We have an old automatic test system running with an 80386 controller and a NI ISA GPIB interface. Because parts for the old computer are becoming difficult to find, I tried replacing it with a pentium computer equipped with a new NI PCI-GPIB interface. Installation seemed to proceed normally, but when I started Measurement and Automation Explorer, (on Windows XP Professional), selected the interface and told it to scan for instruments, MAX just closed with no error message. I then removed all of the instruments connected to the bus, putting them back on one-by-one until I found the one that caused the problem. It is a CDS 53B IAC mainframe. I am attaching the NI Spy data I recordered when this happened.
Even with the CDS unit removed from the system I get strange behavior from other equipment.
-- An HP4947A is correctly identified, but MAX reports that it does not respond to "*IDN?".
-- An HP3777A is not detected at all by MAX, and if it's the only connected equipment I get a message suggesting that I connect something to the bus.
An Elgar 501SL and an HP6654A seem to work properly.
I find this odd, as the system functions fine with the old controller + old computer.
Thanks,
Jerry
P.S. The NI Spy data is attached as a zip file, because the system said that the file extension ".spy" was not valid for upload!