Using the API

There are two subsets of calls to meet your application needs: traditional calls and multi-device calls. Both of these sets are compatible across computer platforms and operating systems, so you can port applications to other platforms with little or no source code modification. For most applications, the traditional NI-488.2 calls are sufficient. If you have a complex configuration with one or more interfaces or multiple instruments, you should use the multi-device NI-488.2 calls. Whichever you choose, bus management operations necessary for device communication are performed automatically.

Before you begin writing your application, you may want to use the Interactive Control utility to communicate with your instruments interactively by typing in commands from the keyboard rather than from an application. You can use the utility to learn to communicate with your instruments using the NI-488.2 API. For more information, refer to the Interactive Control Overview topic.

Communicating with a Single GPIB Instrument

Communicating with Multiple Instruments and/or Multiple Interfaces

Programming Models

Applications that Communicate with a Single GPIB Instrument

Applications that Communicate with Multiple Instruments and/or Multiple Interfaces