@VPS wrote:
I have a hard time understanding why some of the realtime systems (at least both my Smart Camera and cRIO system) are given so little memory. Surely for a component of $5000 dollar it must be possible to add a bit more memory then what was strictly necessary at the time of purchase (or at least it should be given as an option) ...
Some of the reasons many embedded systems have small amounts of memory are (1) footprint, (2) power requirements, (3) heat and heat dissipation, (4) addressability, (5) cost. Often times upgrading memory can cost just as much as the unit itself, because of the extenuating factors involved. But in the Smart Cameras, the vast majority of the focus centered around the CCD than the memory chips involved. But I definitely understand that you want something that will be able to grow with your use-case. That's why we stopped selling the 1764 and moved to the 177x model SmartCameras - 3x the speed, 4x the memory, 16x the storage. Something that will grow with you.
@VPS wrote:
Last question related to this issue: I have been reading (also on this forum) about installing multiple versions of LV on one pc, but I found contradictive conclusions. Would it be feasible/recommendable to have both LV2013 and LV2011 (+ the necessary modules) installed on one pc? Can the Smart Camera (RT2011) communicate with the cRIO (RT 2013) over shared variables?
Let's pick this apart into two questions:
(1) Multiple Side-by-Side Installations - Yes, this is possible, but I find that it can sometimes be cumbersome. I personally much prefer using virtual images (VMWare images) with one VM with the 2011 software and another with the 2013 software. That way you never have to worry about version conflicts, upgrade/downgrade issues, and all the headaches that can come with multiple versions on the same PC.
(2) Smart Camera (RT2011) communicating with the cRIO (RT2013) over shared variables - Absolutely. There's been absolutely no compatibility breaks between versions since we introduced the Shared Variables back in LVRT8. The Shared Variable Protocol can be used to communicate between any systems that support the Shared Variable protocol, no matter the LabVIEW / LabVIEW RT version.
-Danny
