Software of the Month Club 1997 April

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Coeli (TM) Electric Planisphere Planispheres are simple but wondrous, and come in small and large sizes. If you are unacquainted, the device is no more than two concentric discs, the lower printed with a star map centred on the local zenith, the upper - the dial - with a substantial segment cut away. This permits partial visibility of the former and can be rotated according to time and season to reveal the sky's present or coming aspect. Coeli will perform this function and more. It is Coeli's starting point. COELI is Latin for 'the sky', as I expect you knew. To be more pedantic, it literally means 'the heavens', plural. If you were to describe Coeli as no more than a visual front end for the Yale Catalogue, you would be doing Coeli an injustice. Coeli is a planisphere. And there is nothing more useful than a planisphere if you are intent on learning the sky. Think of it as your indoor observing tool - the 'dry run'. Coeli is a simulation of the stars in their courses as seen from Earth, and has the capacity to transform you into an expert on the skies. Installing and running Coeli Let's get the technical requirements out of the way as quickly as possible. Coeli's primary requirement is an IBM-compatible PC. It is virtually guaranteed to run on anything better than, or equivalent to, a 486 DX2 with SVGA and 1 Mb of video RAM. Ideally, you should be running MS Dos 6.0 or later. Of course, it'll probably work on SVGA 386s with Dos 5.0, and it certainly flies along on 586s running Windows 95, once the program Properties have been correctly set. A P133 with Diamond Stealth 2 Mb (TRIO S3 chipset), for example, runs Coeli with no problems under Microsoft's newest operating system when Scitech Display Doctor is also installed (see footnote for details). Because we have used the VESA standard, a further hardware requirement is a VESA-compatible Super VGA. Coeli offers various video modes, so if the preset mode (800x600x256) doesn't set, please change to another (see below). Coeli's video modes are as follows: 0) 320x200 (VGA) with 256 colours ( Not recommended - last resort only!) 1) 640x400 (SVGA) with 256 colours ( Excellent if the others cause eyestrain ) 2) 640x480 (SVGA) with 256 colours ( The SVGA common denominator ) 3) 800x600 (SVGA) with 256 colours ( Unsurpassed. What Coeli 3 was designed for. ) 4) 1024 by 768 pixels (SVGA) with 256 colours ( ditto) 5) 1280 by 1024 pixels (SVGA) with 256 colours ( ditto) 640 k of base RAM will be needed. Since Coeli's shareware version loads all stars into conventional memory, please ensure you free as much as possible, just as you might for games. SmartDrive does not have to go, in fact Coeli will load its stars and world map quicker with SmartDrive enabled. Try to load as many operating system files as will fit into upper memory. See your Dos manual or a decent Dos handbook for how to do this if you are unsure. Coeli's registered version uses extended memory (up to 64 Mb) and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory's database of more than 250,000 stars is already in preparation for it, so register now for more news! Coeli takes advantage of an 80x87 maths co-processor if available, and performance is considerably degraded if one is not present. All DX PCs possess an 80x87, as do Pentiums. After extraction, Coeli's essential files comprise the following: COELI.EXE ( Coeli's program file: this is what you run ) COELICAT.001 ( Coeli's current star database - editable ) COELIKEY ( Coeli's key-guide - will be useful to print) WORLD.ASC ( World map data in ASCII format ) COELICOL.MAP ( Coeli's colour palette data ) GREEKLET.FNT ( Font data for Coeli's Greek alphabet ) COELI.TXT ( You're reading it. Other WP formats included ) KEYGUIDE.TXT ( Coeli's comprehensive online guide. Printable ) ( Please consult PACKING.LST for the complete list of files ) Installation Coeli cannot be run straight from HD floppy or CD ROM. To instal Coeli, just follow these simple steps: 1) first create a new directory on your hard drive from Dos or Windows. We suggest you call the directory COELI-3, but of course anything will suffice. To accomplish this from the Dos command line you would type the following: MD COELI-3 In Windows, you would double-click the File Manager icon and then select Create Directory from the File menu. 2) Copy all the files from your distribution media into the new directory. 3) Switch to the new directory and unpack the main archive according to your supplier's instructions (it will probably have a .ZIP or .LZH extension). From the Dos prompt, you might proceed as follows (assuming your distribution medium is a floppy disk currently in drive A, the supplier's archive is called COELI.ZIP, and your hard disk is labelled drive C): COPY A:\*.