I understand that FPGAs can be used for digital glue logic on a circuit board, like NOR gates. They can also directly run AES encryption, Ethernet and Linux.
I'm not very rich and not an electronics expert. Nor do I have a posh logic analyser. I could probably put together a single board 6502 computer if I copied the code from somewhere. If I wanted to rationalise my component count of AND gates, flip flops and BCD decoders, is a FPGA feasible for my position? This is the level of sophistication I'm looking for, rather than microprocessor cores. Or, is there an alternative glue technology suitable for a downbeat hobbyist?
Supplemental:
A better question might be "what can I replace 5 OR gates, 3 Schmitts and a Divide by 10 counter with?" Thing is, I'm also factoring in the cost of the design software. A £25 development board + £5000 /seat compiler + £1000 programmer isn't much good to the poor and deprived.