SequenceFileTranslator -> picking a specific one programatically

[Oli_Wachno]

Hi y'all,

I have stumbled over the Sequence File Translator API in TestStand. Though it is not doumented too much, I think I can get the stuff to work using the examples and template.

My use case at the moment is being able to mass-convert a massive amount of proprietary XML files into seq files. Before getting into the nitty-gritty details of the actual conversion, I want to make sure, the "infrastructure" structure works.

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The idea is to prgramatically open all XML files one by one and using a custom SequenceTranslator DLL for conversion.

Using one of the examples that NI provides, I can open the according example file. 

What I haven't found out yet: how does the Engine determine, which translator to use? Does it try all registered translators until the first one returns CanTranslate = True?

[Anand_Jain · Accepted solution]

Hi, 

Yes, that is correct. The engine will try all installed translators in NI and User directories until the first one returns CanTranslate = True. 

Regards, 

Anand Jain

NI

[Oli_Wachno]

Thanks for your anser and sorry to ask related/ further questions:

1.) which is the sequence, the callbacks are used in by SeqEdit?

"Debuggin" using the LabVIEW Example and Dialog Boxes, I see that 

• GetTranslatorCount
• GetExtension
• GetDescription

are called on starting SeqEdit.

Placing a dialog box in TranslateToSequence causes TS to hang when starting an actual conversion

Dialog Boxes in GetFileVersion and GetFileFormatVersions never appear

2.) [Personal lack of proficiency creating DLLs from LabVIEW]

Referring to the XML Sample Project from the TestStand example: there must be some kind of translation from XMLGetCalcCount.vi to the DLL Callback GetCalcCount

I suspected this to happen in the build spec, but couldn't find it.

[Oli_Wachno]

as for part two of my question:

typical case of wood and trees 

[Oli_Wachno]

For future reference:

setting up LabVIEW to debug a SequenceFileTranslator, refer to 

https://lavag.org/topic/6964-debugging-a-compiled-labview-dll/

Though the post is ~16 years old, it this still works as described here 😀