Embed LV editor in a LV application

[Vladimir Drzik]

Hi guys

I'd like to embed LabVIEW editor in the window of my LabVIEW application. The same thing that e.g. Vision Builder does in its Calculator step. The user would be able to write his own VI, using a restricted set of nodes. How can this be done?

Vladimir

[ShaunR]

Subpanels. Example in the usual place.

[Vladimir Drzik]

QUOTE (ShaunR @ May 21 2009, 05:20 PM)

Subpanels. Example in the usual place.

Shaun,

Subpanels allow you to embed a front panel. I need to embed the LV editor. Or am I missing something?

Vladimir

[ShaunR]

QUOTE (Vladimir Drzik @ May 21 2009, 04:25 PM)

Shaun,

Subpanels allow you to embed a front panel. I need to embed the LV editor. Or am I missing something?

Vladimir

Sorry. I misunderstood.

The only thing I think your missing is that VBuilde/VAssistant doesn't actually have the Labview environment embedded. It is a pictorial representation of the functional blocks with its own editors ,and, when you execute the code, it interfaces directly the the NI vision dlls. The only time that Labview is used is when you want to create the vis. Then Labview is launched and the vi's are generated (probably using scripting).

[jdunham]

QUOTE (Vladimir Drzik @ May 21 2009, 05:45 AM)

Hi guys

I'd like to embed LabVIEW editor in the window of my LabVIEW application. The same thing that e.g. Vision Builder does in its Calculator step. The user would be able to write his own VI, using a restricted set of nodes. How can this be done?

Vladimir

I don't think this can work. The run-time engine does not contain the LabVIEW editor.

This is on purpose because NI does not want you to build an application which is substantially the same as LabVIEW and distribute it for free under your app builder license.

[Vladimir Drzik]

Guys,

Thanks for the answers. Well, it also seems unlogical for me for NI to include LV editor in the runtime. But... the calculator step in Vision Builder is actually THE LV editor. It even uses the settings from LabVIEW.ini of the current LV development version. And it works also without development version installed (though I'm not sure which INI file it uses then).

Anyway, it wouldn't be a big problem for me if the development version was required to use the editor inside my application.

I'll also contact NI and let you know if I find out any new information.

Vladimir

[ShaunR]

QUOTE (Vladimir Drzik @ May 25 2009, 07:54 AM)

Guys,

Thanks for the answers. Well, it also seems unlogical for me for NI to include LV editor in the runtime. But... the calculator step in Vision Builder is actually THE LV editor. It even uses the settings from LabVIEW.ini of the current LV development version. And it works also without development version installed (though I'm not sure which INI file it uses then).

Anyway, it wouldn't be a big problem for me if the development version was required to use the editor inside my application.

I'll also contact NI and let you know if I find out any new information.

Vladimir

I've just been looking again at the VB. In fact, you seem to be right (I haven't used the VB for years so thought I would refresh my memory). The "Calculator" does seem to have a Labview editor built in with an extremely reduced palette. I've no idea what they are doing since you don't have to have Labview installed to use it (but you do to Export). I'm guessing that they've cut out the LV editor core and implanted it in the exe. Let us know the feedback from NI.

[Yair]

If you really want, you can open a VI and then embed its BD window inside your front panel using the Windows reparenting API functions. You should be able to find something if you search for MDI. You could probably even use a subpanel and play with the window bounds to avoid showing the window frame, but this would probably be fragile and I doubt it's worth it. Also, it might create some issues if you have subVIs and you try to open them.

[Vladimir Drzik]

QUOTE (Yair @ May 25 2009, 06:38 PM)

If you really want, you can open a VI and then embed its BD window inside your front panel using the Windows reparenting API functions. You should be able to find something if you search for MDI. You could probably even use a subpanel and play with the window bounds to avoid showing the window frame, but this would probably be fragile and I doubt it's worth it. Also, it might create some issues if you have subVIs and you try to open them.

Yair,

Interesting idea, thanks. Maybe I'll look into that a bit further.

I contacted NI and the answer is the option of embedding the editor is not supported. The Vision Builder probably uses some parts of LV core to implement its Calculator step. Well, it seems like this is not the way to go.

Vladimir

[gb119]

QUOTE (Vladimir Drzik @ May 27 2009, 08:52 AM)

Yair,

Interesting idea, thanks. Maybe I'll look into that a bit further.

I contacted NI and the answer is the option of embedding the editor is not supported. The Vision Builder probably uses some parts of LV core to implement its Calculator step. Well, it seems like this is not the way to go.

Vladimir

Technically I think you probably could build a very limited labVIEW code builder using scripting and a picture control, however (a) it would be very hard work, (b) it would require a development system to be installed on the target machine for the scripting to work and © I'm pretty sure that this is explicitly forbidden in the various LabVIEW licenses.

[Vladimir Drzik]

QUOTE (Gavin Burnell @ May 27 2009, 02:07 PM)

Technically I think you probably could build a very limited labVIEW code builder using scripting and a picture control, however (a) it would be very hard work, (b) it would require a development system to be installed on the target machine for the scripting to work and © I'm pretty sure that this is explicitly forbidden in the various LabVIEW licenses.

Ugh, interesting, but you gave me two good reasons (a+c) why not to follow this way . Anyway, I'm surprised that this is forbidden, provided that you still need to have the development version installed.

[Aristos Queue]

QUOTE (Vladimir Drzik @ May 27 2009, 01:35 PM)

Anyway, I'm surprised that this is forbidden, provided that you still need to have the development version installed.

If I had to guess, I'd suggest the lawyers decided to explicitly forbid it just in case someone figured out a way to do it without the development system. Lawyers are paid to be paranoid like that. :-)