Re: VB6, & Phase output programming

Kurt,
As a full time VB guy, I will agree EXCEPT for one thing, I used to write
"real time" software. VB (or ANY lang running under windows) can't do what
is called "Hard Real Time", where if you miss a signal, your hosed. "Soft
real time" isn't so bad, as if your output is delayed a few milli to
microseconds, nothing breaks. In the WINDOWS stuff, you won't actually
LOOSE steps, what will happen (or CAN <g>) is that steps will be delayed
(aka you can get dwells)

The only way to avoid this in windows FOR sure, is to run windows NT, and
then run the process in question with it's priority as "real Time". There
are problems with this mode - you lose video - NOTHING else runs (Not even
ring zero stuff), so you have to take care of everything.

There are OSes that are RT capable, and Windows/WinNT will do an OK job (NT
even better than DOS, If you have nothing else running), but there are risks.

BTW structured BASICS (with at least as much structure as VB6, but no
classes) has been around since the early late 70s, and I started writing in
them in 1982 - I can even get you a copy of VB1 and VB dos if you want <g>

Charlie

At 08:09 PM 5/27/99 -0000, you wrote:

>From: pyroware@...

<snip>>

>Anyway, just a heads up to anyone using VB, get the version which properly

compiles. Structured, compiled VB is easily on par with C/Cpp as a
high-level language.

>

<snip>
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