Running GPIB Interface

First after reading this can you recommend a more appropriate group? Forum?

I have a program that was running on a Windows 98 computer, it died.

The program controls an HP 3330B Automatic Synthesizer and a 3570A Network Analyzer using GPIB.

I have installed the harddrive with all the software in a computer running Windows XP.

Looking at files, the National Instruments card Software says

95, 95 and 2000, I see nothing about our original software.

Is there a chance the software will run under XP?

I'm over my head here so be gentle and pedantic.

I don't know how to run the software from the slave drive.

Do I need EXE (run) it again, Since it's on the slave drive?

There are two programs needed, A National Instruments GPIB program for the card installed in the computer and the program written for us, I guess you could call it a USER INTERFACE.

National Instruments Measurement and Automation 2.0 Is the software for the GPIB pcb installed

At first attempt to run the Frequency Sweep program, or the Piezo Characterization program, I get a run time error 53, GPIB-32dll not found.

Do I need to reinstall the National instrument software?

Do I copy both programs to the master Harddrive and EXE them?

Your help and prayers are appreciated :-)

I would be great to get this working, It will measure RLC circuits and then the data can be manipulated in Excel to make graphs.

Thanks, Mikek

Reply to
amdx
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The *computer* died ("meaning hardware failure" and not just "the system got screwed up, somehow, and now it doesn't want to work") but not the *disk*?

I would have *copied* the relevant portions of the disk onto the new machine so you have an "intact" original version of the system to fall back on, if you screw something up! (unless you are confident that you have all the originals of the disks and know how to reinstall from scratch)

I assume you mean "95, 98, 2000" (as in "versions of Windows that are supported")

Possible. Depends on how it is implemented and what it draws on from the OS.

The user interface is probably the easiest to test, initially. (again, I'd have opted for a backup before poking around)

It may be in the \Windows directory (or something under that) ON THE "SLAVE" DRIVE (that you have installed). Windows (XP) won't be able to find it there -- it will look under C:\Windows or the current "folder" for the program you are running. Find it, first (use the SEARCH command on the Start Menu to locate "GPIB-32.DLL"). Then, *copy* it (leaving the original where it is so its one less thing you have altered on the disk) into the same folder that the "Frequency Sweep Program" resides.

Probably not. But, you may have to squirm a bit to get it to behave. It may not *officially* be supported under XP.

By "both" I assume you mean the Freq Sweep *and* Piezo programs? Presumably, these are both "user interfaces"?

You should be able to get both running "where they are" (you may need to change some "shortcuts" if that is how you invoked them previously but that's trivial). If you *move* them, you may discover that they assume "other files" are present "nearby" (i.e., where they

*were*) and later complain that they can't find *those* files. (So, you end up moving EVERYTHING, etc.)

Try the least effort approach first. The above mentioned forum can probably give you better (more focused) help. Getting the hardware interface (the GPIB card) to work may be a bit more involved -- the folks there will be better equipped to answer with *specifics*.

Good luck!

Reply to
Don Y

Step one - you might be well advised to get a copy of the drive made sooner, not later.

Step two, head down to the local recycling center, junque shoppe, or craigslist and pick up an old PC for cheap. Install the backed-up drive (or a copy) as the primary drive, run Windows 98. Change as little as you can about the system if the system worked. If need be, resort to eBay and get a computer "just like the computer that died" - other than shipping it should be cheapish.

ISTR that at this point some folks are suggesting an IDE to CF adapter and a compact flash card rather than an actual IDE drive, as those get harder (or at least more expensive) to come by. If there was such a thing as an IDE to SDHC adapter I'd give that a thought faster based on my relative experiences of failure with CF .vs. SDHC. In either case limited writes may or may not be an issue.

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Reply to
Ecnerwal

I don't have any original discs. I did copy the software onto a thumbdrive and put it on another computer, so theoretically I have 3 copies.

Yes, that is what mean.

I think I did that backup/

I went to my computer located the drive I installed "E" and opened programs files then found the two programs. I copied them to the thumb drive and then to another computer.

I'll try what you suggested.

Yes two different programs.

Reply to
amdx

Ok, I have located a file called gpib-32dll on the "E" drive

I have copied and pasted it into the folder, but all that happens when I paste it over the Sweep icon is it tries to open the file and gives the message missing Gpib-32dll There is a discrepancy between the file I tried to install and the file I'm missing the G or g is different, lower case upper case. I don't know if that is relevant.

Mikek

Reply to
amdx

I'd say not a cat in hells chance unless you have written your own GPIB driver. The shift to Vista/XP broke a lot of instrument control drivers.

There might be a new set of drivers for the old card under a newer OS but your best bet for least hassle would be setting up a partition with one of Win98 or 2k on it for the duration.

Paths are probably not right. GPIB-32.dll probably needs to be in windows/system

Almost certainly or at least put the dlls in the corresponding "right" place on the XP machine. I suggest you back everything up first since there is a real risk of getting into DLL hell if you run an older installer on a machine running an OS it doesn't understand.

