Create Application/Library from item moves files on disk

[SebastianBengtsson]

My goal is to create application based on the Continuous Measurement project template and distribute it as an exe file.

I have questions on the process of creating an executable (exe).

I will explain the scenario by walking through my attempt to create an exe directly from the Continuous Measurement template, without any code changes.

Steps:

Navigate to and select LabVIEW NXG home screen > Projects > New > Continuous Measurement

Save a copy of the template project (Continuous Measurement)

Save all

(Screenshot 1)

Right click on Main.gvi > Create Application/Library from item

Click OK

Save all

(Screenshot 2)

The majority (but not all) of the files have now been moved on disk.

Furthermore, the folder structure has changed.

Is this the intended behavior?

I experience this as cumbersome with regards to version control with SVN.

It would seem that I cannot create another "build specification" based on the same source code. Is that correct?

Please provide advice on how to properly create an exe.

Kind regards,

Sebastian

[Taylor_R. · Accepted solution]

Hello Sebastian,

Thanks for the feedback and for reaching out! 

As you have pointed out, the workflows for taking an established set of VIs and turning that into a buildable application are not highly polished in LabVIEW NXG right now. My teams and I have been focusing more on workflows that start with the intent to build an application, and thus begin by creating applications and libraries before one has large VI hierarchies in place.

As you have also noticed, applications and libraries do affect the underlying disk structure. I wrote a blog post explaining the design rationale for that change from LabVIEW 20xx. Generally, we feel the benefits of this file-system-based approach outweigh the previous approach. The blog post and the ensuing conversation in the comments go into a lot more detail.

For your specific issue, I'd like to see us convert all our larger starting templates to use applications, libraries, and namespaces as their organizational technique instead of folders. That way it's clear how to build your application as soon as you create the copy of the template. I'll take this feedback back to our teams and look to see when we can get it prioritized. For your convenience, I've attached a version of the Continuous Measurement example that uses this approach to this response.

Thanks again for your feedback,

Taylor

[Taylor_R.]

Please use this file, not the previous one. This project has been saved in LabVIEW NXG 3.0. The previous one was saved in a non-released version and will not open in LabVIEW NXG 3.0. Thanks!

Taylor

[SebastianBengtsson]

Hi Taylor

Thanks for your reply and the example code.

I restructured my code based on the example code.

Thanks

Sebastian