Night Owl 6/Night Owl's Shareware - PDSI-006 - Night Owl Corp (1990).iso/007a/star31.zip/STARREAD.ME

Text File | 1991-12-12 | 17KB | 282 lines

                  STARWARE...    version 3.10

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**                                                                   **
**         The graphics in this program are really good!  But...     **
**     room lights will usually totally wash out the effect.  For    **
**     most monitors you will be able to see a lot more of the       **
**     stars, and even see their colors, if you turn off all the     **
**     lights and just use the illumination from the monitor.        **
**                                                                   **
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***********************************************************************
**                                                                   **
**     ORIGINAL RELEASE: 6/2/91                                      **
**                                                                   **
**     BUG FIXES: 6/12/91                                            **
**         Corrected a problem with updating the drawing of the      **
**     constellations.  The calculations were accurate, but the      **
**     shapes were not correct when plotted on the screen.           **
**         Corrected a minor miscalculation of the effect of         **
**     the stars' proper motion in right ascension.                  **
**                                                                   **
**     BUG FIXES: 6/18/91                                            **
**         Sometimes parts of constellations would be drawn          **
**     below the horizon.  This was fixed, but at the cost of        **
**     significantly increasing the size of the code in the          **
**     emulator version: staremw.exe.  It is now compiled with       **
**     the "medium" memory model, and is about 20K larger than       **
**     starware.exe, which makes use of a math coprocessor.          **
**                                                                   **
**     BUG REPORTS: 6/18/91                                          **
**         One user has reported that the mouse cursor does not      **
**     appear on the screen when the auto-sensed default VGA         **
**     mode is used.  When the mouse is moved to the top or the      **
**     left of the screen, the azimuth or elevation is changed,      **
**     so the problem is only in the display, not in the sensing     **
**     of the rodent.  His system uses a Logitech mouse and a        **
**     Video-7 graphics card.  When the program is forced to run     **
**     in mode 10h (the high-resolution EGA mode), everything        **
**     seems to be fine.  I have not been able to reproduce this     **
**     behavior...  If anyone else has similar problems, please      **
**     let me know.                                                  **
**                                                                   **
**     ENHANCEMENTS: 7/20/91                                         **
**         On VERY high-speed machines the time to switch between    **
**     the text mode used by the "variable" menu and the graphics    **
**     mode used to display the sky was much longer than any of      **
**     the other calculations.  Many people didn't mind, but for     **
**     some it was really irritating.  The logic has been changed    **
**     so that the "variable" menu now comes up in the current       **
**     graphics mode; the time delay for mode-switching has been     **
**     eliminated.                                                   **
**         Some users have been confused by the time parameters.     **
**     All times are given in "Universal Time" (that's what the      **
**     UT symbol means in the upper right-hand corner of the sky     **
**     display).  This is the clock time at 0 degrees longitude.     **
**     To translate this to local standard time, figure that one     **
**     hour is equivalent to 15 degrees of longitude.  For           **
**     instance, if the observer were at -120 degrees East           **
**     Longitude (about where Los Angeles is), the local standard    **
**     time would be (-120/15) = 8 hours earlier.  The July 11,      **
**     1991 eclipse peaked on the Pacific Coast at about 2030 UT,    **
**     so people in Los Angeles saw it at about 1230 PST.  (And      **
**     this is further complicated by the fact that California was   **
**     on Daylight Saving Time rather than Standard Time... The      **
**     clocks said it was 1130.)  With all these local               **
**     complications in time-keeping, it is far simpler to use       **
**     Universal Time for all the calculations.                      **
**                                                                   **
**     ENHANCEMENTS: 11/19/91                                        **
**         Minor changes in the function that detects and            **
**     translates the keyboard input were made.  According to        **
**     Microsoft's "Profiler", significantly less time is spent      **
**     reading and interpreting the keyboard.  The casual user       **
**     (including the author!) will be hard pressed to see any       **
**     difference!                                                   **
**                                                                   **
**     ENHANCEMENTS: 12/12/91   (Version 3.10)                       **
**           An "automation" utility was added.  The program can     **
**     now continuously step through time or azimuth, with a         **
**     user-adjustable additional delay between each display.        **
**     (Use CTRL-a to get the automation menu; the time delay        **
**     is on the "variable" (keystroke v) menu.  Hitting ESC         **
**     (or q or Q) stops the automation.)  This is most useful       **
**     on 386 machines with a co-processor or on 486 platforms.      **
**     The time delay is measured in milliseconds; on slower         **
**     machines it probably should be permanently set at 1.          **
**     (On a  10 MHz 286 with a coprocessor it takes 1-3 seconds     **
**     to update the sky; in most cases you'd not want to add        **
**     even more delay!)  On the other hand, on a 33 MHz 486         **
**     the updates can be so fast that its hard to follow the        **
**     changes.  Additional delays on the order of 100-300 msec      **
**     tend to improve the display.  It's also a matter of           **
**     personal preference: try experimenting until it looks good!   **
**           One use for the automation utility might be to          **
**     show the change in the North star location and the shape      **
**     of Ursa Minor. (Set the latitude to 90 on the variable        **
**     menu, then "find" Polaris with the constellation default      **
**     set to "always plot the constellations".  Then select         **
**     "Plus 1000 Years" on the automation menu.)  Another use       **
**     might be to watch the motion of the planets.  (Choose to      **
**     always have to visible planets surrounded by a box, set       **
**     the magnification to the widest possible field-of-view,       **
**     set the date to June 22 and the hour to local noon, then      **
**     "find" the Sun.  Adjust the elevation so that the sun is      **
**     near the top of the screen (if the latitude is in the         **
**     northern hemisphere) and select "Plus 1 Day" from the         **
**     automation menu.  This works best if the constellations       **
**     are  not plotted on each update.)                             **
**           The logic used in drawing boxes around the visible      **
**     planets has been changed (due to feedback from users).        **
**     If a planet is selected by either the "find" procedure        **
**     or by hitting a numerical key (1-9), only that planet         **
**     will have a box drawn around it.  This is useful when         **
**     the sky is being "automated" and you want to follow the       **
**     motion of just a single planet.  The "one-planet-only"        **
**     option can be restored to the "all-visible-planets" by        **
**     hitting Alt-b.                                                **
**           A couple minor bugs were fixed that caused the very     **
**     first sky display to be fouled up on some machines if the     **
**     program had been called several times in succession with      **
**     no intervening programs.                                      **
**                                                                   **
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______________________________________________________________________

