National Instruments NI-488.2 Benutzerhandbuch

© National Instruments Corporation

This chapter introduces you to the Interactive Control utility, which lets 
you communicate with GPIB devices interactively.

With the Interactive Control utility, you communicate with the GPIB 
devices through functions you interactively type in at the keyboard. For 
specific information about communicating with your particular device, 
refer to the documentation that came with the device. You can use the 
Interactive Control utility to practice communication with the instrument, 
troubleshoot problems, and develop your application.

The Interactive Control utility helps you to learn about your instrument and 
to troubleshoot problems by displaying the following information on your 
screen after you enter a command:

•

Results of the status word (

ibsta

) in hexadecimal notation.

•

Mnemonic constant of each bit set in 

ibsta.

•

Mnemonic value of the error variable (

iberr

) if an error exists 

(the ERR bit is set in 

ibsta

).

•

Count value for each read, write, or command function.

•

Data received from your instrument.

This section shows you how to use the Interactive Control utility to test a 
sequence of NI-488.2 calls.

To start the Interactive Control utility, complete the following steps:

1.

Select Start»Programs»National Instruments NI-488.2»Explore 
GPIB to start Measurement & Automation Explorer.

2.

Expand the Devices and Interfaces directory by clicking on the + next 
to the folder.