LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques [Paperback]

David J. Ritter (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0071364935 | ISBN-13: 978-0071364935 | Publication Date: November 28, 2001 | Edition: 1

The CD-ROM contains over 100 virtual instruments and much more. This title presents a virtual blueprint for implementing the latest GUI applications for LabVIEW. The vast army of engineers, scientists, technicians and other LabVIEW users who've been struggling with GUI design can now breathe easier! They now have hands-on industry expert David J. Ritter on their side to teach them with a clarity of style and surety of knowledge no other author can match. "LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques" details exactly how to harness LabVIEW's powerful graphical programming language to create specialized virtual software instruments and save thousands of dollars on hardware by doing so. As with any programming language, designing an effective user interface is the key to success with LabVIEW. Fully realizing this, author David J. Ritter utilizes a down-to-earth, thoroughly readable style and focuses on imparting effective interface design strategies, clearly showing how to implement modern GUI methodologies within the LabVIEW application development process. Ritter combines step-by-step code examples with clear, readable explanations to clarify the psychological, architectural, and aesthetic aspects of developing clean, reusable GUIs. The resource-packed CD-ROM contains: more than 100 virtual instruments; quicktime videos demonstrating key hands-on techniques; and a trial version of Adobe Photoshop 6.0 for exploring custom graphic development and integration and, to ensure complete coverage of every important issue, the author also includes a basic yet essential crash course in layout and design. "LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques" provides the material, insight, and confidence you need to design coherent, modular GUIs faster and easier than you ever thought possible. Here's everything you need to get off the GUI sidelines!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"GUI design is one of the most problematic obstacles for LabVIEW users - essential, always difficult for engineers, and there's no information available. Dave Ritter is unique in the breadth of his abilities and the depth of his understanding of LabVIEW - and how to teach it to the masses. He'll write a clear, heavily illustrated book, and his VI's will be terrific. This is a great project." Gary Johnson, LabVIEW guru and author of LabVIEW Graphical Programming 2/e and LabVIEW Power Programming.

From the Back Cover

CD-ROM CONTAINS OVER 100 VIRTUAL INSTRUMENTS AND MUCH MORE!

Your virtual blueprint for implementing the latestGUI applications for LabVIEW !

The vast army of engineers, scientists, technicians and other LabVIEW users who've been struggling with GUI design can now breathe easier! They now have hands-on industry expert David J. Ritter on their side to teach them with a clarity of style and surety of knowledge no other author can match.

LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques details exactly how to harness LabVIEW's powerful graphical programming language to create specialized virtual software instruments and save thousands of dollars on hardware by doing so.

As with any programming language, designing an effective user interface is the key to success with LabVIEW. Fully realizing this, author David J. Ritter utilizes a down-to-earth, thoroughly readable style and focuses on imparting effective interface design strategies, clearly showing how to implement modern GUI methodologies within the LabVIEW application development process.

Ritter combines step-by-step code examples with clear, readable explanations to clarify the psychological, architectural, and aesthetic aspects of developing clean, reusable GUIs. The resource-packed CD-ROM contains:

* More than 100 virtual instruments
* Quicktime videos demonstrating key hands-on techniques
* A trial version of Adobe Photoshop 6.0 for exploring custom graphic development and integration and, to ensure complete coverage of every important issue, the author also includes a basic yet essential crash course in layout and design.

LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques provides the material, insight, and confidence you need to design coherent, modular GUIs faster and easier than you ever thought possible.

Here's everything you need to get off the GUI sidelines!

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional; 1 edition (November 28, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071364935
• ISBN-13: 978-0071364935
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,327,363 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GUI Design for Test and Measurement, February 12, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques (Paperback)

As a long-time LabVIEW programmer, I know how easy it is to create rich, graphical user interfaces with LabVIEW. I also know how frustrating it is to have an end user sit down in front of my LabVIEW masterpiece and not have a clue of what to do. In his easy to read style, Dave explains effective user interface design and how to apply it to test and measurement.

I especially appreciated Ch. 6 "Graphic Design for Engineers 101 - A Crash Course in Layout and Design." The discussion on designing an effective layout and the provided templates are excellent.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You thought LabVIEW itself solved all your GUI problems..., April 21, 2005

By 

Joseph Gerhardstein (Troy, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques (Paperback)

As a long-time LabVIEW developer, one of the things I like about LabVIEW is how easy it is to whip up a sharp looking GUI. However, along with this easy-of-use comes a responsibility to develop a user-friendly GUI as well. Though the title of this book implies that it only addresses GUI design, there is a significant amount of time spent on software engineering, understanding users, graphic design and coding techniques. This book is a whopper at over 500 pages, and there is no skimping on discussion of any of these topics.

As a developer who is equally at home with computers and people, it is hard to remember that I am in the minority, and the majority of users of my software are likely to be technophobes. The first 5 chapters of this book address user expectations and how, in a deterministic manner, to come up with a GUI that will be friendly to the target users.

Chapter 6, as another reviewer mentioned, is a crash course in graphic design. Over 50 pages of "put this here", "choose these colors", and "use this font". A great reference.

Chapters 7-9 discuss the mechanics of how to make a good GUI. All the regulars are here: VI Server, Custom Menus, Queue and Event-driven architectures, and Property/Attribute Nodes. But there is some neat stuff I have not seen elsewhere, such as how to make pop-up menus, custom toolbar buttons and floating menus/toolbars with minimum hassle and overhead.

Chapter 10 is a guide to everything graphics. It covers different image formats (jpg, bmp, png, etc.), transparency, where to get "free" graphics, as well as a primer on Adobe Photoshop.

The rest of the book (chapters 11 & 12, plus appendix A) are use cases.

In the back of the book is a CD-ROM with most of the examples, plus a ton of great free stuff (e.g., custom buttons) and trial stuff (e.g., Adobe Photoshop).

Complaints: this book is getting a bit long in the tooth. LabVIEW 7 is out with user-defined events, and 8 will be out shortly with a whole new development paradigm. While much of this book remains relevent, some parts are in need of updating (property nodes have been out how long now???).

My other complaint is that this book looks like a pre-publication proof. Nearly every page has a major spelling or grammar error. It is as if no one could make it through the 500+ pages for a final proof before printing. As an example, from page 181: "At this point, it should be stressed that the visual hierarchy is your GUI panels should be governing by more than aesthetic considerations alone." (yes, this is an exact quote)

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Useful for Creating Professional User Interface., February 24, 2006

By 

Robert W. Reed (Stroudsburg, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: LabVIEW GUI: Essential Techniques (Paperback)

The book is well written and the examples are extremely useful. I have been programming in LabVIEW for 10 years and found the book to be very helpful for improving my programming techniques. My latest user interface is significantly improved over my previous efforts.