Chip 1999 September/Chip_1999-09_cd.bin/sharewar/cybs32/WHATSNEW.TXT

Text File | 1999-06-08 | 8KB | 176 lines

===========================================================
WHATSNEW.TXT
===========================================================

CyberSky 3.0.1 Shareware Version


-----------------------------------------------------------
WHAT'S NEW IN CYBERSKY 3.0
-----------------------------------------------------------

New and improved features of CyberSky 3.0 include:

- MORE VIEWPOINT OPTIONS. You can view the sky in any
  direction, even toward a point that's below the horizon.
  Double-click a point to move it to the center of the sky
  chart. Or, right-click a point and select the Center
  command on the popup menu that appears. Use buttons on
  the View toolbar to scroll the sky chart. Use the arrow
  keys by themselves to scroll the sky chart in large
  steps, or with a Ctrl key to scroll in smaller steps.

- MORE ZOOM LEVELS. You can view the sky at zoom levels
  between 1X and 8192X. Use buttons on the View toolbar to
  zoom in or out. Or, press the PgUp or PgDn key. Or,
  right-click the sky chart and select the Zoom In or Zoom
  Out command from the popup menu that appears. Use the
  Zoom Level command on the View menu to set the zoom level
  to a specific value. Use the 1 through 0 keys to set the
  zoom level to 1X through 512X. Use the mouse wheel to
  zoom in or out if you have a Microsoft IntelliMouse or
  similar mouse with a wheel.

- SEARCH CAPABILITY. Search for a star, constellation, deep
  sky object, solar system object, or point. Searching for
  an object moves it to the center of the sky chart, even
  if it is below the horizon. Searching for a solar system
  object also locks the object to the center of the sky
  chart. Use the buttons on the Search toolbar to quickly
  search for solar system objects.

- MANY MORE STARS. CyberSky includes 80,179 stars to
  magnitude 8.5, almost 10 times the number of stars
  included in previous versions of the program. Stars are
  displayed using smaller symbols, but you can select to
  use larger symbols if you wish. The limiting magnitude
  value for stars can be adjusted automatically as you zoom
  in or out. Stars can be labeled with their magnitudes.

- MANY MORE DEEP SKY OBJECTS. CyberSky includes 472 deep
  sky objects to magnitude 8.5, almost five times the
  number of deep sky objects included in previous versions
  of the program. Deep sky objects are displayed in correct
  sizes and orientations whenever possible. The limiting
  magnitude value for deep sky objects is independent of
  the value for stars, and this value can be adjusted
  automatically as you zoom in or out.

- SAVE BITMAP COMMAND. The Save Bitmap command on the File
  menu allows you to save sky charts as 8- or 24-bit
  bitmaps. The Bitmap Setup dialog box allows you to select
  a standard bitmap size, useful for making Windows
  wallpaper, or to specify another set of dimensions.

- MORE PRINTING OPTIONS. The Page Setup dialog box,
  displayed when you use the Print or Print Preview command
  on the File menu, allows you to specify the sizes of
  margins around a printed sky chart, and whether to print
  in black and white or in color. The sizes of margins are
  specified in inches or centimeters, depending on the
  preference specified under Regional Settings in the
  Windows Control Panel.

- MORE TOOLBARS. The View, Animation, Chart, and Search
  toolbars give you easy access to many of the program's
  most frequently used features. The positions of all
  toolbars are remembered between sessions.

- DATA BAR. The panes in the Data bar display the local and
  universal time and other information about the sky chart.
  Click a pane to access a dialog box or perform a related
  command. For example, click the pane that displays the
  local time to display the Local Time dialog box. The
  position of the Data bar is remembered between sessions.

- POINTER BAR. The panes in the Pointer bar display the
  equatorial coordinates, horizontal coordinates, and
  constellation under the mouse pointer. Click the
  equatorial or horizontal coordinates pane to turn the
  equatorial or horizontal coordinate system grid on or
  off, or the constellation pane to access the
  Constellations dialog box. The position of the Pointer
  bar is remembered between sessions.

- CHART MODE OPTIONS. Use the Atlas Mode command on the
  Chart menu to align the sky chart with the equatorial
  coordinate system. Use the Horizon Mode command on the
  Chart menu to align the sky chart with the horizontal
  coordinate system.

- OBJECT DISKS. Solar system objects are displayed as disks
  with correct sizes, orientations, and phases whenever
  possible. You can see the moon move across the sun during
  a solar eclipse, and can observe transits of Mercury and
  Venus. You can also see the phases of Mercury and Venus
  as these planets orbit the sun.

- GALILEAN SATELLITES. The four Galilean satellites of
  Jupiter, called Io, Europe, Ganymede, and Callisto, are
  displayed whenever you zoom in to view the planet at 256X
  or higher magnification.

- SATURN'S RINGS. The rings of Saturn are displayed
  whenever you zoom in to view the planet at 1024X or
  higher magnification.

- OBJECT PATHS. Use the Object Paths command on the Chart
  menu to display the paths of solar system objects across
  the sky. The positions of objects along their paths can
  be marked and labeled with the date and time.

- LOCK COMMAND. The Lock command on the Animation menu
  allows you to lock the most recently selected or searched
  for solar system object to the center of the sky chart.
  You can also right-click on a solar system object and
  select the Lock command on the popup menu that appears.

- LOCALIZED DATE AND TIME FORMATS. Local and universal
  dates can be entered and displayed in month/day/year,
  day/month/year, or year/month/day format, and local times
  can be entered and displayed in 12-hour or 24-hour
  format. The formats used are based on the preferences
  specified under Regional Settings in the Windows Control
  Panel.

- SEASONS DATA DIALOG BOX. The Seasons Data dialog box,
  accessible from the Data menu, displays the local times,
  universal times, and Julian dates at which the four
  seasons of the year begin, as well as the duration of
  each season.

- TWILIGHT DATA DIALOG BOX. The Twilight Data dialog box,
  accessible from the Data menu, displays the local times
  at which astronomical, nautical, and civil dawn and dusk
  begin and end, and the times at which sunrise and sunset
  occur. This data is displayed for the three previous
  days, the current day, and the three following days.

- LUNAR PHASES DATA DIALOG BOX. The Lunar Phases Data
  dialog box, accessible from the Data menu, displays the
  local times and Julian dates at the beginning of new
  moon, first quarter, full moon, and last quarter phases.

- COPY BUTTONS. The program's data dialog boxes contain
  Copy buttons that allow you to copy the data they display
  onto the clipboard. After the data has been copied onto
  the clipboard, it can be pasted into an editor or word
  processor, and then saved to a file or printed.

- POPUP MENUS. You can right-click on an object or point in
  the sky chart to display a popup menu. The menu may be
  used to move the object or point to the center of the sky
  chart, view data about the object, lock the object to the
  center of the sky chart, zoom in or out, or turn full
  screen mode on or off.

- ANGULAR SEPARATION DISPLAY. You can display the angular
  separation between two points on the sky chart by using
  the mouse. To measure an angular separation, move the
  pointer over the first point, click and hold down the
  left mouse button, drag the pointer to the second point,
  and then release the mouse button. The angular separation
  will be displayed in the status bar until another message
  takes its place.