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???
06/27/09 08:15
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#166519 - Maybe there are - but may even be irrelevant
Responding to: ???'s previous message
Erik Malund said:
.. that can 'see' a 10ns pulse?

Erik

Maybe this one: http://www.picotech.com/picoscope9200.html

But the main reason for sw scopes is probably not to compete with the better hw scopes, but to handle the 90-95% of the day-to-day requirements. It should be small and simple to use, and also allow you to quickly grab a laptop and the sw scope and get mobile.

In many situations, you could replace a Fluke ScopeMeter, while gaining a lot of extra features.

In some other situations, you could use an old laptop and a sw scope instead of a data logger, if you need to make long-time measurements on a power-supply solution or similar.

In some situations, you may not have room for a scope on your desk, so you settle for a sw scope, and only get the trolley with a high-end scope when you get stuck with the sw scope.

In some situations, you may consider the high-end scope probes much to expensive to use for measuring on blinking diodes, so you do your loop speed measurements with a low-cost sw scope with cheap probes, and gets the hw scope only when you have - or suspect you have - a hardware error.

Because of the PC interface, you may be able to get the sw scope to make use of the high USB bandwidth to allow you to sample very extended sequences of SPI or CAN communication, that you may later write an application on the PC to analyze. A reasonably priced hw scope may only have a RS232 port for transfer of captured data (often not real-time) to the PC.

In the end, a sw scope is not a replacemetn, but a complement. But to be really useful, the manufacturers must still make sure that the GUI is designed in a way that you don't waste huge amounts of time fighting with the controls. It doesn't take many hours of frustration with the GUI until you can afford to buy one more good hw scope.

List of 26 messages in thread
TopicAuthorDate
DSO            01/01/70 00:00      
   g.            01/01/70 00:00      
   I would'nt            01/01/70 00:00      
   try first, and compare            01/01/70 00:00      
      They have no parallel with Tek but            01/01/70 00:00      
         I don't give a **** to such comparisons            01/01/70 00:00      
            Try a lot instead of just comparing specifications            01/01/70 00:00      
               tektronix            01/01/70 00:00      
                  Contact problems...            01/01/70 00:00      
                     welec            01/01/70 00:00      
                        further insight to welec            01/01/70 00:00      
                        Have you seen this?            01/01/70 00:00      
                           Sorry!            01/01/70 00:00      
                  I've been using TEK for over 40 years ...            01/01/70 00:00      
               or DIY            01/01/70 00:00      
                  Hard to make a scope            01/01/70 00:00      
                     be careful about your investment ...            01/01/70 00:00      
                        PC scopes not easy to use            01/01/70 00:00      
                           I've found computer controls to be less than convenient            01/01/70 00:00      
                           About PC scopes difficulty            01/01/70 00:00      
                              Too great difference between hw and sw scopes            01/01/70 00:00      
                                 are there any software scopes ...            01/01/70 00:00      
                                    Maybe there are - but may even be irrelevant            01/01/70 00:00      
                                       Wrong link            01/01/70 00:00      
                  But how would you test & calibrate it?            01/01/70 00:00      
            Why not??            01/01/70 00:00      

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