GUIs, GUIs Everywhere

When I was giving the LaunchPad for Model Railroading clinic at the NMRA MER Convention in October, I mentioned that I wanted to come up with a GUI (Graphical User Interface) to enable the LaunchPad to be programmed graphically, without having any knowledge of the "C" programming language.  I lamented that this project would have to wait until after I retired because I did not have the time to devote to it right now.

Well, you and I may not have to wait that long.  I've recently come across several GUIs, either complete or under construction, that allow you to manipulate a LaunchPad without having to program in "C". These GUIs allow you to manipulate a LaunchPad while it is connected to your computer (rather than what I wanted, which would program the LaunchPad to operate stand-alone).  However, they are still useful for model railroading purposes and one of them, being built by Dave Loman, allows you to manipulate a LaunchPad using JMRI.

First, here's a link to Dave's work: http://therustyspike.com/2013/11/05/cmri-emulation-on-a-mps430/ This GUI holds the most promise for model railroaders.  When it is finished, JMRI will be able to manipulate your LaunchPad.  With it JMRI should be able to turn pins on and off.  This will allow the LaunchPad to manipulate signals, switches and other accessories allowing it to be part of JMRI's Panel Pro application.

I stumbled across two other GUIs written by hardware hackers to allow them to manipulate a LaunchPad while connected to a computer.  Both are available via TI's E2E website.  First is ControlWare:  http://e2e.ti.com/group/microcontrollerprojects/m/msp430microcontrollerprojects/665272.aspx  The second is ControlEasy: 
http://e2e.ti.com/group/universityprogram/students/m/students_repository/664591.aspx  

These GUIs add the capability to generate PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) which allows for blinking lights and servo control.  Both of these GUIs also require that the LaunchPad is connected to your computer to work.  This is not as much of a disadvantage as one might expect.  If you want to manipulate things connected to your LaunchPad in real time, you can do so now from a computer.  Want to be able manually throw a turnout, change a signal, move a servo; you can do it from your computer.

There are demonstration videos for both of these on the TI website. I have tried neither of these latter two GUIs, documentation is sparse and they may be difficult to install.  ControlEasy was written by a student.  I'm hoping that the source code for these will be released so that when I start my GUI, I can reuse some of their work.

If you give either of these a try, let us know how they work out.