                  Thank you for trying STARWARE;
         I hope you'll find it both useful and entertaining.
______________________________________________________________________

LEGAL STUFF

   This set of programs is shareware: it is copyrighted, but may be
freely distributed as long as all the files, including this one,  are
kept together.  (This is my one chance to ask for a registration fee.)
Other than that, no restrictions.

   Also, there are no warrantees or guarantees: the software is being
made available "as is".  It has worked without a problem on DOS
machines from XT-class to i486's, at speeds from 4.7 to 33 MHz, with
and without math coprocessors or expanded/extended memory, but there is
no way to test it on all the possible configurations that might exist.

   Since it is possible to run the program from a floppy disk, prudence
might suggest that this is the way to first try it out.  (It takes a
while to load all the data files when a floppy is used; if it works OK
on your machine when you are using a floppy, you might consider
transferring the files to your hard disk.  Much less aggravation!)

   Every effort has been made to assure that the star database is
accurate and that the calculations are properly done, but it seems to
be a law of nature that bugs will be uncovered if enough people use the
program in enough different ways.  Please let me know if you uncover
one of these critters; I want to make this right!
______________________________________________________________________

SHAREWARE

   I'm counting on the hope that each user who plays around with
STARWARE for a while will think that the shareware fee is reasonable;
it's only $32.00.  If you do think that this is a fair price, please
send a check to:

         Arthur B. Prag
         17357 Hartland St.
         Van Nuys, CA 91406-4416

   I have deliberately NOT included a reminder that pops up on the
screen every time you use the program...  This may be poor business
practice, but that kind of thing drives me straight up the wall!  This
is the only request for support that I'll make.

