The intent of the all-Windows software policy is not meant to be punitive for students nor to support certain software vendors, but merely to provide a common set of tools and a consistent set of instructions. That being said, you can do whatever makes your life easier and still produces the desired results, as long as you realize that other software is not supported directly by the faculty and TAs of ECE 2031. Along those lines, you can use other word processing software, including tools that run on other operating systems.

A common alternative for the Quartus software, suitable for Mac and Linux users, is to access the ECE Virtual Labs (see next question and answer). Another is to use a virtual machine approach on your own computer.

Specifically related to Macs, make sure you see the related FAQ: http://www.powersof2.gatech.edu/faq/index.php?sid=302&lang=en&action=artikel&cat=2&id=15&artlang=en

On the technical side, it is possible to run Quartus natively on Linux, though we have heard that there can be difficulties connecting to the development boards and running the simulator.