2014-02-10

National Instruments, please enhance your Linux support on DAQmx

I love Linux, and I also love National Instruments' Data Acquisition (DAQ) devices. However, the poor status of the driver software DAQmx for Linux is a pain for me. I really hate to use Windows even when I have to. Basically, DAQmx for Linux (latest version 8.0.2) does not support USB DAQ devices as DAQmx for Windows does.

DAQmx for Linux has been stalled at version 8.0.2 since March 2011. In contrast, DAQmx for Windows goes all the way up to version 9.8, release in August 2013, with USB support.

Since there is no USB support in DAQmx for Linux, I will have to use DAQmx Base (latest version 3.7), which provides a subset of features of DAQmx.

According to NI people, DAQmx for Linux will stay in its current status (v. 8.0.2) for a while. I really look forward to a DAQmx for Linux with support to USB DAQ device soon. It's difficult to make a choice between the Linux I love and the NI DAQ solution I love.

References:
  1. NI DAQ for Linux FAQ, http://www.ni.com/white-paper/3695/en/
  2. Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about NI-DAQmx and Traditional NI-DAQ (Legacy), http://www.ni.com/white-paper/3021/en/
  3. Is there a DAQmx for Linux as of 2014? https://decibel.ni.com/content/message/66188#66188

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