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I am using the signal-tap now and everything looks good. I just need a way to demo my project and show that my hardware is functional. I guess, as I don't have much time, I might go for system console as it seems easier to pick-up. In that case, I need to have have a slave interface for my hardware and connect it with jtag to avalon master module in qsys. Am I right?
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Your understanding of system-console and adding a slave port is correct.
However, because I said "In-System Sources and Probes" tool and you came back with "SignalTap", I did just want to clarify that these are not the same tool. The sources and probes tool allows you to inject stimulus and observe outputs in a PC GUI. It allows a fairly direct connection to whatever ports your new component already has.
http://www.altera.com/literature/hb/qts/qts_qii53021.pdf Going the Qsys route and adding an Avalon-MM Slave port and using either system-console or NIOS to control it is more labor and doesn't really demonstrate any great technological achievement, it's just nice packaging. If you are developing commercial IP, it is kind of normal. But if you are an engineering student being evaluated on the correct operation of your new component, it doesn't add anything (unless the assignment said to do that).
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