* C:\COELI-3 ( copy from floppy ) CD C:\COELI-3 ( switch to new dir) PKUNZIP COELI.ZIP ( unpack archive ) 4) Your Coeli package is contained in a self-extracting file called COELI379.EXE. Simply run this like a normal program. All the Coeli files will be reconstituted, and you will then be able to delete COELI379.EXE from your hard disk, as it will have served its purpose. NOTE: none of the foregoing steps will be necessary if you received your package on a diskette with COELI379.EXE in the root directory unarchived. If such is the case, you will probably have received a program called INSTALL.BAT which, when run, will automate the installation described here. 5) If you have not already done so, install your VESA driver by typing its name. If it loads without error, you'll be home and dry and all you will need to do is start COELI at the Dos prompt or from inside your favourite shell, either as part of a batch file or by itself. Coeli should run under Windows 3.1 too, but more slowly. Please note that you should always install a VESA driver prior to using Coeli. A universal VESA driver may have been provided on the same disk volume on which you acquired Coeli. Otherwise please see the end of this manual for suggestions on how to obtain one. Coeli 3 will not function without a VESA driver! If your system is not equipped with a real time clock (but what PC isn't nowadays?), you should set the correct time via Dos or Windows before starting Coeli. Coeli assumes the system time to be your local time, and computes Greenwich and Sidereal in relation to it. It is thus rather important to get it right. That also goes for the date. There are facilities for entering zone correction via the command line and within Coeli itself, of which more later. Command Line Options Because Coeli will be used on different computers in widely differing time zones, it will need to be set up optimally for your specific circumstances. Rather than use configuration files, Coeli 3 accepts options typed on the command line. You can enter them at the Dos prompt, but setting them permanently within a batch file is the most convenient method. (again, if you are not sure, consult a good Dos guide on how to accomplish this). Essentially, to run Coeli, you just type its name at the prompt, thus: C:> COELI Press [enter] and Coeli now runs, or tries to, with all its preset internal values. Unless you have a dedicated copy, the default values will be as follows: Video mode: 800x600 256 colours ( Coeli's mode 3 ) Stars Loaded: All stars ( declination 180 degrees from North/South ) Extra star-names: No. ( put a Y on the command line if you would like these loaded) Location: Greenwich (London) Zone-correction: Zero (daylight-saving is presumed applicable at appropriate dates) The example location we shall now set up will be Lahti, Finland, lying at 60 degrees 58 minutes north latitude, 25 degrees 40 minutes east longitude, and with a time zone correction of 2 hours (ahead of Greenwich, but Coeli will work this out for itself). Since we discovered our machine was not capable of displaying 800x600 resolution, we will enter one we know it can handle: 640x400 ( Coeli mode 1 ), and we want only the stars we can be sure of seeing from Lahti, so we will instruct Coeli not to load stars with a declination below about 120 degrees zenith angle ( we will thus be sure of getting every Yale star our sky area contains). In addition, we would like Coeli's 150-odd extra star-names to be loaded. To accomplish the above, we would type the following: C:> COELI 1 Y 120 Lahti Finland 60 58 N 25 40 E 2 The parameters are each separated by a single space, and the order in which you type them is vital. This is the order: [Video] [Star names (Y/N)] [Zenith angle] [Locale] [Country] [Lat - deg] [Lat - min] [N or S] [Long - deg] [Long - min] [E or W] [Zone] NOTE: if you have registered Coeli, you will have a dedicated copy. Your home circumstances will have been internally pre-programmed and therefore you won't have to bother about the command line unless you specifically wish to change something. If you need to modify isolated parameters, then use the 'dummy character' [*] ( asterisk ) for values you do not wish altered. If the parameter to be changed is the first (video mode), you need only enter this; if the second, only the first and second; if the third, only the first, second, and third etc. If you wanted to set the video mode to 1 and nothing else, you would merely type coeli 1 But if you needed to alter the longitude and nothing else, you would have to type something like: coeli * * * * * * 23 21 W One more example: C:> COELI 2 N 180 Buenos_Aires Argentina 34 36 S 58 27 W 4 The feature to note is the use of the underscore for spaces within place names. Using a batch file, you type exactly the same as at the Dos prompt, but you only need do it once initially. Afterwards, typing the name of the batch file at the prompt will load and run Coeli for you with the correct parameters. But you have probably got the idea by now, so let's proceed to the program proper. 