LabWindows Version 2.3 Enhancements List 

Summary of Major Enhancements 

1. User interface CodeBuilder utility 
2. Improved graph control and graph cursor functionality 
3. 256 color performance 
4. User Interface Library enhancements 
5. New debugging and editing features
6. Data Acquisition Library enhancements 
7. Utility Library enhancements 
8. Instrument Library additions 

Detailed Enhancement Descriptions

1. New User Interface CodeBuilder Utility - With LabWindows Version 2.3,
users can design programs and generate source code automatically with the
new CodeBuilder utility. After LabWindows users create a graphical user
interface (GUI) in the User Interface Editor, CodeBuilder provides tools
to build an outline of a Program to control the GUI quickly and easily.
Users simply choose from a list of possible actions to interactively
outline the structure of their program. For example, options such as
'Display Panel,' 'Load Menu Bar,' 'Set Up Event Loop,' and 'Respond to
Event' are provided for outlining event-driven programs. Using
CodeBuilder, developers prototype their programs quickly and easily,
generating a shell Program in C or BASIC source code which can then be
edited and completed in the LabWindows program window or any other text
editor.

Available under the Options menu in the LabWindows development environment,
CodeBuilder adds a vital step in the application development cycle in
LabWindows. Once launched, CodeBuilder consists of two main text boxes -
the Generation Options window and the Code window. Users paste choices
from the Generation Options window into the Code window to design the
structure of their program. The options listed in the Generation Options
window change based on the structure of the user interface for the
program. For example, the LoadMenuBar option will not be displayed if the
user interface resource (.UIR) file built by the user does not contain a
menu bar. Users then build an outline of their program, defining the steps
to load and display their graphics panels, set up event loops, and respond
to each event.

At any time during this design process, users can test the operation of
their outline with CodeBuilder. The Test Template option in CodeBuilder
executes the program outline in the code window, so users can determine if
their program outlines are designed properly before they write a single
line of C or BASIC source code. When satisfied with the outline, users
select the Generate Source Code option to convert the outline into C or
BASIC source code. The result is a structured, commented program that
displays user interface panels and contains event loops for responding to
mouse or keyboard events. Users then use the LabWindows function panels to
complete the program by inserting lines of code into the shell for
acquiring and analyzing data and directing the results to GUI controls.

2. Improved Graph Control and Graph Cursor Functionality - LabWindows
Version 2.3 adds improved functionality to graph controls and cursors in
the User Interface Library. You can now control individual traces within a
multitrace graph. For example, users can display or delete a single data
trace on a graph without affecting existing data on the graph. Graph
cursors can retrieve or be set to an index within a particular data array
being plotted, in addition to returning their absolute x and y coordinate
values. Using a new set of geometric graphing functions for creating and
filling rectangles, ovals, arcs, and circles, users can build their own
custom graph displays or pie charts. The following functions in the User
Interface Library have been added or enhanced to work with the new graph
and cursor control capabilities:

PlotX, PlotY, PlotXY, PlotWaveform, and PlotPoint have been changed to
return a handle for each array plotted. These functions also accept
unsigned bytes, integers, and long data types for graphing
interpretation.

   DeleteGraphPlot 
   GetGraphCursorIndex 
   SetGraphCursorIndex 
   GetAxisRange 
   SetAxisRange 
   PlotRectangle 
   PlotOval 
   PlotArc 
   PlotLine 
   PlotPolygon

3. 256 Color Performance - The LabWindows User Interface Library and editor
now has 256 color performance. In addition to displaying 256 color PCX
images, with a new set of functions in the User Interface Library, users
can set their own color palette RGB values. In other words, users can
configure each of the 256 possible colors used in LabWindows with unique
RGB color values. PostScript output and video adapter capability have been
updated to include 256 color performance as well. New functions include:

   SetColorPaletteValue 
   GetColorPaletteValue

4. Miscellaneous User Interface Library Enhancements - Product developers
using LabWindows to develop executable programs for distribution will
benefit from new functions in the User Interface Library that determine
the current graphics adapter mode of the system. Developers can create
different user interfaces for their programs, optimized for standard VGA
mode, 800 x 600 mode, or 1,024 x 768 mode, and dynamically load the
correct GUI based on results from the GetGraphicsMode function.

Scale controls can now be sized in the User Interface Editor.

Ring controls are more flexible with the new GetCtrlIndex function. With
this function, users can retrieve the index, label, and value
corresponding to a particular item in a ring control.

5. Improved Editing and Debugging Features - The new LWMAKE utility for
building executables in LabWindows Version 2.3 includes added flexibility
to become a true make utility. Users can directly edit any file listed in
your make list from LWMAKE, including source files, .UIR files, and
include files, by double clicking on the file name. You can even link your
own text editor into LWMAKE for editing your source files. In addition,
the LabWindows programming environment features new debugging tools for
setting automatic and dynamic breakpoints. The breakpoint on error mode
automatically traps any errors or warnings returned from a LabWindows
function during program execution. With dynamic breakpoint capability,
LabWindows users can choose to trace through each line of code
individually, step through sections of code quickly, or insert breakpoints
in the code during execution without having to recompile the program. The
result of these new debugging features is a faster, more efficient
troubleshooting phase of program development.

6. Data Acquisition Library Enhancements - We've added a set of memory
management functions in the Data Acquisition Library for arrays larger
than 64K in data acquisition operations. With these new functions, users
can allocate extended memory for data acquisition operations and use a
handle to these memory locations when actually acquiring data.

Developers using the AT-DSP2200 can acquire several channels of data with a
multifunction board, such as the AT-MIO-16X or AT-MIO-64F-5, and stream
the data directly to DSP memory over the RTSI bus for high-speed signal
processing in Version 2.3.

Control for a new family of signal conditioning modules for controlling
digital relays or performing digital I/O operations from SCXI is
incorporated in the Data Acquisition Library in Version 2.3.

7. Utility Library Additions - New functions in the Utility Library are
designed for users who need to develop custom file-selection pop-up dialog
boxes. With the functions GetFirstFile and GetNextFile, users can quickly
create a list of files existent in a particular directory. In addition,
all file copying, deleting, and naming functions in the Utility Library
have been updated to understand file selection wildcards (such as the '*'
character).

8. Instrument Library Additions - The LabWindows Instrument Library
continues to grow through the efforts of the Instrument Library Developers
Program (LDP). The LDP is a program to help manufacturers write LabWindows
instrument drivers for GPIB, RS-232, CAMAC, or VXI instruments. The
LabWindows Instrument Library is updated quarterly with new drivers. The
latest update adds over 30 new instruments to the library, including
instruments from HewlettPackard, Tektronix, LeCroy, and Schlumberger. The
total number of instrument drivers in the LabWindows Instrument Library is
approximately 300.

National Instruments
6504 Bridge Point Parkway, Austin, TX 78730-5039
512-794-0100;  800-433-3488;  fax: 512-794-8411

  +---------------------------------------------------------------+
  |   From the America Online - New Product Information Services  |
  +===============================================================+
  | This information was processed from data provided by the      |
  | above mentioned company. For additional details, contact the  |
  | company at the address or telephone number indicated above.   |
  |    All submissions for this service should be addressed to    |
  |   BAKER ENTERPRISES, 20 Ferro Drive, Sewell, NJ 08080 U.S.A.  |
  +---------------------------------------------------------------+
