El 12/12/2010 03:41, jimlux escribió:
This is an example of a new class of lab instruments.. you pay for the
hard part (the RF design and performance) and software takes care of
the rest, and since software has almost zero reproduction cost....
And the hard part is also less expensive - older signal generators used
impressive attenuators since the output accuracy depended heavily on
them, newer ones uses not-so-good ones whose characteristics are
compensated by the software (compare the attenuator in a R&S SMFP with
the one inside a Marconi 2945)
For today, there's probably a significant "value added" in the
software, so it might not be free... but over time, that will change.
I hope so :)
And, if it works out nicely, standardized interfaces (like 50 ohms or
resistor color codes) will evolve, so the same software will work with
a $500 inexpensive widget or a $10,000 high performance widget from
Agilent.
Not sure about. As we are seeing, Agilent, Tek and others are trying
hard to make their instrumentation to be obsolescent, unmaintainable and
unusable in timescales as short as they can, to force replacement. Those
nice instruments running windows are basically door stops if they fail
once the manufacturer has decided to stop maintaining them. And they are
not exactly unexpensive. They will avoid as hard as they can that you
can use and old software with a new instrument, and viceversa.
There will always be a market for software tailored to a specific
market/need (like standards or regulatory compliance) that will cost,
but for generic functions (like a power spectrum) that will probably
be free, or close to it.
I wonder if there's an interface for this for my iPad?
In the Signal Hound web page they mention the availability of a free
API... this is also what has attracted me, because of the posibility to
write custom software for those specific needs. So perhaps an
interface for your iPad could be written ;)
Regards,
Javier
--
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Javier Herrero EMAIL: [email protected]
Chief Technology Officer
HV Sistemas S.L. PHONE: +34 949 336 806
Los Charcones, 17 FAX: +34 949 336 792
19170 El Casar - Guadalajara - Spain WEB: http://www.hvsistemas.com
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