The ideal situation is that all but one input to a Bus will recieve a hi-Z signal and the final input will have a High (true) or Low (false) value that will be passed on to the output. When using a Bus, you will need to be careful about sending it conflicting signals. If it receives both High (true) and Low (false) signals at the same time, the Bus will output an Unknown signal to signify an error. Watch out for propagation delays! Adding in Buffers can be useful for ensuring that all inputs to a Bus will updated at the same time. When other components, such as logic gates, receive a hi-Z signal to any of their inputs, they will also treat it as an error and output an Unknown signal.
As always, this release includes a various bug fixes and other minor enhancements too. Enjoy, and update to Logicly 1.6.0 today!