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READ.ME
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1986-08-28
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U. S. Naval Observatory
Nautical Almanac Office
Floppy Almanac
Version 1.3P (standard PC version)
Version 1.3C (with coprocessor support)
The Floppy Almanac is a program for MS-DOS based microcomputers
which reproduces the data contained in the major sections of the
Astronomical, Air, and Nautical Almanacs to full precision. The time
span of each edition of the Floppy Almanac is 400 days: one calendar
year plus about two weeks' overlap into each of the adjacent years.
To properly use the Floppy Almanac, you must be familiar with basic
astronomical terminology, coordinate systems, and conventions. You
should be familiar with the contents and use of either the
Astronomical Almanac, the Nautical Almanac, or the Air Almanac,
depending on your particular application.
All of the necessary files for the Floppy Almanac are contained on a
single diskette. The diskette is compatible with MS-DOS releases 2
and above for IBM PC, XT, and AT computers and compatible machines.
There are eight files in this version of the Floppy Almanac. They
are:
FAyy.EXE
STAR1.CAT
RADIO1.CAT
MESSIER.CAT
FA.IN
CATALOG.EXE
SAMPLE.CAT
READ.ME
The first file in the list is the executable module comprising the
Floppy Almanac, and is the only essential file. Its file name is
formed by replacing the characters yy with the last two digits of
its year, for example, FA87.EXE for the 1987 edition of the Floppy
Almanac. It is executed by simply typing the first four characters,
that is, FA87 (or fa87 ) for the 1987 Floppy Almanac or the corres-
ponding codes for other years. The module will then be loaded into
computer memory (this takes about 10 seconds), after which the Floppy
Almanac masthead will appear on the screen followed by the main menu.
The module is completely self-contained and once the main menu appears
the diskette can be removed from the drive; no further disk reads are
required for standard execution.
The other files on the disk are auxiliary files, which are not used
by most applications. Most of these files relate to the optional
facility for redefining the star catalog to be used by the Floppy
Almanac.
Two versions of the Floppy Almanac diskette are available, both
containing the same program and data. One has been compiled to take
advantage of an 8087 or 80287 numeric coprocessor, and one of these
must be installed in your computer to enable it to run this version.
The other version does not require a coprocessor and will not use it
even if your computer has one. The two versions of the "Floppy
Almanac" yield quite different performance: the coprocessor version
is up to 5 times faster than the standard version. The modules of
both versions are of similar size and either version will execute in a
machine with at least 256k bytes of memory with MS-DOS loaded.
Neither module uses any screen graphics -- the monitor and keyboard
are used as a "dumb terminal".
Since the Floppy Almanac is menu- and prompt-driven, the novice user
can usually "feel" his way around its various options and obtain
useful information. One can become fairly proficient in using the
Floppy Almanac simply through a series of trial-and-error runs.
Nevertheless, there is a significant amount of information about how
the Floppy Almanac works which is not obvious but which is quite
important for all but the most casual user. This information is
contained in the paper documentation distributed by the Naval
Observatory with each Floppy Almanac diskette.
The "Floppy Almanac" is in the public domain, therefore no copy
restrictions apply. Your copy may not have originated at the Naval
Observatory, and you may therefore wish to obtain either the paper
documentation or another version of the Floppy Almanac. You may use
the order form below.
We hope you find the Floppy Almanac useful.
Timothy S. Carroll George H. Kaplan
----------------------------------------------------------------------
F L O P P Y A L M A N A C Mail to: Nautical Almanac Office
------- Code FA
O R D E R F O R M U. S. Naval Observatory
Washington, DC 20390-5
Each Floppy Almanac diskette is $20, and includes one copy of the paper
documentation. Additional copies of the documentation may be ordered
for $4 each. Please enclose full payment, BY CHECK ONLY, with this
order. Make checks payable to "U. S. Naval Observatory".
Please indicate the quantity ordered in the boxes:
1986 1987
----- ----- Floppy Almanac 1.3P, standard PC version,
| | | | on 5-1/4 inch DS/DD MS-DOS diskette,
----- ----- with documentation ($20 each)
----- ----- Floppy Almanac 1.3C, for PC with coprocessor,
| | | | on 5-1/4 inch DS/DD MS-DOS diskette,
----- ----- with documentation ($20 each)
----- ----- Floppy Almanac 1.3P, for portable PC,
| | | | on 3-1/2 inch DS MS-DOS diskette,
----- ----- with documentation ($20 each)
----- Floppy Almanac 1.3V, for DEC MicroVAX II,
| | on 5-1/4 inch 400k RX50 diskette
----- (Available December 1986) ($20 each)
----- Floppy Almanac 1.3I, for IBM 370, 43xx, 30xx,
| | on 9-track 1600 bpi computer tape, VM/CMS format
----- (Available December 1986) ($30 each)
- - - - - - - - -
----- Additional copy of paper documentation for
| | MS-DOS versions of Floppy Almanac
----- ($4 per copy)
Amount of check enclosed: $ _________________
Name: ______________________________________________________
Address: ______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
City & state: ____________________________________ Zip: ___________
Country (if not U.S.): ___________________________