Cursor Controls
The blue cursor line marks the exact time currently being inspected.
Moving the Cursor
Section titled “Moving the Cursor”Click anywhere on the waveform area to place the cursor.
Keyboard
Section titled “Keyboard”| Key | Effect |
|---|---|
Q | move cursor left continuously |
E | move cursor right continuously |
Shift+Q | jump to previous transition |
Shift+E | jump to next transition |
Why Transition Jumps Matter
Section titled “Why Transition Jumps Matter”Transition jumps are useful when you want to:
- find the next clock edge,
- jump between state changes,
- locate glitches or brief spikes quickly.
Reading Values
Section titled “Reading Values”At the cursor time, the value column shows the current value of each selected signal. Each row also exposes a format selector so you can switch between binary, hex, decimal, and other representations without changing the underlying data.
Use the copy control next to a value when you need to paste the currently formatted representation elsewhere.
Special States
Section titled “Special States”You may see these logic states while inspecting waveforms:
| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
X | Unknown — the simulator cannot determine if the signal is 0 or 1 |
Z | High-impedance — the signal is not being driven, as if disconnected |
U | Uninitialized — no value assigned yet (common at VHDL simulation start) |
Cursor vs Zoom Center
Section titled “Cursor vs Zoom Center”The cursor and the zoom center are intentionally separate:
- the blue line chooses what time you are inspecting,
- the green dashed line chooses what point zooming pivots around.
Keeping them separate lets you inspect one event while still zooming around another reference point.