I'd use Partition Magic and an old OS disk to generate a Win98 machine.

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Reply to
Martin Brown

The Cmos battery is dead. I have another thread about that.

"OT. Firing up and old computer"

Mikek

Reply to
amdx

All the more reason to treat the *system* represented by the disk that you "pulled" as PRECIOUS! Any screwups, there (even if unintentional) could leave you up the proverbial creek!

No. Chances are, there are MANY files/settings scattered around the machine that affect the operation of the programs. DLL's (parts of your program that are "glued in" by the operating system automatically when the program starts) can be in several different places. Older versions of Windows used ".INI" files to store settings for your (specific) program(s). "Help" files. etc.

What you really want to do is copy the entire disk so you have a "playground" that you can mess around in -- without risking something critical getting accidentally clobbered. Just copying the two EXE files will leave you with "missing DLL" errors, at the very least!

So, somewhere on E: there was a folder/directory that held these two programs. What *else* was in that folder alongside the two program files?

There is probably also a "driver" that talks to the GPIB card. And, as I mentioned, INI file(s), HELP file(s), etc.

Beyond that, there may be settings (in the INI files or in the "Windows Environment" -- don't worry about that, now) that also affect the operation of the program(s).

Reply to
Don Y

Would your problem be solved by getting your hands on another Win 98 computer? I have one in my basement I was supposed to Freecycle, but I can't find anyone who wants it. If you can use it I will plug it in to test it and if it works ok, I can ship it to you.

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Reply to
rickman

I assume you mean gpib-32.dll (i.e., there is a DOT in there)

Where was the file? In the folder with the two programs? Or in E:\Windows (or E:\Windows\System, etc.)?

You want to copy it into the folder where the sweep program resides (presumably, that was where it was on the E: drive? If not, it was probably under E:\Windows, somewhere, and you would need to copy it to the same place under C:\Windows. I.e., if it was under E:\Windows\system then you want to copy it to C:\Windows\system.)

Case doesn't matter. GPIB-32.DLL is the same as gpib-32.dll or GpIb-32.DlL, etc. What's important is *where* you put it

Reply to
Don Y

Ah! By far, the easiest/most reliable solution is just to fix that! Even if the battery is buried in some silly RTC module that requires replacement (or surgery).

Assuming, of course, everything worked *before* the CMOS battery gave up the ghost!

[You should be able to manually set the CMOS parameters in the BIOS and boot the computer. The CMOS *memory* will retain those values until you power off the computer. This lets you verify that things still work on the computer. Then, you can fix the battery so you don't have to keep manually setting all those parameters each time you turn the computer on]

I'll have a look, later. I'm busy painting the roof before it gets too warm to be up there! :-/

Reply to
Don Y

Yes, sorry.

I found it in the E:\Program Files\Winford. Winford is the company the wrote the software. Both of the programs I want to run are in the Winford folder.

That file does show up in the Winford folder. I put it there, but I'm not sure what move did that. The Winford folder has 5 files. Sweepfreq and PiezoChar these are the programs I want to run. The other 3 are, Config file, ST6UNST, and the file I added Gpib-32.dll The Config is used to setup the burden resistor and probe characteristics. The ST6UNST is a text file and says don't change or remove.

Thanks for your time, I'm doing things I know nothing about, so you're much appreciated.

If I search under any of the 5 files in the Winford folder, I find the Gpib-32.dll file. I wonder if I removed the Gpib-32.dll file from the Winford Folder (I put it in the Winford folder) if I would still find Gpib-32.dll in all those files. Mikek

Reply to
amdx

I did start surgery, I got the cover off, thinking I'd see a battery. I find two more compartments. I'm not sure how much farther I dare dig. I guess if I ruin it I can buy a new one. I did find them available. I didn't find anything about how to install a battery in the Real time Clock Lithium Battery M47T86PCI.

Reply to
amdx

Hang on a bit. I probably have other solutions. I think. Replace the Battery in the real time Clock. Replace the Real time Clock and lithium Battery Install 98 on a computer. Make it work with Win 2000

But I'm willing spend a few bucks to try and get it running.

Just for info, I tried 4 computers before I found one in my junque pile that worked.

Let it ride a while longer and see what comes up. Thanks for the offer. Mikek

Reply to
amdx

Mike- before doing anything else, make an image of the entire drive. That way you can recover to the original conditions in the likelihood it gets messed up in your quest.

Hopefully you have not corrupted anything critical so far.

Reply to
Tom Miller

This issue is an onion with many layers. Since there's insufficient info presented, I'll try to cover many of the bases. YMMV.

Before you start, do a FULL image backup of your XP system and the 98 drive. Do not skip this step!!

What's the hardware interface to your GPIB card? ISA? PCI? ethernet? usb? Your motherboard has to have a slot for it. Sounds like that works, but still want to know WHICH interface. Sounds like it's a National Instruments card. Go to the national instruments site and find the chart that shows which cards are supported on which operating systems with which version. The newest software will NOT support the older cards. Some of the PCI cards are supported on XP. Subtle differences in the card model name make the difference between XP support or not. I've never found any way to run an ISA card on XP or my PCI card in win7.

