* Switch on laptop and wait to boot - no username or password required.
* Double click on ''Shortcut to APD Count Plotter'' icon on Desktop.
* When plotter window opens, under ''VISA resource name'' in the bottom right of the window, '''select ''ASRL1::INSTR''''' from the pull-down menu.* To start counting, '''click on the small white arrow ''' at the top left to start plotting the APD counts.
* To stop plotting, click on the red button. To rescale the plot, click the red button followed by the white arrow.
The quality of the fibre alignment is gauged by the count rate recorded with the arc lamp switched on (for a steady light source). As of January 2015, you should expect ~80,000 counts/sec with the arc lamp switched on.
[[File:apdplot2.jpg]]