What do I need to run Logisin? How do I start it?
You need to have Java installed. Logisim is known to work on Windows and Linux, and it likely works on MacOS as well. On Windows and MacOS, simply double-click on the Logisim JAR file. On Linux, invoke it with "/path/to/sun/java -jar logisim-2.1.6.jar". On my machine, which has JRE1.5.0 installed, I invoke Logisim with "/usr/java/jre1.5.0_06/bin/java -jar logisim-2.1.6.jar"
How do I load the additional components we will be using in this course into Logisim?
Right-click on "Additional Logisim Components" on the right side of this page, and save the file "cs316.jar" into the same directory as your Logisim JAR file. Then run Logisim, click on Project > Load Library > JAR Library, and select the cs316.jar file that you just downloaded. When it asks for the class name, type "edu.cornell.cs316.Components". You should now see a new button on the left side in Logisim called "cs316 Components". (In case you are wondering, CS316 is the name used at Cornell for COMP 303).
I got Logisim to run, and I added the additional components, now what?
Select "LED" from the additional components, drop it on the canvas. Then select "Clock" from Base, drop that on the canvas. Then connect the clock output to the LED input using the Wiring Tool. Choose "Simulation" > "Ticks Enabled". Watch the marvelous light show you have just created. Once you have reached this point, there is nothing that poses an obstacle to you designing a high-performance processor -- it just requires a bit more thinking and planning.