If anybody knows how to do that, I'm interested...have several ISA cards.

Download the proper software from the chart and install measurement automation. Use Measurement Automation to find the card and make it available to the programs.

I don't think you can have ANY luck just copying the NI files from your old drive. Any win98 National software that you already have may not work in XP. Go get new national software.

Copy the actual control software to your C: drive. Make sure the entire path to the program is exactly the same as it was on win98.

Try to run it and see what errors it gives. If it can't find a dll, go find it on your 98 drive and copy it to the EXACT same path on the XP system. If it still won't run, try registering the dll. from a command prompt: regsvr32

If that works, keep peeling the onion fixing one layer at a time. If that doesn't work, Try to run it in compatibility mode for win98.

There are utilities that claim to be able to convert your win98 hard drive into a virtual image that will run under virtualbox. Never tried it. There may be hardware access issues when trying to run the GPIB control software virtually.

If anybody has info on virtualbox and GPIB, I'd like to hear it. I'm interested in GPIB from linux. And I don't want to convert my thinking to the REDHAT mentality. Running win98 or xp versions of the national drivers under linux virtualbox on Debian would be interesting.

About your motherboard CMOS battery... I never quite understood whether that was the only problem or whether there were other issues??? Unless there's some overriding condition requiring that motherboard, like you have an ISA GPIB card, throw the damn thing in the trash. Don't know where you live, but here, if you put a sign in the front yard that you wanted an obsolete motherboard, you'd be buried in them before you finished hammering the sign in place. You can buy whole working xp computers at garage sales for a buck. Ask around...they're everywhere. I've got so many I quit taking the free ones.

It's been a very long time since I messed with win98. Don't remember how much piracy protection it has. Can you boot the 98 drive in your xp machine? Be sure to do an image backup of the 98 drive first.

Reply to
mike

Then, you probably want to copy *everything* that is in that folder to a "C:\Program Files\Winford" folder.

I am getting increasingly nervous that something is going to get munged in all of this "activity"... it *really* would be better for you to try to get the original machine up. And, make a copy/image of the complete disk so if/when you screw up (because it happens to all of us!) you have some way to "start over" without losing anything.

It could be an "installation log" that records all the steps that were taken when the program(s) were installed.

That's how we learn...

Wait -- are there 5 *files* in the Winford folder? Or, are there other *folders* in the Winford folder??

DLL's are parts of programs that the OS automatically "glues onto" the program when you run the program. They tend to contain "things" ("subroutines") that are used by multiple programs. For example, GPIB-32.DLL probably includes subroutines that access the devices on your GPIB bus. Or, may know how to construct the messages that are exchanged over that bus -- relying on something else (a driver) to actually talk to the GPIB card.

By putting the "common activities" that your programs are likely to need in one place (GPIB-32.DLL), every program that needs those tools can have them available -- by "dynamically linking" (DL) that "library" (L) to their program. You only need to store one copy of those tools instead of building them into EVERY one of your programs.

[This also makes it easy to update those tools without having to replace the programs themselves]

When you start a program (foo.exe), the program essentially tells windows "I rely upon GPIB-32.DLL to perform some of my activities". Windows then goes looking for that file and, when it finds it, it "glues" (links) the file's contents onto the program that requires it. (This all happens "in memory" so nothing changes on the disk at this time!)

But, windows can't go looking *everywhere*. This would be too inefficient/time consuming.

Instead, it looks in a couple of predefined places:

- the folder that holds the program you are trying to run (foo.exe)

- C:\WINDOWS

- C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM (I *think* that's right... it varies with each Windows version. George will know! :> )

So, if your program was in "E:\Program Files\Winford", windows will look in that folder for the DLL. If it can't find it there, it will look in C:\WINDOWS, etc.

But, there's a little twist, here. If your program *thinks* it was installed in "C:\Program Files\Winford" it may not be able to find some other things that it requires if it isn't *in* C:\Program Files\Winford

(This is why Windows is so annoying to many folks. Too many little rules that get in the way)

Reply to
Don Y

Hmmm... that P/N sounds like the NVRAM module used in old SPARCs. Like a very *tall* 24/28 pin 0.6 DIP? If it is the same device that I am thinking of, the battery terminals are accessible if you cut away a little piece on one end of the chip (near pin 12/14, IIRC).

I will have to search for some images. For my old machines, I simply soldered a battery pack on top of the DIP (not very pretty but it's not often that people go looking around INSIDE my machines! :> )

See if any ofthis makes sense:

Reply to
Don Y

Watch the wrap:

Note I have no idea that this is the device you have...

time for dinner!

Reply to
Don Y

I had to open the computer to see, it is PCI.

Yes,

As far as I know that is the only problem. It worked fine 6 years ago, before shut down.

I have ordered a new real time Clock and lithium battery, changing that may be the easiest way to get the system operating. It was worth $7 to find out.

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Reply to
amdx

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