Looking for a LabVIEW Viewer

[vugie]

QUOTE (Michael Aivaliotis @ Mar 20 2009, 07:04 PM)

Well, It's a dedicated server, so I can do whatever I want. The problem is Linux scares me. My fear is performing an installation that will somehow crash the server, which even a reboot can't fix. I can't afford to have the server go down because you guys will start yelling at me.

So use windows or linux virtual machine. The communication with LV would be sligthly more complicated but still achievable with virtual network. It would also consume more memory.

Another solution, maybe better for experiments, would be separate windows machine (anywhere but with public IP) for only providing VI code capturing service.

[Cat]

So I was cursing my CD drive again as I was attempting to load some code on it so I could walk over to my dev laptop and see some CR code. Which made me think I needed to submit the concept of a LabVIEW Viewer to the Idea Exchange. But it's already there, more-or-less. So please wander over here and vote for this idea. Various reasons are:

Community service: I kinda made a promise to myself to start helping out more on LAVA, but that's hard to do when dealing with code is so painful.

Code review: I've really been pushing LV training here. I figure anyone who knows C and has LV Core 1&2 can do code review, something I have been sorely missing. But none of my cow-orkers have LV licenses so they can't look at my code. Try printing out 2500+ vis sometime...

Viewing more recent versions: It would be useful to be able to look at LV 2009/2010 code (I haven't yet received permission to upgrade).

Vote early! Vote often!

[PaulG.]

... I needed to submit the concept of a LabVIEW Viewer to the Idea Exchange. But it's already there, more-or-less. So please wander over here and vote for this idea...

I think it's a good idea that seems to have come and gone but needs to return. I am fortunate enough to have 2009 and 2010 so I'm OK without a viewer - for now. But that wasn't the case just a few months ago when the latest version I had access to was 8.6.

If anything having a viewer would allow someone to be able to look at block diagrams in versions above the one you have access to.

I can't tell you how many times I've gotten frustrated because I can't look at someone else's code or an example here or on the Dark Side because it was written in a later version.

[hooovahh]

Here's a suggestion of one of those "It could work but why would you want to" ideas.

In the past I have been successful with making a single EXE, Which contains all files for a LabVIEW development environment using ThinApp. Basically you install LabVIEW in a virtual machine then run ThinApp and it creates a single EXE with all the files needed to virtualize a environment so that LabVIEW can run without needing to be install. It basically makes LabVIEW portable. I've done this with LabVIEW 7.1, and 8.6 in the past just as tests and had relative success with Windows XP but had some issues with Windows 7. In any case one option would be to make LabVIEW 2010 portable at home then put it somewhere on the internet, then go into work and download it. Then when you want to view some code on this site you'd run the EXE which doesn't write to the Windows registry, and only writes to temporary file path, and then you could open the VIs from this (or any) site for viewing and editing.

To get this to work properly there'd be a ton of work and legal issues. Lets say you have the time and money. You'd need a license of LabVIEW to install at home, then you'd need a license of VMWare (I think there is a free version now), then you'd need a license of Windows for that virtual machine, then you'd need a license of ThinApp (very expensive), then you'd need to invest time in making LabVIEW portable, activating LabVIEW in the process. You'd probably end up with a 1-2GB EXE file which you'd need to find a place to host. If you ignore all the difficulties of the project you'd then need to wonder is it legal to do this with LabVIEW? This one EXE could be taken to 100 different machines and not need to be activated (because it was already done in the virtual machine).

Again I'd like to point out the "It could work but why would you want to" factor when screen shots or server side interpretation could make it work for viewing much easier.

[ShaunR]

I wonder why NI pulled the LabView Player? That would have solved Cats code review problems at least.

[Cat]

I wonder why NI pulled the LabView Player?

Good question.

The Player is (was) actually more complicated than I need. I don't have to be able to run the code, just look at it.

That would have solved Cats code review problems at least.

Because it is all about me, after all.

[ShaunR]

Good question.

The Player is (was) actually more complicated than I need. I don't have to be able to run the code, just look at it.

Because it is all about me, after all.

Well, you were the OP.

Just remember. "There's no I in team". But there is a "ME" and no U