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Names of companies in the technology industry tend to be interesting, but only a few are as unique as Xilinx. According to Bill Carter, the company’s name was derived from “Si”, which is the chemical symbol used for silicon. The X at the start and end of the company’s name represented programmable logic blocks, which are what Xilinx components are best known for, while “linx” represented how logic blocks are connected to each other with programmable links. Whatever the story is behind the name Xilinx, there is no denying that Xilinx components are considered one of the most reliable in the computing technology industry today.

It is probably why Xilinx distributors tend to be more successful and lead an easier life compared to distributors of other computing technology products. Whereas other distributors have to work hard convincing customers to take a chance at their products, Xilinx Distributors need not exert much effort since Xilinx components are known for their high-quality design and performance.

Of course, this was not always the case but the company’s rise is simply a testament to the genuine satisfaction that customers can derive from the use of Xilinx components. In the golden years of computing technology, where companies had rolled out one new product after another in a ceaseless fashion, Xilinx had trailed behind Altera, then the undisputed industry leader. At that time, Xilinx distributors had no doubt a difficult time convincing customers to switch their loyalties to the company. Nowadays, however, Xilinx distributors are basking in the glory of having the company own over 51% of the market while Altera only has 34%.

In 1984, semiconductor engineers Bernard Vonderschmitt and Ross Freeman partnered up to establish Xilinx. The two had first met in Zilog Corporation, where both had been assigned to work on an integrated circuit project. At the start, Freeman had only wanted to convince Zilog to design a FPGA according to his specifications. He only left when it was clear that Zilog was not interested in pursuing what was then a relatively small market for FPGAs. With the help of Vonderschmitt, Freeman was able to obtain millions of dollars from venture capitalists. This resulted into the world’s first FPGA that was commercially viable and which became available to the market in 1985.

Nowadays, Freeman is widely acknowledged as the inventor of the FPGA and in 2009 was one of the chosen few to make it to the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame.