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languages like Python it should be possible to represent LabRAD data seamlessly
using its native counterpart (if available). In statically typed languages like Delphi
and Java on the other hand, an interface to a special data object needs to be
designed that makes the access to the contained data as painless as possible while
still providing good performance. Dynamic data types like Variants can sometimes
be used here to make implementation more natural.
Thanks to Variants, for
example, it is possible in LabVIEW to simply pass any supported native data
structure directly into the Packet assembly functions. Unfortunately, converting
received Packets back into LabVIEW data is much less elegant as it requires
explicit type casting.
Since the LabRAD Protocol specifies target Servers and Settings by ID rather
than name, all APIs should implement seamless, preferably cached, lookup of
the required IDs at runtime. This not only makes the code more readable and
thus easier to troubleshoot, but also facilitates backwards compatible changes to
Servers. To make caching easier, the LabRAD Manager preserves a Server’s ID
across reconnects and provides mechanisms to announce the connection and disconnection
of Server Modules. In addition, IDs can be looked up via the “Lookup”
Setting (ID 3) of the LabRAD Manager (ID 1).
The LabRAD APIs should also seamlessly handle Request IDs. To allow for
pipelining, it is possible for a Client to send multiple Requests to a Server before
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