PSpice

UMinn Files:

Instructions for installing Orcad PSpice v9.1 can be found in the PSPICE Readme.pdf file. Use it as a guide to installing the program on your own computer.  Note that you are told to install into a specific folder off your C: drive. It installed just fine on my Windows 7 machine in the C:\Programs folder.

This v9.1 was the last popular version of PSpice offered by Orcad Corp. before Cadence acquired the company. Orcad originally got it from Microsim, when it was a very popular simulation tool used in the 1980's onwards. Orcad integrated Microsim's version into their flagship schematic capture program, "Capture". Later, affter Cadence bought Orcad, it was further developed and seamlessly integrated into Cadence Capture - as it is today in the version we use here at UCSC: Cadence PSB V16.6. The version we'll be using dates from 2000 when Capture and Microsim's schematic interface were still largely separated.  The many library and special files provided by UMinn work only with V9.1. I'ts probably possible to port the many schematics and modules to Cadence, but it isn't worth the time since V9.1 works equally well. You might find it interesting to know that PSpice was originally developed as a funded research project at UCB. The original Fortran code was made available in the public domain (and still is) but was limited to an awkard command-line interface. Microsim started with this code, wrote the first sophisticated GUI that wrapped it, and commenced to sell it.