README.TXT
     AG 605X Series Electronic Load
     Universal Instrument Driver (UID)
     Driver Revision C.00.00
     March 22, 2012

Revision History
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  A.00.00  08/19/98  Initial Release.
  B.00.00  05/01/00  Rebranded for Agilent Technologies.
  C.00.00  03/22/12  WIN 7 Support added to InstallShield.
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Contents:

1    Introduction

2    VTL/VISA Specific Information
2.1    Instrument Addresses
2.2    Language Specific Features

3    Using the AG 605X UID in Application Development Environments
3.1    Microsoft Visual C/C++
3.2    Microsoft Visual Basic
3.3    LabWindows/CVI

4.0  WINDOWS 7 Installation. 
       Additional upgrade needed.

5.0  Known Defects

6.0  Online Information

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1.   Introduction

The help file included with the AG 605X Universal Instrument Driver contains
instrument and programming information. This readme file contains additional
information concerning the driver.

The AG 605X Windows 95 and Windows NT drivers are actually a single 32-bit
driver.  All of directory paths which follow assume Windows 95.  For Windows
NT, change references from win95 to winnt. 

This AG 605X driver conforms to all portions of the VXIplug&play driver
standard which are applicable to conventional GPIB and RS-232.  Two
elements of the standard do not apply to the AG 605X since it is not a
VXI instrument.  First, there is no soft front panel, as the AG 605X
can be controlled from it's hardware front panel.  Second, there is no
knowledge base file, which is primarily a description of a VXI board.

This driver features:

1.  Conformance with the VXIplug&play standard.  The only exceptions are that
    it does not have a soft front panel or a knowledge base file.

2.  It is built on top of, and uses the services provided by VISA.  VISA
    supports GPIB and VXI protocols.  The driver can be used with any
    GPIB card for which the manufacturer has provided a VISA DLL.

3.  It includes a "Function Panel" (.fp) file which allows it to be used
    with visual programming environments such as Agilent VEE, LabWindows, and
    LabVIEW.

4.  It includes a comprehensive on-line help file which complements the
    instrument  manual.  The help file presents application programming
    examples, a cross-reference between instrument commands and driver
    functions, and detailed documentation of each function, with examples.

5.  Source is included so that the driver can be modified if desired.  The
    source conforms to VXI Plug & Play standards.  Modifications should only
    be done by people who are familiar with the VXIplug&play standard.

6.  It includes a Visual Basic include file (.bas) which contains the function
    calls in Visual Basic syntax, so that driver functions can be called from
    Visual Basic.  If you use Visual Basic with this driver, you should be
    familiar with C/C++ function declarations.  In particular, care must be
    taken when working with C/C++ pointers.
 
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2.   VISA Specific Information

The following topics refer to instances when the driver is used with
different versions of VISA.

2.1    Instrument Addresses

When using Agilent Technologies VXIplug&play instrument drivers, instrument
addresses must be all uppercase letters. Implementation of the addressing
scheme is vendor specific and some vendors support mixed cases. However,
for maximum portability, the instrument address should use uppercase
characters only.

For example:  use "GPIB0::20" instead of "gpib0::20"

2.2   Language Specific Features

Language Specific features are not supported with this driver.


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3.   Application Development Environments

     For general instructions on using the driver with Agilent VEE,
     Microsoft Visual C++, Borland C++, Microsoft Visual Basic,
     LabVIEW, and LabWindows/CVI, see the online help file.

     Additional notes:

3.1  Microsoft Visual C++ 4.0 (& higher) and Borland C++ 4.5 (& higher)

     A.) The driver uses Pascal calling conventions.
     B.) Do not build the driver in the directory in which it was installed.

3.2  Microsoft Visual Basic 4.0 (& higher)

     Refer to the Microsoft Visual BASIC manual for additional
     information on calling DLLs.

3.3  LabWindows CVI/(R) 4.0 (& higher)

     The AG 605X driver is supplied as both a source code file and as a
     dynamic link library file (dll).  There are several advantages to
     using the dll form of the driver.  These include: 

     1. Transportability across different computer platforms
     2. A higher level of support from Agilent Technologies for the
        compiled driver
     3. Faster load time for your project

Labwindows/CVI (R) by default will attempt to load the source version
of the instrument driver.  To load the dll you must include the file
hp605x.fp in your project.  This file can be found in vxipnp\win95\hp605x
Do not include hp605x.c in your project.  You must also provide an
include path for hp605x.h.  This is done by adding vxipnp\win95\include
to the include paths (CVI Project Option menu).

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4.0 WINDOWS 7 Installation. Additional upgrade needed.  

Version C.00.00 consists of an upgrade to the Installation software for 
installing the AG 605X driver on Windows 7 systems.This release updates
the InstallShield for installation only on XP, WIN 7 x86 and WIN 7 x64
operating systems.The driver itself has not changed. 

For Win 95 or Win NT support, utilze version B.00.00. 

With this driver, You must also install the following software upgrade:

	   
	   In Windows 7, the WinHlp32.exe update is required to display
           32-bit Help files that have the ".hlp" file name extension.
           The update is available for free from Microsoft at
           http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917607.

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5.0  Known Defects

There are no known defects in the AG 605X driver.

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6.0  Online Information

The latest version of this driver and other AG drivers are available
on the Internet at

http://www.agilent.com/find/inst_drivers.

The AG 605X driver is located in a self-extracting archive file called
605x.exe.

If you do not have internet access, drivers can be obtained by
contacting your country support organization.  In the U.S., the phone
number is 800-452-4844.  A list of contact information for other
countries is available on the Agilent Technologies website at

http://www.agilent.com/find/contacts00.

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LabWindows/CVI is a registered trademark of National Instruments.

