sniffle:
A Simple Networked Interface to the Full Functionality of Laboratory Equipment

• specify digital and analog signals to be output by the I/O board,
• obtain digital and analog inputs read by the board,
• obtain waveforms from the ditital oscilloscope and, more generally,
• control all of the capabilities of the digital oscilloscope.

At present, the sniffle server is configured to control a platform which pans and tilts a digital camera in response to Web client commands issued via an imagemap. The camera provides real-time video feedback to remote clients via Cornell University's CU-SeeMe teleconferencing system.

sniffle differs from other work in the field of Internet remote control in that it is a modular, general-purpose tool rather than a tightly integrated special-purpose system. It was completed in a short time at low cost in under two thousand lines of code. sniffle thus demonstrates that remote control via the World Wide Web is not an inherently costly or complex problem.