Sky 10...yeah right

[Bassnut (Fred)]

Was going swimmingly, checking out the new features, too many to mention, thought this is cool, very cool, downloaded it for US$180, ran it, gaud even cooler .

THEN got to the really cool extra PME contol built ins,............ but hey they have to be KIDDING, my Tpoint for windows (purchased with the PME, also an SB product) doesnt work with it (does with Sky 6)!, I have to purchase another version of Tpoint now for US$249 extra, just like that, bingo! .

And whats this ?, US$75 a year more extra extra ?, WTF .

They really are pushing the wrong buttons over there at SB , punks.

[AlexN]

They are doing it because the unfortunate truth is they can, and there is not too much that a PME owner can really do about it... You could switch to other software package that will support the PME (to a lesser extent no doubt), or you could continue to run what will soon become a completely unsupported software set (Sky 6) that lacks the newer features that you probably didn't worry about before you played with Sky X, but now that you've seen them, you want them...

It sucks the big one. No doubt about it.. Its a bit like the idea of paying for oxygen... It would suck, but you'd have to do it..

[Bassnut (Fred)]

Well, yes I will do it now, since Im half way there........

I notice also that pinpoint is now not required, that function is built in, along with a maping app and automaping which is really cool, dont need 3rd party apps like AAG automapper now either, although that was free and very userfriendly.

BUT, you still need pinpoint for DL plate solving, and given I guess most PME users would already have pinpoint it all adds up to just more money anyway, overall.

Sky 10 is now very fast and smooth specially on win7, and the interface is not so stupidly clunky and complicated.

Itll be interesting to see if the $75 a year is required to keep it registered or if its just for upgrades, havent worked that out yet.

[AlexN]

Sky 6 is horrendous when it comes to usability. Perhaps one of the worst I've seen... Functionality wise it was a winner, I can only imagine sky x builds on that.. Time will tell if its worth $75 a year + all the extras... Well.. Time will tell you, and you will tell me...

[Octane (Humayun)]

Fred,

I, too, had a poke around on their site a few weeks ago and couldn't believe, nor understand, why one would have to pay an extra $75 a year. It's like a subscription model, but, you're already paying for the darn thing first!

I hope other astro software houses don't cotton on to this thinking it's a good idea.

I wonder if they've had a huge take up of the new release or if people have been put off?

H

[higginsdj]

I've seen a lot of software go down the subscription model. It seems that they have come to the end of introducing big ticket items that alone convince people to upgrade, that they now 'force' people to upgrade to keep their bottom line ticking over.

[Bassnut (Fred)]

More playing. Its funny, Sky X has flat out stolen a lot of interface features directly off Starry nights (was far ahead there), the feel now is similar. Makes you wonder if they crawl forums and note beitch sessions on comparisons.

I actually wouldnt mind a subscription fee if upgrades were so flash they gave value in return. SB has a way to go to justify that kind of service, but Sky 10 upgrade bodes well so far.

The obvious next step is to provide image capture/guiding and some basic session automation, far too many seperate apps are required now, but thats a big step. Perhaps they should buy out DL (or merge) ;-).

[marki]

Fred they can bloody well leave Maxim alone. I would find another program if it became a subscription model. I can't believe these software mobs get away with half of what they do.

Mark