Are you excited about NIWeek? Here at VI Shots, we definitely are and to prepare you for what's to come. I assembled 3 session speakers for you to talk about their sessions and what to expect. I also go through a run-down of some sessions that I recommend. There are also some activities that are not part of the official schedule which we talk about as well.

You can watch the video below or listen to the audio above. To get notified of future VI Shots Live episodes, please join the mailing list at vishots.com/subscribe.

Link to session scheduler. You can search the scheduler for the titles below or by speaker.

Recommended Sessions:

Unofficial Events:

NI recently announced a small form factor instrument that packs a punch called VirtualBench. I interviewed Chris Delvizis, a Senior Product Manager at National Instruments about this new hardware. Aside from containing several instruments essential to a typical benchtop lab setup. It also works right out of the box with built-in software for the PC that loads when you plug in the USB cable. The NI VirtualBench iPad app is now available. Click the player above to listen to this weeks podcast episode, where we break down what VirtualBench is and if it's the right hardware for you.

Functionality:

Joel Shapiro, Leader of Emerging Markets Marketing at NI, said, “Many entrepreneurs, engineers and scientists don’t always have easy access to the instruments they need. Due to the excellent functionality, affordability and portability of VirtualBench, every engineer can immediately be equipped with the tools they require to bring their ideas to life and take it to market.” “We are building on what NI does best, which is our software-based approach to test and measurement,” said Chad Chesney, Director of Data Acquisition Marketing at NI. “VirtualBench’s software user experience is more intuitive, creating efficiencies that go above and beyond simply having these five devices in a single device.”

The Actor Framework, is a LabVIEW framework that has a growing following. It allows you to build powerful applications that can contain asynchronous processes and allow them to communicate in a more robust manner. Jack Dunaway and I talk with Allen Smith, Dr. James Powell and Dave Snyder about what exactly is the Actor Framework and how they've been using it in their work.

You can watch the video below or listen to the audio above. To get notified of future VI Shots Live episodes, please join the mailing list.

How do you support your LabVIEW applications remotely? Have you found the right tools and methods that make your job easier? In this episode of VI Shots Live, we look at some of the benefits and pitfalls of remote collaboration and support. Jack Dunaway and I talk with Fabiola De La Cueva and Justin Goeres on the topic of being a remote developer.

You can watch the video below or listen to the audio above. Listen to the end of the audio recording for a funny behind the scenes moment from the podcast version. To get notified of future VI Shots episodes, please join the mailing list at vishots.com/subscribe.

Collaboration Tools

Remote Control & Support

Waterloo labs is at it again with another creative project that merges LabVIEW, NI hardware and the maker mind-set. How about standing in front of 3 paintball guns as they automatically “draw” an outline of you? How about if the software controlling them was written by an NI intern? It turns out, this system is pretty smart and fun. Check out the video below and then listen to the interview above I gave with Hunter Smith who mentored several members of Waterloo Labs throughout this project.

In the interview we discuss in detail the hardware and software used and developed. Hunter also talks to some of the challenges encountered.

I'd like to thank everyone for the positive feedback on our first VI Shots live, both in personal emails and also on our Google+ page. We're back with a new live episode which was recorded on Feb. 26, 2014. You can listen to the podcast version of the show above or watch the embedded video below.

Are you looking for a LabVIEW consultant for your next project? I'm a Certified LabVIEW Architect with over 20 years of experience in developing automation powered by LabVIEW. Contact me today for a free code review or project evaluation.

David Thomson who's based in Colorado, is the founder of and systems Integrator at Original Code Consulting, which provides LabVIEW programming and system integration all the way from device drivers to complete systems. Dave is also a LabVIEW Champion since 2005.  Dave runs a user group meeting in Colorado, the Advanced LabVIEW Architects of the Rocky Mountains (ALARM).

Neil Pate is a Certified LabVIEW Architect (CLA) and Certified Professional Instructor (CPI). He’s a founder and systems development engineer at Premier G Solutions Limited in the United Kingdom. Neil is based in the United Kingdom. Neil is very active on LAVA: http://lavag.org/user/7375-neil/

Steen Schmidt is the founder of GPower in Denmark. Steen is a Certified LabVIEW Architect (CLA), a Certified TestStand Architect (CTA), and was recently nominated as LabVIEW Champion just this month, so congratulations, Steen!

We've all heard of the Agile Software development methodology; but how many of us are actually using these principles while developing LabVIEW code? My guest, John Sextro is an Agile coach and an expert in the field of Agile Software development. Listen to this episode of the VI Shots podcast where I ask John about the Manifesto for Agile Software Development, and we walk through the 12 principles behind the Agile manifesto. This conversation is just the beginning of an exploration of this topic. I'm planning on having John back on in the future to discuss Scrum, which is the leading agile development methodology.

I believe LabVIEW is by-design, a language that can thrive within an Agile development environment. You can quickly get software working and data displayed on a UI within a short time frame. I'd like to hear your feedback on this topic. Do use Agile? If not, then why not? Post you concerns and questions in the comments below and John will visit this post to answer your questions.

We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work we have come to value:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more.

I've started something new here with Jack Dunaway from Wirebird Labs. We've decided to host monthly Google hangout sessions to discuss the business of software engineering with LabVIEW. The first one this month was held on Jan 29th, 2014 and was called: Sustainable Careers in LabVIEW. You can listen to the podcast version of the show or watch the embedded video below.

Our guests on our first episode were Christopher G. Relf, chief Architect at VI Engineering (a National Instruments Platinum Alliance Partner). He's also a CLA, CTD, CPI and a LabVIEW Champion. We also had Darren Nattinger, principal engineer, CLA and part of the LabVIEW R&D team at National Instruments.

Using Subversion with LabVIEW is a challenge when it comes to some of the most popular free tools like Subversion (SVN). Eric Metzler from Viewpoint Systems took on the challenge of updating an older version of an internal company tool. The new free version of the TSVN tool won  the LabVIEW Tools Network Product of the Year award at NIWeek 2013. Eric talks with me about his journey through the LabVIEW world and his newfound passion for working on LabVIEW-based products.

Jack Dunaway from Wirebird Labs is on this episode where we discuss his Deploy product and what it takes to develop great software products. Jack also announces a new “framework” he will be releasing in 2014 called Featherweight.