Is big and small endian still around?

[ttkoh123]

Hi fellow members;

Linking with the modern days gpib-32 or the ni488 library/obj, do ones still need to be concerned with the small and big endian conversion in board level or device level calls or they are obsoleted with platform independence implementation nowadays?

thanks

[crossrulz]

Since most instruments use SCPI, an ASCII data format, endianness is not really needed anymore.  Some instruments will send large data in binary form, but you usually get to choose the byte order.

[Minions]

Endian is still important when dealing with certain communication packages like CAN (Controller Area Network).  It defines the order of how bits are sent and then rearranged on the other platforms.  Motorola and Intel processors still use different types.

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@crossrulz wrote:

Since most instruments use SCPI, an ASCII data format, endianness is not really needed anymore.  Some instruments will send large data in binary form, but you usually get to choose the byte order.

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