Academy track

Hardware

The Hardware track is where students go from "a CPU is a magic chip" to "this is a 6502 I built from NAND on my own FPGA." HW-101 lights the soldering iron; CSA-101 builds the silicon-arc from NAND through the 6502; CSA-201 extends to RV32I with virtual memory and protection rings. The track produces graduates who can take a board you hand them and tell you what every pin does.

5 courses · 2 ready All tracks → Filter to Hardware on the index →
VCA-CSA-101 Belt 4/5
Coming soon

Silicon Arc: 6502 from NAND

8-week silicon arc — build a 6502 on FPGA

Build a working 6502 CPU from NAND gates in HDL and synthesize it onto a Tang Primer 25K FPGA. Eight weeks, NAND to running silicon, executing a hand-assembled program through UART. Pairs with CSA-102 (toolchain arc). In development.

~90 hr
Prereq: SPK-101 recommended (FND-101 helpful)
Equipment: Per-student kit (~$144): Tang Primer 25K + Dock + PMOD kit (canonical FPGA anchor; 23K LUT4 / 1,008 Kbit BRAM); ENC28J60 SPI breakout + MCP3008 ADC + level-shifter PMOD for Ch 11–12 stdlib labs; TTL DIP-14 chips for Ch 1–2 discrete-logic Lab 1.0 / 2.0
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VCA-CSA-102 Belt 4/5
Coming soon

Toolchain Arc: Py6502v + NES Capstone

4-week toolchain arc — build the compiler, ship a .nes cartridge

Build Py6502v, a Python-syntax compiler that targets the 6502 you built in CSA-101, plus the REPL workbench and runtime library. Four weeks capped by a playable NES-compatible .nes cartridge game running on your Tang Primer 25K. Pairs with CSA-101 (silicon arc). In development.

~80 hr
Prereq: CSA-101 required (FND-102 Python helpful)
Equipment: Tang Primer 25K carry-forward from CSA-101 (no new hardware required); browser-only path via the academy workbench for students without a board
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VCA-CSA-110 Belt 4/5
FlagshipReady / Enroll

Fundamentals of Computing Systems

11th Spring (bridge) or 12th Fall — Hardware-FPGA capstone

Build a working computer from NAND gates up. Twelve modules: logic, ALU, CPU, assembler, VM, compiler, OS — ending with a real application running on FPGA hardware the student designed. RV32I-Lite instruction set on a Tang Primer 25K. Petzold-anchored throughout. The deepest engineering deliverable in the catalog.

~155 hr
Prereq: FND-101 + FND-102
Equipment: Per-student kit (~$144): Tang Primer 25K + Dock + PMOD kit (canonical FPGA anchor; 23K LUT4 / 1,008 Kbit BRAM); ENC28J60 SPI breakout + MCP3008 ADC + level-shifter PMOD for Ch 11–12 stdlib labs; TTL DIP-14 chips for Ch 1–2 discrete-logic Lab 1.0 / 2.0
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VCA-CSA-201 Belt 5/5
Coming soon

Computer Systems Architecture II

Full RV32I + MMU + PMP + driver-track

Direct sequel to CSA-101. Full RV32I (not Lite), virtual memory, physical memory protection, driver development, embedded-Linux bring-up. DE10-Nano as primary platform.

~180 hr
Prereq: CSA-101 + capstone shipped
Equipment: Required: Tang Nano 20K (carried over from CSA-101) + DE10-Nano (~$130) + Pi 4 station kit (~$80) + USB-C + HDMI + microSD; Optional: external DRAM module, logic analyser
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VCA-HW-101 Belt 3/5
Ready / Enroll

Electronics and Microcontrollers

10th Grade Fall — Hardware on-ramp

DC circuits, Ohm's law, breadboarding, Arduino, sensors, soldering. Capstone: Arduino data logger in student-fabricated enclosure. Bridges software to RE-101's physical layer.

~95 hr
Prereq: VCA-FND-102
Equipment: Arduino-class kit + soldering tools (BOM finalization pending kit evaluation)
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