The vibrating wire monitor proposed herein is based on the strong dependence of the frequency of the pinched wire on its temperature. This dependence allows the measurement of a particle/X-ray/gamma-ray beam that deposits part of its energy on the wire. A wide measured temperature range from fractions of mK to hundreds of degrees allows the detection of beam properties at a given position of the wire in space. It also enables preparing profiling of a beam in a large dynamic range by scanning the wire through the beam. This review paper presents information on various applications of a vibrating wire, including the method of resonance target and the use of wire oscillations as a scanner for the profiling of thin beams.