Frequently asked questions

What are the system requirements to use the laboratory?
A modern web browser, like Firefox 3.0, IE 7 or later, with Macromedia Flash Player 9.0 or later. Check here. Should work on all platforms supporting flash. A internet connection at least 56kbit/s bandwidth.

How does the instruments work?
The instruments are computer based. They consists of two parts, a extension card in the server computer and a virtual front panel displayed on the clients computer screen. The virtual front panels are photographs of front panels of common desktop instruments. Most of the functions of these instruments are implemented. Manufacturer and model number are visible. The manuals can be downloaded from the manufacturers web site.

How does the breadboard work?
Refer to the figure below.

When I am trying to make a measurement, I get 'unable to connect'.
Probably this is because the client software fails to connect to our server. Either its because our server is down or there is a problem with your network connection. Contact your network administrator and verify that port 2323 is open for external TCP traffic.

Where can I find documentation for the client software?
We have tried to make our virtual instruments as like the original as possible. Therefore we refer to the hardware instrument manuals.

What does GND stand for?
GND is protective earth or ground. All instruments are relative to protective earth, except the +/-25V channels on the DC power supply, which are relative to the floating COM node. The COM node can be connected to protective earth if needed.