ICEINSPACE
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Moon Phase
CURRENT MOON
Waning Crescent 5.6%
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13-05-2008, 06:58 PM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: NW Sydney, Australia
Posts: 88
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World Wide Telescope
See http://news.smh.com.au/microsoft-wor...0513-2dnf.html for details.
I haven't looked myself yet but it sounds intriguing even if it does replicate some of what other s/w does e.g. Stellarium.
Steve
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13-05-2008, 07:23 PM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Perth, WA
Posts: 760
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13-05-2008, 07:28 PM
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Canis Minor
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Strangways, Vic
Posts: 2,214
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I had a look at the site and was disappointed to see that I'd have to upgrade my PC to use it. It wants a minimum 2GHz dual core processor and 1, preferably 2 GB of RAM. I think it must run some pretty whiz bang graphics!
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13-05-2008, 08:21 PM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Gateshead
Posts: 2,205
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Saw that.... I am not going to update to dual core.
Like I said elsewhere - PASS.
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13-05-2008, 08:46 PM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Perth, WA
Posts: 1,307
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Plenty of power here..
Downloading. 
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13-05-2008, 08:59 PM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Perth, WA
Posts: 1,307
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Installed fine.
Very nice interafce.
Supports ASCOM
Watching visual/Audio Guided tour of Star and Planet formations in Orion
Sky Image loading quite slow. Not my cup of tea, but interesting none the less
Last edited by leinad; 13-05-2008 at 09:19 PM.
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13-05-2008, 10:01 PM
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No More Infinities
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Townsville
Posts: 9,698
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I have dual core and more than enough power to run this but as with anything Microsoft, it'll probably be as buggy as all hell and will be a big hype job. I've known about this for quite some time and I'm not all that impressed. If it works, great. But I'm not going to hold my breath waiting.
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13-05-2008, 10:57 PM
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Let there be night...
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hobart, TAS
Posts: 7,639
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Downloaded it to my 2GHz AMD Athlon64 running 1Gb RAM and Vista.
It actually runs very well. Installation was perfect - no glitches even when it updated my DirectX instance automatically. The interface is different, but quite comprehensive - smooth-as and actually very slick. Pretty good for a first effort and way better than Google Sky. ASCOM telescope control, location-based real-time views. Pretty quick and no more than 20Mb to download the core engine and basic graphics set.
I'm finding it entertaining to watch people complain about MS at every chance they get because they feel they must. Go boys!  It's evident that there's a mind-boggling amount of work in this, and I can't quite understand people's dismissive treatment of it just because Microsoft Research funds it. Give 'em a break boys - they've recognised astronomers for once and are spending money on us. I, for one, applaud their effort.
It murders Stellarium I gotta say.
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13-05-2008, 11:01 PM
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E pur si muove
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Cape Town
Posts: 494
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But, wouldn't you rather go outside and actually look through your telescope.
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13-05-2008, 11:13 PM
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Let there be night...
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hobart, TAS
Posts: 7,639
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skwinty
But, wouldn't you rather go outside and actually look through your telescope.
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I think you've missed the point. It's cloudy out and I'm in the Southern Hemisphere. I want to have a tour and learn about the Polaris region. I'd have to say this is a pretty good tool to let me do just that.
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13-05-2008, 11:24 PM
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E pur si muove
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Cape Town
Posts: 494
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Omaroo
I think you've missed the point. It's cloudy out and I'm in the Southern Hemisphere. I want to have a tour and learn about the Polaris region. I'd have to say this is a pretty good tool to let me do just that.
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Nope, I dont think I've missed the point. There are a million other things to do when the weathers bad. Besides, this just adds to an existing plethora of on line astronomy software and google whatsits.
But to each their own and let no one detract from that.
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14-05-2008, 12:47 AM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Gateshead
Posts: 2,205
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Omaroo
Downloaded it to my 2GHz AMD Athlon64 running 1Gb RAM and Vista.
It actually runs very well. Installation was perfect - no glitches even when it updated my DirectX instance automatically. The interface is different, but quite comprehensive - smooth-as and actually very slick. Pretty good for a first effort and way better than Google Sky. ASCOM telescope control, location-based real-time views. Pretty quick and no more than 20Mb to download the core engine and basic graphics set.
I'm finding it entertaining to watch people complain about MS at every chance they get because they feel they must. Go boys! It's evident that there's a mind-boggling amount of work in this, and I can't quite understand people's dismissive treatment of it just because Microsoft Research funds it. Give 'em a break boys - they've recognised astronomers for once and are spending money on us. I, for one, applaud their effort.
It murders Stellarium I gotta say. |
It'll probably blow your ADSL download limits out the water if it's all just graphics and high res images...
Like I said .... Pass. Got better things to do with my time.
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14-05-2008, 07:37 AM
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Let there be night...
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hobart, TAS
Posts: 7,639
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian Robinson
It'll probably blow your ADSL download limits out the water if it's all just graphics and high res images...
