Attribute General Editor

Name

Name of the attribute. This name corresponds to the IVI-C macro name used in the \<prefix\>.h #define statement, except that the driver prefix and ATTR are excluded. Attribute names consist only of capital letters, numbers, and the underscore character and must start with a capital letter.

Type

Data type of the attribute.

Note

As per the IVI specifications, array-type properties are not permitted. If you need to read or write an array, then use explicit “Get” and “Set” methods.

Tip

The following syntax can be used in the Type text box to create a new enum type and use that enum as the type all in one operation:

new enum TriggerSource; Internal = 2, External = 0x15, Software = 47

See the topic Defining New Data Types Inline for more information on this feature.

Display

Display name that will be used to identify the attribute in the function tree.

Access

Indicates if the attribute is read-write, read-only, or write-only

ID

The numeric value of the attribute macro used in the \<prefix\>.h #define statement. Note that IVI prescribes the base attribute value, so only the offset is editable.

Repeated capability

The repeated capability with which the function is associated.

Implementation

Choosing the Instrument command option instructs Nimbus to automatically generate all of the implementation code needed to send the specified command and to read a response if the Response text box is non-empty. Nimbus generates calls to standard VISA functions, such as viPrintf, viScanf, and viQueryf to send instrument commands and to receive instrument responses.

Choosing the Manual option requires the driver developer to provide the method implementation. This choice is often used for attributes that rely upon non-message-based device communications, such as register-based devices or drivers that rely upon a support DLL.

Choosing the Manual with instrument command option is the same as Manual except that the command and response textboxes are enabled and used to populate the Instrument Command section of the driver help page for the attribute. This is useful for attributes that require manual implementation but that ultimately rely upon an instrument command in their manually added code.

Important

See the topic Fundamentals of Function and Attribute Implementation to understand how these options affect code generation and roundtripping.

Setter command

Specifies the command to send to the device when the value of the attribute is set (i.e. the attribute setter executes). This control is not enabled for read-only attributes. Nimbus supports a rich command and response formatting syntax. Please see the topic Working With Instrument Commands for a detailed discussion of automatic command formatting.

Getter command

Specifies the query to send to the device when the value of the attribute value is read (i.e. the attribute getter executes). This control is not enabled for write-only attributes. Nimbus supports a rich command and response formatting syntax. Please see the topic Working With Instrument Commands for a detailed discussion of automatic command formatting.

Getter response

Specifies the format of the response to read back from the device when the property value is read. This control is not enabled for write-only attributes.

Use auto-generated preamble

For manual attribute implementations, Nimbus can be instructed to still generate pre-processing code for features such as parameter validation, state-caching, and range-checking. If unchecked, Nimbus will not generate any pre-processing code and the driver developer must supply all function logic.

Caution

It is recommended that this option remain checked. Many Nimbus features can be “short-circuited” if the standard Nimbus preamble code is not generated. This option is intended for advanced scenarios.

See also

• Defining New Data Types Inline