'Full of Stars...' Once Coeli has faded out its titles, what first appear are, or ought to be, stars. They are processed by Coeli as they are loaded in from file, taking a maximum of 20 seconds on a 486 DX2 and less than 6 on a Pentium. During this period you also get a chance to check your location settings and to watch your memory ( the bottom figure) diminish as the stars (upper figure) increase. For the capacity to load the entire first-level database of over 9000 stars, please take a few moments to register by pressing [r]. Press the [SPACE] bar during the loading process if you think you have sufficient stars for your purposes. This is sometimes useful, saving time if you merely want to check the sky's general aspect or test your knowledge of the brighter stars and constellations. Planetary animations will also proceed faster the fewer stars you have loaded. Finally, what you see before you is the entire celestial sphere for the preset location ( Greenwich, if you acquired Coeli from a library; your very own home if it is a personal copy), with South at the bottom of your screen, East at the left. Capella will be the initial focus for northern observers and Canopus for the southern hemisphere. Stars plotted in dark green lie below your horizon: they have set, not yet risen, or may never rise at your position. Click on one using the <right> mouse button to find out. Display the time by pressing [t] ( repeatedly to cycle through Local/Greenwich/Sidereal/none.) Coeli requires no elaborate instructions, which is why we're keeping this all rather discursive. It's best to plunge in and try things out. Just press the [h] key for a quick list of Coeli's functions, or avail yourself of our comprehensive key-sensitive help system. A prominent feature of Coeli is its online Guide. All you need do is start Coeli as already described. When the stars finish loading, or at any point subsequently, simply press the [CTRL] key whenever you require information on the function of a particular key or key-combination. Either wait for the prompt (about 2 seconds) or immediately press the key(s) whose operation puzzles you. If you're unsure even of that, press [a] to access the top of the text and then page down through Coeli's comprehensive Key Guide. You'll discover over 6000 words of help and tips on Coeli's inner workings. The Guide, called KEYGUIDE.TXT, can also be read externally and/or printed out. Coeli's virtual Earth revolves in real time, and the apparent motion of the stars is from left to right when facing south. The optimal star population for Coeli's shareware edition at present is between 3 & 6 thousand from Yale's total of 9000 odd, and this number results in an update roughly every 2 minutes. Coeli's default celestial projection is an azimuthal equidistant one, centred on your zenith. It is the type of display used by planispheres the world over, so it is in good company. Three additional azimuthal projections are now available - just press [F2], [F3], or [F4] to see what's on offer, or read the relevant entry in the Online Guide. When you gain a little more experience using Coeli, you'll want to begin experimenting with contrasting viewpoints. Start by pressing [H] for a horizon view of the southern sky. To traverse through the 360 degrees of the compass, use the [left/right] arrow keys, pressing [ENTER] to redraw the stars to the new viewpoint. [Z] will return you to a zenith view, but at the new line of sight you traversed with the arrow keys. By default, [a]uto-resolution of stars is switched on. What this means is that you only begin to see the dimmer stars as you increase your resolving power (change to binoculars / telescope), in imitation of reality. Coeli's initial magnification is negative in order to encompass the entire sky. Zoom to zero magnification to receive an impression of the sky as seen on a clear night by the naked eye. For Coeli's representation of the sky, realism has been the watchword, and we think the ideal has been at least partially achieved. Colour is the key. Why do the developers of most of the PC's astronomy Applications persist in the belief that stars are white against the backcloth of space, or assume that we don't particularly care whether they are or not? - Do they imagine a star's essence can be ignored? Because the essence, the 'key' to a star is its colour, linked intimately to its spectral class. Astronomers have given all the brighter stars a colour index, and Coeli's palette is based on it. So, if you see a deep crimson in Coeli, you can be almost certain that it is an M, or a piercing white an A, or an orange like Arcturus or Aldebaran a K. Not that this may matter to you, but it will to many. Observe the true heavens on a crystal night - each star has its tint, each planet its hue, albeit cast over with tropospheric blue. Coeli itself provides these keys for tampering with colours: [B] , [D] , and [R]. [B] brightens (lightens) the palette uniformly, giving a washed-out effect, and finally washes colour out completely. [D] achieves exactly the opposite, darkening - and thereby deepening - all the colours. Unrealistic, as if seen through sunglasses, but you may find it a change. It at least reveals a star's underlying 'character', subleties that the brightness may have hidden. Inveterate stargazers and stellar observers will recognise that Coeli is meant to be viewed to full effect under subdued lighting conditions. It is preparatory, if you like, to the 'real thing', and the human eye takes at least ten minutes to become fully dark-adapted. Coeli is not going to make the situation trickier than it already is! The command line gave you one way - the most precise - of setting your geographical position. The Location Browser (world map) is another. Perhaps you would like to see the heavens as Amundsen may have seen them after finding Scott's camp? Press [l] to accomplish this feat. Just use the mouse to move the monocle about the continents and oceans and click the <left> button when you find your desired spot. You will be instantly returned to the skies and the constellations' altered prospect will greet you. Note: if you were centred on a northern star, and you then choose the southern hemisphere, or vice versa, chances are you will be on the 'edge' in a 'never rises' region. Just zoom out and re-centre. [z] does what it says: zooms you in (or narrows the field of view, like a pair of binoculars or a telescope), displaying the magnification factor as you go. Try this on Albireo, Izar, Castor, Mizar and many others. They will eventually resolve as true doubles, imitating reality! [x] widens the field, and zooms you out. Coeli automatically resolves stars for you in proportion to the magnification, like real binoculars: the bigger the objective glass, the more stars you will see and the brighter the more brilliant ones will appear. Conversely, the more extremely your field narrows, the fewer stars will be seen, because Coeli's database is restricted, unlike the sky's. By the way, at zoom factors beyond about 16x, be wary of artifacts - strange results of the computer's internal representation of numbers. These will eventually appear, since we have not limited the magnification in Coeli. Just don't overdo it! Perhaps the [a]uto resolution feature merits a bit more elaboration. Firstly, if you disable it, you will have to add and brighten stars manually via the keys listed on Coeli's [h]elp screen. This is long winded, but the best way to achieve the most impressively realistic starfields for the given magnification, and to derive the most personal satisfaction. We all see the sky in a slightly different way and are affected by different facets of it. But for quicker and yet still fairly realistic resolution, the preset values are quite good. Keep it automatic until you come across a field which you truly deem worth perfecting. Use [F] to find a specific constellation. The group of stars will be spotlighted for you. Clicking on 'Constellation - not designated' will always return you to a normal display. [f] will bring you facilities for finding individual stars, either by Bayer, Flamsteed, variable star, or common name reference. In general here, the <left> button sets the constellation and the <right> button designates the star. Both buttons must be pressed in turn to initiate the search. Flamsteed and variable-star designation may necessitate more than one press of the <right> button prior to setting the constellation with the <left>. Stars may also be searched for by common name: Coeli has almost 200 of these recorded, and you may add more if you've the inclination. There is also a file of extra names whose inclusion you may specify on the command line, bringing Coeli's potential total to more than 300, but please bear in mind that adding more names will further restrict the RAM available for the stars themselves. To search for a star by its common name, first highlight and then click the entry 'Common names...' displayed at the end of the constellation-list. Input the initial letter - as you are prompted to do - and a list of stars with that initial will appear. Narrow the search by adding letters until a unique name is highlighted ( 3 or 4 letters is generally enough). [backspace] will delete characters already entered. If you've an urge to flood the screen with names, then simply backspace until there are no more letters on the line. Press [enter] to confirm your choice, [esc] to abort the operation. Above all, Coeli is a point-and-click introduction to the skies, and the mouse-monocle its most useful instrument. Use the monocle to encircle a star, then click the <left> button for a short display of the star's name and designation as follows: The Greek letter plus I.A.U. abbreviation (Bayer nomenclature) or, failing this, the Flamsteed number plus I.A.U. abbreviation. Finally, for