KTechlab alternative: learn digital logic in any browser
KTechlab is a free, open-source (GPL-2.0) IDE for microcontrollers and electronics, now a KDE application in the Education category. It combines a visual circuit editor (with context help for each component and automatic or manual wire routing) and circuit simulation with an oscilloscope and probes, with programming PIC microcontrollers in assembly, its own Microbe language, C or visual FlowCode, which it can convert between, plus a debugger and uploading to a real PIC. Its distinctive trick is simulating the programmed microcontroller together with its circuit. KDE lists it for Linux, and its latest release there is 0.50.0, from September 2020; development continues on KDE's GitLab. KTechlab joins microcontroller code and circuit simulation on the Linux desktop; digiwleea teaches the digital logic underneath, in any browser.
What KTechlab is good at
Embedded projects with PIC microcontrollers: write the program in assembly, C, Microbe or as a flowchart, then run it inside the simulated circuit it will control and watch the result on the oscilloscope before touching hardware. For a Linux user learning electronics and microcontrollers together, it is a free all-in-one environment. (digiwleea is an independent project, not affiliated with KTechlab or KDE.)
How digiwleea is different
digiwleea concentrates on digital logic and how a computer is built, and runs in any modern browser on any system. You wire NMOS and PMOS transistors into NOT and NAND gates, then build adders, latches, registers, RAM and an 8-bit CPU that runs a stored program, through a 40+ level course where every part is checked against its truth table, with an AI tutor (Wleea). It has no microcontroller or analog simulation; the processor is one you build yourself rather than a PIC you program.
| KTechlab | digiwleea | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | PIC microcontrollers plus circuit simulation | Digital logic from transistors to a simple CPU |
| Runs on | Linux (KDE app) | Any modern browser |
| Programming | Assembly, C, Microbe, FlowCode for PICs | The assembly behind the CPU you build |
| Latest release | 0.50.0 (2020) | Actively developed |
| Price | Free, GPL-2.0 | Free lab and Act I; Premium for the full course |
No sign-up is needed to start: open the lab and place your first transistor, or read the free theory course. The account (and the AI tutor) are optional.
More comparisons: Electronics and SPICE simulators
See for yourself: build a logic gate from transistors in the simulator, then follow the path from sand to an 8-bit CPU.
Open the digiwleea lab →Frequently asked
What is KTechlab?
A free, open-source KDE application: an IDE for PIC microcontrollers and electronics with a circuit editor, simulation with an oscilloscope, and programming in assembly, C, Microbe or FlowCode.
Does KTechlab run on Windows or Mac?
KDE lists it for Linux, installed through Discover or the distribution's package manager. For a logic simulator on any system with nothing to install, a browser tool such as digiwleea works.
Is KTechlab still maintained?
Its latest KDE release is 0.50.0 from September 2020, and development has moved to KDE's GitLab, where its repository is still active.