1.1 Labview environment  (Page 3/6)

Menus

The menus at the top of a VI window contain items common to other applications, such as Open , Save , Copy , and Paste , and other items specific to LabVIEW. Some menu items also listshortcut key combinations.

( Mac OS ) The menus appear at the top of the screen.

( Windows and UNIX ) The menus display only the most recently used items bydefault. Click the arrows at the bottom of a menu to display all items. You can display all menu items by default byselecting Tools>>Options and selecting Miscellaneous from the top pull-down menu.

• The File menu contains items used for basic file operations, such as opening, closing, saving, andprinting files.
• The Edit menu contains items that allow you to search for and modify LabVIEW files and their components.
• The Operate menu contains items you use to control the operation of VIs.
• The Tools menu contains items for configuring LabVIEW, your projects, and your VIs.
• The Browse menu contains items that allow you to view aspects of the current VI and its hierarchy.
• The Window menu contains items that allow you to configure the appearance of the current windows andpalettes. You also can access the Error List window and view the contents of the clipboard.
• The Help menu contains items to explain and define LabVIEW features and other components, provide fullLabVIEW documentation, and access National Instruments technical support.

Front panel and block diagram windows

When you open a blank VI, an untitled front panel window appears. This window displays the front panel and is one ofthe two LabVIEW windows you use to build a VI. The other window contains the block diagram. The illustration in shows a front panel and its corresponding block diagram with front panel and block diagram components.

Front panel toolbar

Use the toolbar buttons to run and edit a VI. The toolbar in appears on the front panel.

Click the Run button to run a VI. LabVIEW compiles the VI, if necessary. You can run a VI if the Run button appears as asolid white arrow. The solid white arrow, shown above, also indicates you can use the VI as a subVI if you create aconnector pane for the VI.

While the VI runs, the Run button appears as shown at left if the VI is a top-level VI, meaning it has no callers and therefore isnot a subVI.

If the VI that is running is a subVI, the Run button appears as shown at left.

The Run button appears broken, shown at left, when the VI you are creating or editing contains errors. If the Run button still appears broken after you finish wiring the block diagram, the VI is broken and cannotrun. Click this button to display the Error list window, which lists all errors and warnings.