dimmer stars, a Yale Catalogue number will be given. If the star has a common name this will be displayed underneath. You should assume the last star clicked on to be the focus of most operations you perform subsequently. If you clicked on, say, Betelgeuse half an hour ago, went outside for a quiet smoke, any later zooms and unzooms will centre Betelgeuse in your display. Using the [c]entre key on a series of stars is another way of 'walking' across the heavens: the stepping-stone method. Incidentally, clicking on 'empty' space will clear all text displays and banish the monocle, effectively providing you with a rather wonderful screen saver. The Celestial Sphere modeled by Coeli revolves in real time, updating itself without your intervention, miracle of miracles! Ever yearned to see a heliacal rising of Sirius on an unexpectedly clear southeastern horizon when all the zenith is thunderous overcast? Coeli plots the moment of its rising, so effectively you're permitted to observe it twice - first on Coeli's virtual heavens as seen from beyond our atmosphere, and then outside in the strangely silent dawn cold where Sirius twinkled ominously red for a fleeting instant in the atmospheric turbulence of sea-level. Incidentally, if the relative positions of some stars begin to appear a little scrambled (as they may do during frequent search, rotate, or zoom operations), simply press [space] for a full recalculation of all altitudes and azimuths. The [n], [s], [e] and [w] keys will achieve similar results, while simultaneously orientating you to one of the principal compass points. In any event, Coeli's continual internal calculations will eventually get around to returning every star to its correct position. The <right> mouse button will get you what the left button gets plus a more comprehensive information readout as follows: A full expansion of the rather cryptic Bayer nomenclature. Eg. Omicron Ursae Majoris for 'o UMA'. A great help if you are new to astronomical conventions. The full Latin name for the constellation, followed, if applicable, by the English translation. Bare catalogue numbers, although they may lie slap in the centre of, say, Orion, will have no constellation associated with them. This will be cosmetically remedied in a future release. The brightness (apparent magnitude) and luminosity (absolute magnitude), based on the Yale Catalogue parallax value. If the star is among the 100 brightest, this will also be indicated. The star's approximate distance in light years (LY), again computed from the parallax values in the Yale Catalogue. You may assume the lower numbers are about as accurate as we can get, but please take anything over about 150 LY with a pinch of salt - they may be reliable. Extreme uncertainty will always be signalled. More than 1000 LY for Polaris means just that: more than 1000 (could be 2000, 3000 or anything beyond). You will occasionally notice huge discrepancies ( take Deneb for instance). And you can of course edit any low parallax values to yield more acceptable results. Don't say we didn't warn you! There doubtless exist more accurate figures, but Coeli 3 hasn't access to them. All values are computed from Yale Catalogue data. At the bottom-left, you will see the terrestrial readout, the most important parts of which will be the rising, setting, and transit times for the currently focussed star, its altitude, azimuth, right ascension, and declination. The local (L), Greenwich (G), or local sidereal time (S) will appear below if you have switched on the display. If a star is being tracked, a 'T' indicator will flash here too. Useful extensions to the information displays now include sunrise/sunset, dawn/dusk/hours of darkness, solar and lunar apparent and equatorial coordinates, as well as the phase of the moon. Switch this solar info on or off with [S]. Setting the [i] key will cause all chosen readouts to be shown continuously, until you cancel them with [i] again. In other words, your display of stellar data will not thenceforth be banished by screen-updates. Recommended for use in conjunction with the rise/set/transit alarms. The Trouble with Coeli... Coeli has been thoroughly tested and found to work faultlessly on the following PC systems: Compaq LTE Elite 4/40C 486 notebook with 4 Mb RAM, Paradise SVGA with 512 k video RAM. Olivetti PCS 44/C 486 with 8 Mb RAM, Cirrus Logic CL GD5428 SVGA with 1 Mb video RAM. Meisaku Pentium 133 with 16 Mb RAM, TRIO S3 (Diamond Stealth) with 2 Mb video RAM. (European configured systems) Micron Pentium 90 with 32 Mb RAM, Diamond Speedstar 64 graphics card with 2 Mb video RAM. (U.S. configured system) We hope Coeli started and ran for you first time without any problems. If not, you have our sympathy and deep understanding. Don't worry. Coeli may have treated you to a system-reset the first time, but this will have been due merely to the vagaries of 'standards', or lack thereof, in the big bad world