FlexLogger API : consider LV !

[CyGa]

Hi,

I just read about the FL API written in Python. That's a great feature for sure !

But would you consider creating one in LabVIEW ?

I mean it's good to open FL to other langages, but most of the people using NI SW are proficient in LabVIEW. Don't forget about them 😉

[Frisbee]

Hey Cyril! 

Thanks for the feedback about the LV API 😄. The new automation API was implemented using a language-agnostic approach, so we can create a LabVIEW API (with the same functionality) in the future.

As this is the first release of the Python API, we are gathering feedback to guide additional FlexLogger automation decisions. Please let me know if you have any other thoughts or ideas!

Best,

[CyGa]

Great !

Starting with traditionnaly supported technologies used in other NI SW would be nice, so LV would come first, then .NET and ActiveX.

That would allow people using TS but not into Python to use this API for example...

[Frisbee]

Thanks Cyril. TestStand is definitely on our radar. In the short-term, TestStand has a Python adapter that could be used with the Python API:

• TestStand 2019 Help – Python Adapter

• Calling Scripting Languages from NI TestStand

[CyGa]

Hi Cameron,

TS has an official Python adapter since 2019.

Previous version have access to a sort of step type allowing to call Python. But nothing that comes with the TS installer itself.

This setting is very 'new' to the industry and I (at least) didn't see much peapole using it.

In our TS dev, adapter used are :

• 70% LV steps
• 20% .NET
• 10% activeX (excluding TS API itself)
• Python : 0% ; during the past 15 years we've had 1 demand (last year)

I don't know if it is the same for others. But if it is, and your are targetting TS, langages listed upper are needed I guess.

[staylor77]

I did some prototyping with the new python API and Teststand.  Prototype attached, looks very useful.

[jyoung8711]

Is there any documentation on the FlexLogger Automation API? (External or even potentially internal, that could be exposed to an Alliance Partner?)

I would 100% be interested in creating a LabVIEW port for this...

I have a use-case in our pipeline that would make this extremely useful...

[BenParrott]

The github repo is here:

https://github.com/ni/niflexlogger-automation-python

The documentation is here:

https://niflexlogger-automation.readthedocs.io/en/latest/

[jyoung8711]

To clarify... I was requesting documentation on the underlying FlexLogger API mentioned above.  Not the Python API.  While making a LabVIEW wrapper for the Python API is totally possible, I'd rather go the lower level if possible...

[BenParrott]

The next level down the API call stack is the gRPC layer. The proto files are distributed here:

https://github.com/ni/niflexlogger-automation-python/tree/main/protobuf

Some type of code has to be generated from the proto files, but generating to C or C# are potential options instead of generating python. Then you could call the generated C/C# code from LabVIEW.

There is a project underway to facilitate using gRPC from LabVIEW:

https://github.com/ni/grpc-labview

The project currently only addresses using LabVIEW to create a gRPC server, but creating LabVIEW clients is an eventual goal of the project.