What aquisition hardware/software might I need?

[scornful]

I'm new to interfacing software/hardware. My intentions are to write VB6 code to query voltage and current measurements from a DMM. I prefer the Fluke 45 as I already have several to play with. All have RS232 ports, but no 488 port. My problem specificly is I do not have the software to communicate with the DMM, nor the skills to write the modules in VB. I'm afraid FlukeView is solely a standalone product and does not have VB modules available.

[Chris_Rake]

Depending on how many instruments you require, you may need to add additional COM ports to your PC. NI offers a wide range of hardware options for adding additional RS-232 ports (USB, Enet, PCI, PXI, AT, and PCMCIA).

For software you can go with something like LabVIEW and the I/O assistant to quickly develop an instrument driver for the fluke if one is not already available.

[JoshuaP]

If you go to www.ni.com/idnet you can download instrument drivers for various devices. If you search for a Fluke 45 you should get 3 links for various programming languages (http://search.ni.com/query.html?lk=1&col=alldocs&nh=500&rf=3&ql=&pw=595&qp=%2BContentType%3AInstrumentDriver+%2BIDNetManufacturer%3A%22Fluke%22&qt=45&layout=IDNet). Some of the drivers have example programs and some don't, but the drivers will make it much easier to program. Make sure you follow the directions very closely, otherwise you will have difficulties. If it requires you to install other software first, make sure you do.

I hope this helps out,
Joshua