Is Whisker only for Windows?

At present, yes. However, we hope to develop Whisker using a cross-platform tool to allow it to run on Linux and Mac OS X as well, if adequate hardware control proves technically feasible.

Does Whisker run on Windows Vista?

Whisker runs on the Windows NT/2000/XP/Vista family of operating systems. However, there are special considerations under Vista, as follows:

• Whisker should be installed by an administrator (so it can be installed to \Program Files).
• When Whisker is first run, the Windows Firewall should be configured to let it accept incoming network connections (on port 3233). See the Help or the README.TXT file for details on how to do this.
• WhiskerServer should be run as an administrator. See the Help or the README.TXT file for details on how to do this. Failure to do this has two consequences:
  • Whisker cannot write to the HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG section of the registry, and therefore cannot write the hardware configuration. The symptom is that hardware options (digital I/O, displays, audio, touchscreens, etc.) are not properly configurable.
  • Whisker cannot run as a real-time priority process. (This failure is indicated correctly in Whisker v3.0.0 and above, but not in previous versions.)

There are a few outstanding problems:

• Windows Vista implements Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv4), in addition to the previous standard of IPv4. Typically, the Whisker server is on the same computer as the client (behavioural task). In IPv4, the address that means "this computer" is 127.0.0.1. In IPv6, it is ::1. The international standard word to refer to "this computer" is localhost, though loopback was another old common standard. Under Windows Vista, however, localhost refers to ::1, not 127.0.0.1; therefore, all references to localhost only work if the server software in question provides IPv6 communication (::1) rather than, or as well as, IPv4 (127.0.0.1). Whisker versions prior to 3.0.0 do not provide IPv6. Therefore, the solutions are:
  • Run WhiskerServer v3.0.0 and use "localhost" on your clients (this will work via ::1).
  • Edit c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts to remove the line that maps localhost to ::1, leaving just the line that maps localhost to 127.0.0.1; then "localhost" will work (via 127.0.0.1). Note that you will require administrator privileges to edit this file.
  • Edit c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts to add a line mapping loopback to 127.0.0.1; then "loopback" will work (via 127.0.0.1).
  • Use "127.0.0.1".
• Note that this IPv6 issue means that Whisker server versions prior to 3.0.0 will see all clients as "remote", rather than "local". This means you will have to enable Server > Allow non-local machines to control lines on WhiskerServer.
• Some, but not all, third-party digital I/O drivers have been tested with Whisker under Vista. This testing is ongoing.
• Likewise, UPDD v4.1 support is pending a reply from Touch-Base about a problem with their driver library (15/1/2009).

And if you are using old behavioural clients from us (prior to Jan 2009):

• Old Whisker clients defaulted to using the word loopback to mean "this computer". The international standard is "localhost"; use this instead, as discussed above, or use 127.0.0.1 instead.

Is the source code for Whisker available?

Yes; source code for all Whisker components is available on request to customers who have purchased them.

Frequently-asked questions: installation and updates

Whisker is continually updated and improved in response to customer requests. We are in discussion with our new supplier, Campden Instruments to provide an enhanced update service; at present, the supplier will contact all customers as updates become available.

Information on basic installation and configuration is given in the README.TXT file.

Current software version numbers are detailed in the Version Tracker files; there is a version tracker file for each component of Whisker, including the server and all behavioural tasks.

Frequently-asked questions about installation are given in the current Whisker manual, under "INSTALLING WHISKER SOFTWARE" and "HARDWARE INSTALLATION".

Frequently-asked questions: Whisker

The current FAQ list is in the current Whisker manual, under "TROUBLESHOOTING - FAQ".

Frequently-asked questions: tasks (e.g. MonkeyCantab, FiveChoice...)

See the current manuals for individual tasks.

What compiler do I need to compile tasks under Whisker?

We used to use Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0, and (as of 2009) now use Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 (Visual C++ 9). Whisker, the client libraries, and most major tasks have been converted across; a few have not. Conversion to any edition of Visual C++ between those ranges is possible (e.g. VS2005) and fairly simple for the end programmer. The major difference between VC6 and VS2008 is that VS2008 is much more compliant with current C++ standards - though the compiler no longer runs on versions of Windows before Windows XP.

I'm compiling a task and the compiler can't find boost/random.hpp...

Install the public-domain Boost library from http://www.boost.org/.