Thread: RSLinx

Hopefully I'm asking this in the right section.

So I want to write a program to connect to RSLinx so I can communicate with a SMC. Any suggestions on how to go about this? Should I use C or C++ or should I use a different language?

I'm new to programming and this is probably too difficult for my basic programming skills but I am willing to learn. If anyone can point me in the right direction I would appreciate it. Thanks.

You can probably do this in just about any programming language, though C and C++ are both good choices. I'm not familiar with RSLinx, but a quick Google search says it's for talking to Rockwell and Allen-Bradley PLCs and such. I would bet that most of the libraries you find for talking to RSLinx are written in C or C++, so that makes either of those a strong candidate.

I would definitely start with learning your C or C++ basics. A good, relatively thorough beginners C tutorial (a bit out of date, but still mostly relevant) is http://kldp.org/files/c+in+21+days.pdf. Finish the book and work through all the examples before you start your RSLinx code. You should, with some effort and dedication, be able to go through each lesson in just a few hours, finishing the book in just a couple days.

You'll then need to learn about Windows programming, particularly OLE or DDE, so your program can actually talk to the RSLinx program. You will also need to research specifics as to how to talk to RSLinx. OLE and DDE are the generic communication mechanisms (think email or snail mail), while RSLinx speaks a specific language (think German, Japanese) using OLE or DDE. Your program needs to speak the same language as RSLinx and also communicate using the same mechanism.

If the goal is to "get it done", as in there's a school or business deadline for this, I would recommend looking into existing libraries, to minimize your development time. If the goal is fun and/or learning, and there's no time restriction, then awesome! Take your time and do everything yourself.