Like I said .... Pass. Got better things to do with my time.
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With respect, if you're going to complain about something, maybe do some research on the subject first? LOL! ADSL usage appears to be limited to how many objects you tell it to get the hi-res graphics for - i.e. your zoom rate. If you use it as a planetarium to find things you don't really need to communicate at all apart from running server-side catalogue finds. Pretty low-weight searches.
I understand that you have better things to do with your time. You keep telling us.
Last edited by Omaroo; 14-05-2008 at 07:51 AM.
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14-05-2008, 07:44 AM
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an overactive imagination
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Erlistoun WA
Posts: 592
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I'll give it a look-see! I use Stellarium every day and even though it's pretty basic I find it facinating and am learning all the time.
I must not have better things to do with my time....so I'll use that time wisely and learn 
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14-05-2008, 07:55 AM
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Registered User
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 181
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Wwt
Starry Night Pro 6 for me. Great program, ASCOM compliant. If a lot of the stuff I use for astronomy was available for Linux, it would be catcha Microsoft!!
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14-05-2008, 08:12 AM
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He used to cut the grass.
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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Hobart
Posts: 1,235
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I think I will have to criticize it because I only have a Mac and it doesn't run. So naturally the only way I'm going to be able to come to terms with my personal inadequacies is to point out all its faults. Although admittedly that's going to be a bit tricky, given the aforementioned inability to run it. I suppose I will have to make up stuff. As usual.
Sigh...
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14-05-2008, 08:33 AM
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No More Infinities
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Townsville
Posts: 9,698
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Babalyon 5
Starry Night Pro 6 for me. Great program, ASCOM compliant. If a lot of the stuff I use for astronomy was available for Linux, it would be catcha Microsoft!! |
KStars......the planetarium program for the K Desktop Environment under Linux. It'll do everything Starry Night pro 6 will do and it's free. BTW it's ASCOM compliant and it will run all major brands of scope You also have all your image processing software like The GIMP and IRAF and Linux will handle RAW image format natively. No more plugins. Also, if you have a video imaging CCD camera, it has built in software to control those as well.
What's more, it's pretty much virus proof and far, far more robust than Windows will ever be. If a program crashes it doesn't take your whole system down with it. And, it's also faster than Windows. Plus you can tweak it to specifically handle your machine's hardware so it runs even faster
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14-05-2008, 09:22 AM
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Computer tragic
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Cheltenham, Victoria
Posts: 494
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Quote:
Originally Posted by renormalised
What's more, it's pretty much virus proof and far, far more robust than Windows will ever be. If a program crashes it doesn't take your whole system down with it. And, it's also faster than Windows. Plus you can tweak it to specifically handle your machine's hardware so it runs even faster |
Hey renormalised, I believe your anti-Microsoft propagandist twaddle is off topic BTW I started using Apples in 1982 and Linux in 1991 so don't start me up  I'm saying this with a  on my face ok.
By the way the WWT works fine on my non-dual core, < 2Ghz Vista laptop.
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14-05-2008, 09:48 AM
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No More Infinities
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Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Townsville
Posts: 9,698
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Quote:
Originally Posted by programmer
Hey renormalised, I believe your anti-Microsoft propagandist twaddle is off topic BTW I started using Apples in 1982 and Linux in 1991 so don't start me up I'm saying this with a on my face ok.
By the way the WWT works fine on my non-dual core, < 2Ghz Vista laptop. |
Not really...Babs wanted to know about an MS alternative so I gave it to him
It's not propagandist twaddle, it's stated fact. How many viruses around can attack Linux??...very very few. Now, if you were to say backdoors or trojans...just about every computer is vulnerable to a well written piece of nasty
Now that takes me back!!!...The ol' Apple II and IIe, Commodore C64/128 and Amiga, IBM PC XT and AT...geez even the old "Trash" 80's!!! and Microbee's....great old computers I loved the first up versions of the Mac. A great time in computing.
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14-05-2008, 09:59 AM
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Computer tragic
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Cheltenham, Victoria
Posts: 494
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Quote:
Originally Posted by renormalised
It's not propagandist twaddle, it's stated fact. How many viruses around can attack Linux??...very very few. Now, if you were to say backdoors or trojans...just about every computer is vulnerable to a well written piece of nasty |
I'm not even going there
Quote:
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Now that takes me back!!!...The ol' Apple II and IIe, Commodore C64/128 and Amiga, IBM PC XT and AT...geez even the old "Trash" 80's!!! and Microbee's....great old computers I loved the first up versions of the Mac. A great time in computing.
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How about a pc reminiscing thread? A sticky at that
Still have my Trash-80. 8kb and 0.8Mhz of throbbing level 2 BASIC power! Or something like that.
PS: I don't remember seeing you at the AUSOM launch of the Mac in '84... Or were you the guy who asked 'can it play games?' (The answer is still 'no' )
/off-topic
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