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Posts Made By: Darrell Fichtl

November 20, 2004 04:41 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Remoting the scope

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

Just an FYI:

I wanted to remote my Meade 10" 200LX GPS to the backyard of my new home. I'll be putting a conduit under the house and then I'll place another from the house to the site. I figured it will be just over 100' so I purchased cables 150' long.

The USB extender came from Eagletron, Inc and cost $175. That included a USB four port expander. The RJ12 cable came from Mycableshop.com and cost $22.

I have tested both cables out and the USB extender recognized the camera immediately and the scope controls worked like a dream through the RJ12 cable.

So far a complete success and well worth the money. I'm now shopping for a LPI for the finder scope. That will use the second port of the four port USB expansion unit.

I'll be trying the system out in the driveway of the house I'm currently in till ours is built within the next week. I'll post further on the updates as I get them.

Darrell

November 24, 2004 05:11 AM Forum: CCD Imaging and Processing/Solar System

AstroStar Suite.

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

I thought that the software that came with the DPI would be just fine BUT there are some problems.

1. To connect to the focus and slew controls on the image mode you have to drop the connection in the telescope side of the program.

2. To use the remote hand controller you have to drop the connection that you have on the image mode.

3.The camera is lost every third or so time you try to use it, and has to be reinstalled. (Alex McConahay add)

4. The image processing program cannot open some of the files that the camera takes. (Alex McConahay add)


Come on Meade - we're controlling the same damn thing - focus and slew! Why can't you integrate the controls into one slot and dump all this switching around?

Anybody got any suggestions for a replacement software?

Darrell

November 27, 2004 10:03 AM Forum: Pet Pics

Brutus

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

He's been gone almost a year now but not forgotten by a longshot.

Darrell

November 30, 2004 02:36 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Re: Want a good laugh?

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

Keep in mind guys, although this picture may seem silly, the predictions that we're making today will be just as silly 30 years from now!


Darrell

December 1, 2004 03:19 AM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

Re: ALERT: Do Not Pay to Name a Star

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

I think all of us already know that but there are many people who do not.

One of my very good friends wife brought him a star about five years ago. He really enjoyed the gift. It had a beautiful certificate that was very impressive.

Needless to say I'm not the one that going to tell him it was a fools folly.

If others enjoy what we feel is a folly let them be. I'm sure not going to be the wet blanket.

They probably feel the same way about some of the things that we do! Let's face it; spending several hundred dollars for a 1/20th wave diagonal when you have less than a 1/4 wave eye is ridiculous!

Darrell

December 5, 2004 05:53 PM Forum: Coronado-Lunt-DayStar Solar Filters

Re: Aperture fever??

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

Shame on you John! Preying on the weak and helpless. grin

Hope you find a taker. I'd like to have one also BUT I've spent too much on the rig already.

Darrell


December 15, 2004 05:30 PM Forum: Eyepieces

Re: If they made it, would you buy it?

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

I wish that Orion made their ED eyepieces larger than 25MM. That would be a BIG help.

Darrell

December 15, 2004 05:38 PM Forum: Off Topic Discussions

Sage Advice

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

We live in a hard water area and my wife goes absolutely crazy when the sun comes through the windows and shines on our clear glass shower doors. They have streaks and spots all over them even though she works very hard to keep them clean. When the sun is not shining on them, they look fine.

Several weeks ago someone had a similar situation and complained about dust specks on the mirror in his telescope. He said that when he shines a light down the tube he can see dust all over the mirror and wondered what he could do.

One of the answers that came back was, "Don't shine a light down the tube."

Unfortunately we can't stop then sun from shining through but I guess it's, "Accept the thing you can not change."

Darrell

December 22, 2004 12:56 AM Forum: Religion

Hell's Chemistry

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

Subject: Hells chemistry

The following is supposedly an actual question given on a
University of Washington chemistry mid-term.
The answer by one student was so "profound" that the professor
shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, of course, why we now have the pleasure
of enjoying it as well.

Bonus Question: Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic
(absorbs heat)?

Most of the students wrote proofs of
their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas cools when it expands and heats when it is
compressed) or some variant .

One student, however, wrote the following:

First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time.
So we need to know the rate at which souls are moving into
Hell and the rate at which they are leaving.
I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to
Hell, it will not leave.
Therefore, no souls are leaving.
As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the
different religions that exist in the world today.
Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of
their religion, you will go to Hell.
Since there is more than one of these religions and since
people do not belong to more than one religion,
we can project that all souls go to Hell.
With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the
number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially.
Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell
because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature
and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has
to expand proportionately as souls are added.
This gives two possibilities:

1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at
which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell
will increase until all Hell breaks loose.
2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of
souls in Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until
Hell freezes over. So which is it?
If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my
Freshman year that, "it will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you", and
take into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then
number 2 must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is
exothermic and has already frozen over.
The corollary of this theory is that since Hell has frozen
over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is
therefore, extinct... leaving only Heaven thereby proving the existence of a divine
being which explains why last night, Teresa kept shouting "Oh my God."

THIS STUDENT RECEIVED THE ONLY "A"

December 23, 2004 12:38 AM Forum: Home Observatories

Brain Picking Time.

Posted By Darrell Fichtl

I live in a development in Arizona controlled by some fairly strict CC&R's. I have the OK to put up a Robo-Dome and maybe something a little bigger. I don't think a roll off roof outhouse would pass muster and besides they don't look so hot.

I currently have a 10" Meade 200LX GPS that I'm in the process of remote controlling. Later my wife wants me to move up to a 14" but that's too big for a Robo-Dome. (Yeah, I know guys, cry your hearts out; She's a great wife!)

I'd like to keep the dome price under $4000. Has anyone built anything out there that looks like a small dome? I need some suggestions. Got pictures? Got plans?

HELP!!!!

Thanks,
Darrell