Version: CVS (using KDE KDE 3.1) Installed from: Compiled From Sources Compiler: G++ 3.2.2 OS: Linux I was thinking... It would be nice to have a couple of little sliders (think "Kmix") that would allow the user to quickly (i.e., bypassing the setup/configuration menus) decrease/increase the number of stars/objects shown. True, we can totally disable object /types/, but perhaps a slider to allow the user to increase/decrease the minimum brightness of the objects shown. Move it to the left, fewer objects shown and those that are are bright objects/naked eye objects; move it to the right, more objects shown, those that are shown are from brightest (naked eye) down to the dimmest (Kitt-Peak required ;-) ). A detail-level slider, in other words - How detailed do you want /your/ night sky? This could add a touch more configurability... say I'm in the mood to only look at easy to spot things, for example, I have a couple of children with me... Slide it to the left, shows major stars, comets, nebulae, galaxies, whatever that would be easy to not only find in the scope, but also be easy to see with the naked eye (or easy to find in a finderscope/binoculars). Later on, kids in bed, my collegiate friends and I have a contest to see whose scope can view the dimmest objects... slide the slider right! Another wish, but I'll not make a new report because I'm not sure if it already does this or not, is satellite tracking. Of course, given many satellites' fast orbits, it may be more useful to plot satellites expected within, say, the next 60 seconds to 10 minutes, and perhaps show a yellow arrow pointing at its point of ascent over the horizon. This list (as well as list of stars, comets, whatever) could be synced with the list(s) in the Autostar handbox so that only those objects that the autostar has in it are shown (then again, this would be unnecessary, since the handbox needs not know the object since the kstars program can give autostar the actual coords to go to - but for satellite tracking, this might still need to be done since they track differently from stars.). Just some thoughts CJ
This is an interesting idea. What you are really asking for (I think), is an easily adjustible magnitude (brightness) limit for all objects in the display. Currently, only stars have an adjustable faint limit. Well, actually it has two faint limits. First, there is an absolute brightness limit, which can be set in the View Options window. As you point out, this isn't very convenient. However, there's also an additional faint limit for stars that adjusts itself automatically as you zoom in and out (i.e., zoom in, and you'll begin to see faint stars that were not visible at lower zoom settings). I think this is an even better way to handle faint limits than having an actual slider, because it mimics our experience with the real sky. If you're zoomed all the way out, that's like looking with just your eyes, so you should only see very bright objects. Zoom in a bit, and it's like looking through binoculars, so you should see more. Zoom in all the way, and you should see as deeply as a large telescope. So, I propose to amend your wish to: Add a faint limit for all objects (not just stars), which automatically changes with the zoom level.
Subject: Re: Wish: "Detail Level" sliders in toolbar; Satellite tracking Quoting kstars@30doradus.org from Tuesday 29 July 2003 06:29 pm: ks:> ] So, I propose to amend your wish to: Add a faint limit for all ks:> ] objects (not just stars), which automatically changes with the zoom ks:> ] level. Not what I was thinking, but this /is/ your program, not mine ;-) I'm just running my thoughts by you, and I'm only one person. I leave it to the userbase as a whole to decide. Also, I know stuff like this isn't exactly easy to do, and it's not like I'm paying for the software (although, it would certainly be worth the money), so I'm certainly not complaining about it... ;-D Perhaps if you see why I think of this: the idea came to me because often I will want to identify something that I see in the real sky and sometimes there is just too much stuff on the screen (and if I don't know what the object is, I don't know whether to turn off stars or solar system objects or deep sky objects....). By the same token, when I do this, I usually only do so for about 30 seconds, so I don't want to go through a bunch of menus for (although I could - this is purely a convenience thing and I leave it up to the vote of the other users). I could set the config to show only brighter objects, but then I have to zoom in to a particular section of the sky to see what dimmer objects are available to look at (which I prefer to be able to see at full out zoom, or wherever I have a horizon to compare to). It's just a convenience factor, and nothing more. The software is just fine as it is ;-) Another thought, that I just realized (thinking about zooming in and out) is that the cardinal directions only show up on the horizon... yet the horizon isn't always visible. Sure, I could zoom out all the way to see it, but: what if there was a narrow readout (narrow as in height, but possibly width too) that has a simulated compass to show what direction you're pointed in? Not just a number to show the exact heading currently pointed, as that would remove the ability to mentally approximate the field of view. No, what I'm thinking here is like having a horizontal line, with little vertical tickmarks and the numbers at every 30 degrees or so - just like a compass. It could be placed at either top or bottom center (maybe even in the middle of the toolbar, or perhaps as a moveable module) so as not to be in the way of the main view. There is also a possibility of a vertical "compass". Perhaps one to show degrees above horizon (viewing) and one to show the Y-axis of RA/Dec coordinates... Ah, reading over this, I get another idea: what about a movable crosshair that will read out the RA-DEC/ALT-AZ coordinates right next to it? Okay, I'm just brainflooding right now... Granted, a seasoned astronomer would know the direction at a glance, but I'm a n00b at it ;-) and I'm sure I'm not the only one... Just a few thoughts and purely conveniences at that ;-) Sorry for the long msg CJ
Subject: kdeedu/kstars/kstars CVS commit by harris: Added a Zoom-dependent faint magnitude limit for Deep-sky objects, similar to what we already have for stars. Note that this is in the 3.2 Planned Features list. With this change, fainter Deep-sky objects are not visible unless you zoom in. This makes the zoomed-out sky look more like what you can see with your eyes, and the zoomed-in sky more like a telescopic view. If you prefer the old behavior (all deep-sky objects drawn all the time), just set both parameters to the maximum setting (16.0). As with stars, the zoom-dependent limit is controlled by a pair of magnitudes: the draw limit when zoomed in and when zoomed out. Widgets to adjust these parameters have been added to the ViewOpsDialog. These new options have also been added to the ScriptBuilder. CCMAIL: kstars-devel@kde.org, 61682-done@bugs.kde.org M +4 -0 kstars_options_handling.cpp 1.37 M +3 -0 kstarsdata.cpp 1.91 M +3 -0 kstarsdcop.cpp 1.15 M +4 -0 kstarsoptions.cpp 1.40 M +1 -0 kstarsoptions.h 1.35 M +215 -58 opscatalog.ui 1.5 M +7 -1 scriptbuilder.cpp 1.17 M +12 -2 skymapdraw.cpp 1.34 M +27 -1 viewopsdialog.cpp 1.51 M +3 -0 viewopsdialog.h 1.19