Making Labview easier accesible for beginners. Feedback from a beginner.

[laskar01]

Hi, the first time I watched labview code I got the feeling that you can't figure out what it means just by looking at it carefully. You are met with all this cryptic looking blocks that give no info at all. After some heartbreaks you stumble across "Show Context Help" which should have been showed by default.

From the "Show Context Help" you can go to detailed help, but the help examples are not minimalistic, instead they often are big applications.

For instance if you go to the example that is found in helpsection for the Euler differential equation solver, you find an application that can be used to show     what     can   be   done  with Labbview, not as a help to use that particular function.

A pretty smart thing that is done of you is to have an example written on the panel when opening the Euler solver block. An even smarter approach would be to already have an equation already in place, so that the user just have only to m o d i  f  y.

The key concept to make things easy is to let the user modify a suggested solution.

Couldn't all vi's that are accesible from the Functions palette come in that fashion? Instead of filling in some required number or a string in a vi, you get suggestions. You already have default values in the unwirede inputs and outputs of a vi and that is good, but you have to take it yet another level.

Take for example when you want to plot the output from a differential equation solver. You have to transpose and do all kinds of shit to be able to get it across to an XY-graph. Why cannot labview suggest a solution? Or if you must recast an integer to a string, why cannot it be automated, so that Labview puts in the required converter automatically.

Why should the user get stuck at broken wires. Suggest something insted, and if the user is not satisfied, let the user be presented valid alternatives.

Let graphical programming be easiser. Compare Matlab command "plot(X,Y)" from a differential equation solver with Labview's code to present it on a waveform graph (you have to put a transposer in between. Horrible!), or if you want to use a XY-graph! (Horribel ! Horrible!!)

I think the vector operations are horrible to understand. Use minimalistic examples accessible from the "Context help".

Make whole videocourses availible on youtube etc. Why can't you have the same courses that you can visit in real life, be on the internet as video lectures? Isn't it better that you have free access to Labview education, so that many, many more people start to use it, instead of making peanuts (for NI) from live Labview education. You shouldn't stop offering courses that go with a teacher in a real life NI class room, but I don't think you get your maximum gain in spreading Labview from courses that costs in Sweden 10 000 kronor to attend. Who can afford that after paying for the Labview hardware and software?

Glad if this feedback of mine can help you make Labview  even greater,

Kindest regards,

Lasse

[SimonH]

Lasse,

This is good feedback and we appreciate you taking the time to post it. We are looking at many ways to make the new-user experience better and your suggestions are relevent to various efforts we have already started making at NI.

~Simon

[Darren]

Any idea that has received less than 3 kudos within 3 years after posting will be automatically declined.