A couple of weeks ago on the element14 T and M forum member Tom C lark asked an interesting question: "What's the role of software in T nd M?" noting “T&M ....is hardware. Originally stand alone, then connected, now modular or PC plug in. Will it ever get to being a virtual instrument on a PC? I s that what you want? Is modular better than rack & stack? Is the software needed your own so it is fully customizable, a language or bought pre-configured test sets? Where is it all taking us and where do we want it to go?”
Member “saturation” replied that in terms of virtual instruments clearly we have National Instruments’ products but he added: “However, the T&M industry should study the needs of the entire market and design a basic suite that works for 90% if not 100% of needs from large design firms to the single user, just like the GUI exists for nearly all PCs, from Apple, Windows to Linux. It should have the ease of use of consumer grade plug and play. It should be cheaper than was NI charges or it will continue to segment the market.”
Agree or Disgree with either? What do you think?