   In return for your registration, I'll send you a copy of the
STARWARE manual (about 50 pages) which lists all the stars used and
details the assumptions and limitations of the program.  You will
also be put in the database for future upgrades (unless you request
otherwise); these will be made available to registered users for
considerably less than for new users.
______________________________________________________________________

COMPATIBILITY, LIMITATIONS, ETC.

   Please note that (at least in its present incarnation) the program
supports either EGA or VGA graphics, but no others.  In particular, it
does NOT support Hercules (native mode), CGA, or Super VGA cards.  If
there seems to be a demand for Hercules support, this may be added in
the future.  Some kind of Super VGA support will almost certainly be
added, at least up to the 800x600 level; registered users will be
notified when it's released.

   The accuracy of the star calculations is excellent, but the positions
of the planets and of the moon are good for only a few thousand years.
In a practical sense, this only shows up in estimating planetary
occultations of particular stars and in the precise ground track of
eclipses; suggestions on how to improve this and still maintain a
reasonable computation time are definitely solicited!

   There are a LOT of calculations made whenever the sky is updated!
In addition to just worrying about precession (so that only the
coordinate system would have to be changed), the proper motions of the
stars are included, so the relative star positions change also.  If you
have an 80x87 math coprocessor, the updates will go much faster.  The
program will still work without a coprocessor, but you might notice
something of a delay before the new sky is displayed.

   You can use a mouse to select a particular object, or to change the
azimuth or elevation angle of the observer, but a mouse is not required.
A graphics cursor is also provided so that selection can be made using
only the keyboard.

   The program and all the data files occupy only 360-370K of RAM when
running, so expanded/extended memory is not needed.
______________________________________________________________________

INSTALLATION AND STARTUP

   If you have downloaded these routines from a BBS, all the files which
are necessary to run STARWARE are compressed in the STAR31.ZIP file. If
you have received a physical disk, the programs have already been
expanded. There are two main .EXE programs: STARWARE.EXE and STAREMW.EXE;
the first should be used if you have a math coprocessor and at least an
80286 CPU.  The other one ("STAR EMulation Ware") can be used with any
DOS machine.  STAREMW.EXE is larger than STARWARE.EXE, and uses only 8086
commands, so it runs a little slower; if you have a math coprocessor it
will use it, otherwise it will emulate a coprocessor.

   Depending on your system, you should keep only one of these two .EXE
files; the other simply uses up space on your disk.

   The program assumes that all the needed data files are in the same
directory as the main .EXE file: keep them all together.

   To run STARWARE, switch to the disk (or directory) that has all of
these files, and simply type STARWARE (or STAREMW).  The type of graphics
card and the monitor will be detected automatically, and the STARWARE
logo will be presented.  Follow the on-screen directions to navigate
through the rest of the program.  You can view a summary of the available
commands at any time by hitting the F1 key.

   When a sky map is displayed, hitting "v" or "V" will bring up a
"Variable List" menu.  This can be used to make changes in any of the
physical parameters: time, location, etc., and should be used to make
either large changes (e.g., 100,000 years) or very precise changes
(e.g., the latitude of the observer is 34.1563 degrees).  Please note
that all the time parameters are given in "Universal Time": the nominal
time in Greenwich, England.  This includes hours, days and years.  Also
be aware that the longitudes are given in degrees East; this means that
Los Angeles (for example) is at 240 degrees (or -120 degrees, both are
accepted).

   Another very useful command is "f".  This calls the "find" function,
and asks for the name of the object that you want to locate.  If it can
be found, the screen will change so that it is placed near the middle
of the display.

   When you exit the program (by hitting ESC or "q"), the current
settings are saved in the "STARINI.DAT" file; these will be used as the
defaults for the next STARWARE session.
______________________________________________________________________

FINAL THOUGHTS

   I started to develop this STARWARE program several years ago; it was
really just a way to learn C.  As things progressed, it turned out that
it was necessary to learn a bit about assembly language, EGA and VGA
graphics hardware, and an awful lot about astronomy.  (Often at a more
or less "cultural" level: what is the "right" way to draw the
constellations??)

   This has been, and will continue to be, a long-term project.  I've
thoroughly enjoyed developing the program and am very pleased with the
results.  I hope you will be too.

   Questions, comments, bug discoveries, are all welcome.  Please send
them to me at the address given earlier.

   Thanks.