Image Editing - Looking for an Easy to Use Plugin

[martin_g]

Hi  - I have a large application which enables our users to create their own test sequences, as part of that, they create visual instructions and we've added in a very basic image editor (sub MS paint). I've attached a couple of example screenshots.  We've been getting some negative feedback on the image editing capabilities, and we've suggested they use an external tool but we're still getting requests for a decent image editor within the app.

As it's not a core part of our application, I don't want to develop one & I don't think LV is best suited to this task.

So - has anyone any recommendations of a paid for image editing toolkit within their LV project? I'm thinking a .net / winforms package that we could easily call and integrate into our project.

Thanks, 

Martin

[Neil Pate]

Remaking an image editor sounds like a fun weekend project if there is beer involved. But I suspect the end result would be throwaway code!

I totally agree with you pushing back on this requirement, it sounds like the potential for massive feature creep.

Sorry, I do not know any .net or similar toolkits to embed into a LabVIEW application. Maybe there is some javascript implementation you can embed using a web-browser frame thingy (like https://paint.js.org/) ?  

Edited August 3, 2022 by Neil Pate

[JKSH]

14 hours ago, martin_g said:

we're still getting requests for a decent image editor within the app.

What is the value of these requests? (are they from major customers?)

What would happen if you removed the feature completely?

 

14 hours ago, martin_g said:

has anyone any recommendations of a paid for image editing toolkit within their LV project?

I have no experience with something like this, but @Neil Pate's JS suggestion sounds workable.

[ShaunR]

Oooh. Is that NXG?

I don't think there is a lot off-the-shelf. You can interface to GIMP via TCP or ImageMagick as command line but that's probably just as much hassle as writing a simple one of your own and probably too restrictive except for the standard things of cropping and resizing for on-the-fly. It looks like you use ROI's so maybe the NI Vision toolkit would be the best option (if it works with NXG)

By the looks of it, you don't really have that much functionality to implement. I, personally, would bite the bullet and implement it either as LabVIEW code (probably using Vision Toolkit or Bitman) or as HTML/Javascript (there are quite a few Canvas drawing API's and toolkits). For .NET there is also a few examples for simple editors and drawing on Winforms. You could call the same functions from LabVIEW nodes to draw on an image control in the FP .NET container.

All of that is not what you really want to hear though.

If you listed the requirements for your image editor, you may get really lucky and someone might write one just for giggles. But it's unlikely to be in .NET unless they are really a glutton for punishment as few of us use it.

[martin_g]

Thanks all for the feedback! I think the consensus is to look for an HTML/Javascript toolkit.

Is it a request we should implement? I've gone back & forth on this - as it seems like a nice to have feature. But we do get requests from major customers, they tell me it takes them a lot of time switching tools when using an external image editor. Also most of our competitors have an embedded image editor, so I'd like to have it as an option.  

Functionality - the bit that I struggle with & I don't think LV is well suited for is building composite images (sorry that wasn't clear in my first post) - they want to import several images, then crop, resize and reposition them.  

Javascript editor in an embedded browser. Yeah that may be the way to go, we tried this about 18 months ago, and struggled when using IE within the  WebBrowser - as most JS toolkits are geared up for a modern chromium browser, they don't work well with IE. I do actually have a prototype that uses Edge within the WebBrowser now - so maybe it's time to revisit that.

Is it NXG? No, it's a hybrid monster! LV15 mixed with the embedded WebBrowser displaying html & js for parts of the UI we can't do in pure LV. It started in pure LV with a more basic UI, then has grown & grown. It's getting refactored & split into multiple projects, I'm aiming to split of one of those smaller projects into NXG.

 

[ShaunR]

12 minutes ago, martin_g said:

I'm aiming to split of one of those smaller projects into NXG.

You know NXG has been discontinued, right?

13 minutes ago, martin_g said:

I don't think LV is well suited for is building composite images (sorry that wasn't clear in my first post) - they want to import several images, then crop, resize and reposition them.  

Then Bitman is what you want. The native LabVIEW image tools can be very cumbersome but Vugies toolkit allows layering, advanced processing and filtering (if you want to try it)

 

17 minutes ago, martin_g said:

I do actually have a prototype that uses Edge within the WebBrowser now - so maybe it's time to revisit that.

Then you are almost there by the sounds of it. As I have said in many other threads, I have dispensed with LabVIEW UI's completely in favour of HTML/Javascript. I use a proper  web browser (not the LabVIEW UI or embedded browser widget) and use LabVIEW  as a back-end linked with websockets.

[martin_g]

30 minutes ago, ShaunR said:

Then you are almost there by the sounds of it. As I have said in many other threads, I have dispensed with LabVIEW UI's completely in favour of HTML/Javascript. I use a proper  web browser (not the LabVIEW UI or embedded browser widget) and use LabVIEW  as a back-end linked with websockets.

Hmmm, that's interesting, I'll search out some of your other posts on UI's. That sounds like a better longer term approach.

29 minutes ago, ShaunR said:

You know NXG has been discontinued, right?

Yeah, I meant the WebVI's bit that has survived. But tbh will probably skip that and just do the html/js. 

34 minutes ago, ShaunR said:

Then Bitman is what you want. The native LabVIEW image tools can be very cumbersome but Vugies toolkit allows layering, advanced processing and filtering (if you want to try it)

Good to know, I'll keep this as a plan B.

Thanks, 

Martin 

[JKSH]

1 minute ago, martin_g said:

I meant the WebVI's bit that has survived.

As someone who used this for a large-ish project -- after 9 years as a full-time LabVIEW programmer at a Silver Alliance Partner -- I cannot recommend this route. Neither can others who replied to my post.

 

7 minutes ago, martin_g said:

But tbh will probably skip that and just do the html/js.

Your future self will thank you.

[martin_g]

22 minutes ago, JKSH said:

As someone who used this for a large-ish project -- after 9 years as a full-time LabVIEW programmer at a Silver Alliance Partner -- I cannot recommend this route. Neither can others who replied to my post.

Ah ok - thanks for pointing this out. I tried something trivial with it a few years back, haven't been keeping up to date with it & had thought it would have gotten out of prototype stage by now.

[Neil Pate]

I definitely can echo what @JKSHsaid. Several years ago I implemented a data dashboard with WebVI tech (in NXG) and the overall experience was so painful I will never try it again.