Best-Practice Style Rules and Standards for Developing Quality LabVIEW Software
Drawing on the experiences of a world-class LabVIEW development organization, The LabVIEW Style Book is the definitive guide to best practices in LabVIEW development.
Leading LabVIEW development manager Peter A. Blume presents practical guidelines or “rules” for optimizing every facet of your applications: ease of use, efficiency, readability, simplicity, performance, maintainability, and robustness. Blume explains each style rule thoroughly, presenting realistic examples and illustrations. He even presents “nonconforming” examples that show what not to do–and why not.
Coverage includes
• Significance of style: How good style improves quality and actually saves time over the full project life cycle
• Before you code: Configuring your LabVIEW environment, and organizing your files on disk and in the LabVIEW project
• LabVIEW project specifications: A specialized standard for specifying LabVIEW application requirements
• Efficient VI layout and development: front panel, block diagram, icons, and connectors
• Data structures: Choosing data types, efficient use of arrays and clusters, and special considerations with nested data structures
• Error handling strategies: Trapping and reporting errors for robust and reliable applications
• Design patterns: Standard VI architectures and application frameworks that promote good style
• Documentation: Essential rules for source code documentation and streamlining the process
• Code reviews: Enforcing a style convention using a checklist, the LabVIEW VI Analyzer Toolkit, and peer reviews
• Appendixes: Convenient glossary and style rules summary
This book will be indispensable to anyone who wants to develop or maintain quality LabVIEW applications: developers, managers, and end users alike. Additionally, it will also be valuable to those preparing for NI’s Certified LabVIEW Developer or Certified LabVIEW Architect exams, which contain significant content on development style.
Foreword by Darren Nattinger xv
Preface xvii
Acknowledgments xx
About the Author xxii
Chapter 1 The Significance of Style 1
Chapter 2 Prepare for Good Style 21
Chapter 3 Front Panel Style 47
Chapter 4 Block Diagram 87
Chapter 5 Icon and Connector 129
Chapter 6 Data Structures 157
Chapter 7 Error Handling 203
Chapter 8 Design Patterns 239
Chapter 9 Documentation 299
Chapter 10 Code Reviews 319
Appendix A Glossary 339
Appendix B Style Rules Summary 349
Index 357
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