Keeping all the versions straight

[RTSLVU]

With 8.6 release I now have four versions of Labview installed on my work station. (5.1, 8.2, 8.5, 8.6)

I sometimes have a hard time keeping them seperated. I installed them each to their own directory. But the problem is when I an in say LV 8.2, then later in LV 8.5. When I open a file or insturment driver it will open the directory under LV 8.2. I always have to meake sure I am opening the vi's from the right directory. I have already over written vi's from a lower version with a newer one, leaving me with many hours of recreating the old vi because it broke several applications written in the older version that depended on it.

How does everyone keep their different versions and vi's seperated?

Or does everyone just upgrade everything and dump the old everytime a new version comes out?

[Bob_Schor]

This is a common problem!  There's quite a nice treatment of it in the NI site at http://zone.ni.com/devzone/cda/tut/p/id/6524 (you can find it by searching for "multiple versions").  For myself, I've got one machine devoted to "legacy projects", running LabVIEW 7.0 -- this machine has the VIs that are specific to this version.  I'm currently developing in 8.5 on another machine, and have also installed 8.6 there for "testing".  To prevent LabVIEW from "remembering" the last version I opened, I put a "don't reregister yourself" in the 8.6 .ini file (the command is "RegisterExtensions=False") -- this way, if I double-click a VI, my "default" LabVIEW, 8.5.1, opens it.  To open a VI in 8.6, I have to first start 8.6, which gives me a slight "edge".

Bob Schor

[parthabe]

---

RTSLVU wrote:

But the problem is when I an in say LV 8.2, then later in LV 8.5. When I open a file or insturment driver it will open the directory under LV 8.2.

---

I find this to be peculiar because LV actually opens the VIs in the last used version. It does not "remember" the actual version of LV in which the VI was opened last time. Instead, it actually "remembers" the version of LV used during the last instance.

[RTSLVU]

 find this to be peculiar because LV actually opens the VIs in the last used version. It does not "remember" the actual version of LV in which the VI was opened last time. Instead, it actually "remembers" the version of LV used during the last instance.

Maybe that is what is happening? I don't know maybe I did not explain in properly either but...

I have a directory structure like this.

C:\

     Program Files

          National Instruments

               Labview 5.1

                      User.lib

               Labview 8.2

                      User.lib

               Labview 8.5

                      User.lib

               Labview 8.6

                      User.lib

Now say I have to work on some legacy code in LV 8.2. I have a years worth of vi's in my User.lib that I use all the time. So I load a vi from C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.2\user.lib.

Later that day I am working in Labview 8.6. I go to open one of my favorite vi's and when I select File-Open the directory Labview 8.6 opens is C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.2\user.lib NOT C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.6\user.lib. So I have to manually navigate to C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.6\user.lib. 

Switching back to Labview 8.2 again later and Labview 8.2 now defaults to open vi's in C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.6\user.lib. While this is not as bad because an old version will not open a newer version's code, more of an inconvenience.

I guess I just have to be careful and make sure I am in the right place when I select a vi.

I have been using Labview 5.11 up until 8.2 came out. In fact our production test department is still writing ATE code in Labview 5.11. So I need to keep 5.11 around as I am often called on to aid the test department in maintaining code. Since versions after Labview 8.2 will not open 5.11 vi's I need to keep 8.2 to upgrade my most often used vi's as I go. I wish I had the time to load several years worth of vi's one at a time and save them in 8.2 (there has to be an easier way) so I could lose 8.2. I probably used Labview 8.5 the most and it would be the easiest one to ditch, but then I would also have to upgrade all the runtime installations on all the others computers...again...  Ah, well nothing is easy...

Message Edited by RTSLVU on 09-10-2008 09:44 AM

Message Edited by RTSLVU on 09-10-2008 09:48 AM

[parthabe]

---

RTSLVU wrote:

Now say I have to work on some legacy code in LV 8.2. I have a years worth of vi's in my User.lib that I use all the time. So I load a vi from C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.2\user.lib.

Later that day I am working in Labview 8.6. I go to open one of my favorite vi's and when I select File-Open the directory Labview 8.6 opens is C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.2\user.lib NOT C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.6\user.lib. So I have to manually navigate to C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.6\user.lib. 

Switching back to Labview 8.2 again later and Labview 8.2 now defaults to open vi's in C:\program files\National Instruments\Labview 8.6\user.lib. While this is not as bad because an old version will not open a newer version's code, more of an inconvenience.

---

This is the expected behaviour from LabVIEW because it is not a fault in LabVIEW, but it is the default behaviour of Windows in popping out the last visited folder in the File-Folder dialog. I think so... Please correct me if I m wrong or have misunderstood your query.

[parthabe]

But I think I m getting in agreement with you... Actually, each LV version should remember which was the fodler opened last & navigate to that particular one on its next launch.

It should be respective for each different LV version.

I think this is the behaviour in other applications like Word, Excel or Acrobat Reader. I m not so sure...