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tomfromCT

Factory Talk View Studio Rant

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I am currently doing a major project for a large corporation who, like so many U.S. companies, has Allen Bradley tattooed across their foreheads. This project entails the use of 13 touchscreens and the customer insists they be A-B. I cannot begin to assess the countless lost hours we have swallowed talking to Techconnect to make the software work. Endless activation issues, trying to get the View Studio to access the PLC's tag file, etc. And the way A-B sells their touchscreens by touting "seamless integration" with the PLC? That to me is a cruel joke on their part! But by far, the lost time in developing the application on the machine due to the incredibly long time it takes (around 5 minutes) for each download. Oh, and did I forget to mention the incredibly hostile file manipulation system? You have to close down View Studio (and sometimes even reboot the computer) in order to backup or restore a file! We use a lot of Red Lion and Maple touchscreens on our machines and I gotta tell you, development time is light years faster than an A-B touchscreen project! We are actually now telling customers that we need to charge significantly extra if they demand an A-B touchscreen to cover our development costs. Oh, and did I mention that Red Lion software is free and Maple software is dirt cheap? Or that both Red Lion and Maple have excellent free telephone support? I do not in fact hold a grudge against A-B in general. In fact I really love their PLCs and programming software, but when it comes to touchscreens, A-B has really, really missed the boat.

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I have a few customers who have migrated from AB to Red Lion, who, as a bonus, is only 45 minutes from me. It's hard to justify the 2x cost for a comparable AB PV+ when Red Lion has more standard features. What gets me is the bootup time, which on a Red Lion, is next to nothing. And they certainly interface well with the PLCs. Good stuff! Edited by phuz
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There are pros and cons to every product. While I've been using PV+ for a very long time, and can see the progress it has made, the software's fundamental limitations to performance and functionality are aggravating. But the competition's not perfect, either. When it works, the FactoryTalk Tag Browser feature is unbeatable for fast and error-free selection of controller tags for use in the HMI project. The export/import or manual-entry methods I have to use in Indusoft or Red Lion are cumbersome by comparison. I haven't experienced any trouble with activation or Linx Enterprise/FTView tag browsing integration, though my insistence on using stable VMWare virtual machines may be part of the reason. One of the things I miss the most about the PV+ is the FactoryTalk Diagnostics windows. Many of the competitive products will "fail silently" and a feature just won't work, while at least FactoryTalk will show you a rolling diagnostic log that will specify the tag or macro or screen that's the problem. The FactoryTalk View boat was a long time in dock, believe me. It finally came to the point where there was nobody left to blame, nobody left to fire, and nothing left to do except try to fix it and soldier on. I'm actually looking forward to using the new PanelView Plus 7 hardware.

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There is a lot to rant about for the PVP+ software. Easy setup, pain free, quick to learn, user friendly are not words I would use to describe it. But it is an advanced product with a lot of features unmatched in any other touchscreen; same for price. For whatever reason you end up working with one, I would recommend these as mandatory (for any automation software really): 1) Use a "clean" install of Windows Basically, install Windows onto a PC for the first time and then apply all the Windows updates. Do nothing else. NOW you are ready to install FTView Studio. Don't install anything else, except MS Office. 2) Use FTView Studio version 8 or higher There are a lot of features in FTView Studio and it has taken them a long time to make them better. If you use any version less than 8 you are going to hit many of the pains that used to be there (security, installs, activeX, communications setup). My general rule is a minimum version 5 or five years on the market for any automation software. Otherwise you run the risk of too many bugs, quirks, poorly thought out or incomplete features. 3) Use a virtual PC VMware ($) or use Oracle Virtual Box (free). You still need to buy a Windows license. That allows you to setup the software on a clean install of Windows and then save that point in time (snapshot). 4) Use snapshots in the Virtual PC If you feel adventurous after creating a saved snapshot, install other software. Use the PC however you want, and when you are done with the click of a button it goes right back to that saved, known good state. 5) Use a Logix PLC Yes, you can talk to other controllers (PLC 5, SLC, MicroLogix, Simatic, Modicon, any major controller you can name) but it is not ideal. PVP+ was designed for Logix and if you don't use that controller then you take away most of the benefits of the PVP+. Same goes for any other PLC. In general use the HMI from the company that designed the PLC, unless you have solid reasons not to. No one would say a PVP+ has a fast startup, is cheap, or pain free. But sometimes you need a Canyonero and nothing else will do.

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