Linux computers

This message comes from a Vectrino user interfacing with Linux:

"For your information, if it is ever useful to any of your customers to know this, the Vectrino Plus software seems to work well under Linux with Wine (Linux users will know what it is). One day that I really had to take measurements with my laptop, I tried to install it under Windows Vista first, but the Vectrino was automatically detected as a mouse(!), which led to erratic pointer movements and clicks as soon as the Vectrino was plugged in. I didn't know how to manage it under Windows, so I tried with Linux (my distribution is Debian Stable). All that I needed to do is to double-click the installer to install it with Wine (which I already had installed) and then, to use the serial to USB device, I created (as root for correct permissions) a symbolic link named COM1 in ~/.wine/dosdevices/, pointing towards /dev/ttyUSB0. Then COM1 could be selected and it worked well. It's been quite useful to me, saved me much time at the moment, that's why I let you know in case it could be useful to someone else."

In a similar vein, I've used VM Ware Fusion under OS X, running Windows XP in a virtual machine to collect data from both a Vectrino and Vector (although not at the same time). This has worked extremely well although I did extensive testing before hand to make sure it worked (i.e. test your setup before trusting it will work, especially for really important data collection efforts).

One quick note about the Vista problem above, the Vectrino is a serial communications device and doesn't require a driver under Windows. The Serial-to-USB converter the user was using was mis-identified and needed a different driver to work correctly. I haven't used Vista myself, but this can be corrected under the Device Manager in Windows XP.

Hello

I am trying to use Nortek Vector and Vectrino with a Linux OS (ubuntu). For my own work, I can use the great Chris McGregor program ( http://www.cybermato.com/projects/vectorcontrol/ ). But for the students use, it would be much more easy to use the Nortek program with a graphical interface. So I tried to manage the solution proposed by E.Siegel with Wine and a symbolic link for the usb-serial device, but it does not work, the vector/vectrino do no connect.

Any help/advice about that issue would be much appreciated.

D. Sous

Hi Damien,

I don't know how much help I can be as I'm not running Linux. But maybe check to see if you can listen to the Comm port using another serial device and telnet? That will at least let you know the symbolic link is working. Otherwise I'm not sure what else to suggest.

P.J.