of the PC. Did you load the VESA driver? ( UniVBE is an excellent one, available through the sources listed in the footnote.) Right. You did load the VESA driver before attempting to run Coeli. Perhaps your PC's video/graphics board is not VESA compatible? Check with your PC manuals if you still have them. Coeli likes most to run on a 486 DX or higher, with SVGA graphics (preferably 800x600 resolution) and positively needs 256 colours. Maybe it's time to upgrade? Perhaps your system hasn't enough video RAM for the mode selected. Change to a lower mode with [*] ( see Command Line above), or upgrade your video memory to 1 Mb or more. ' Coeli works, but the display flickers when performing zoom/centre/unzoom operations.' This indicates that the current mode is supported by your driver, but does not offer paging or, if it does, is applying the wrong VESA 'standard'. If the flicker annoys you, change to another mode, acquire a different VESA driver (ie. SDD53.ZIP), or upgrade your video RAM. ' Coeli's display appears fractured, with the left-hand part on the right, and vice-versa, but otherwise functions okay.' A quirk of your particular VESA driver. Try another of Coeli's video modes (640x480 is usually a safe bet), or better still, change your VESA driver. (UniVBE is an excellent universal VESA driver and, if not on the disk volume on which you acquired Coeli, will be available from most libraries, bulletin boards, and the Internet. It's shareware, so don't forget to register once you have obtained your copy.) ' Coeli basically functions ok, but the display 'jumps' during map updates and text sometimes overwrites itself...' This paging or bank switching glitch is connected with your underlying graphics hardware. Your video card's own BIOS may be slightly non-standard and/or bugged. The simplest solution is a) always to use the UniVBE VESA driver which lets you b) bypass your PC's VESA BIOS with the -i switch. ( see UniVBE's own documentation or type UniVBE -? at the Dos prompt for more information.) ' The screen display was totally scrambled, chaotic, and/or the monitor uttered strange whistling sounds.' We're not joking: switch off immediately and don't try that mode again with the same video configuration. ' Everything was fine for a while, but then the PC locked up quite unexpectedly, and I had to reboot. ' Oh dear. Sounds like a peripheral or TSR conflict, quite common with all the various software drivers the PC traditionally has to put up with. Your VESA driver is itself a TSR ( a program which stays resident in memory while others are running ), as are Dos utilities such as MSCDEX, SmartDrive, Himem.sys, EMM386 etc etc. The only advice we can offer is to try different configurations in your AUTOEXEC.BAT or CONFIG.SYS, or else boot relatively clean ( see a good Dos guidebook or guru on how to do this!). Shareware: definitions Uniquely, shareware distribution allows you the chance to try software before buying it. If you try a shareware program and continue using it, you are expected to register. Individual packages differ on details - some request registration while most require it, at the same time specifying a maximum trial period. With registration, you might get anything from the simple right to continue using the software to an updated program shrink-wrapped and boxed with glossy manuals. Price, as always, generally determines the final packaging. Copyright laws apply to both shareware and commercial software, and the copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions. Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality. (In both cases, there are good programs and bad ones!) The main difference is in the method of distribution. The shareware author specifically grants the right to copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or to a specific group. Some authors require written permission before a commercial disk vendor may copy their shareware. In the early to mid '80s when shareware was in its youth and adolescence, the precise concepts had yet to be formulated and authors tended neither to demand payment nor invoke the law. It was then as now a system based on honour, but back then it was far more an offshoot of programming enthusiasm and a desire to share. By the nineties we'd had Thatcherism and terms like 'professional', 'enterprise' and 'capital' were at a premium. That outlook has, for better or worse, now filtered through to shareware programmers, who were once mere enthusiasts, but who are now fully fledged professionals with their own umbrella organisations such as the ASP. Today, with the rise of the Internet, even corporate multinationals have seen the benefits of shareware distribution, the only differences being that they call their packages 'trialware' or 'evaluation software' rather than good old honest 'shareware', and a high proportion of 'shareware' authors have jumped on the same bandwagon. Distinctions are becoming blurred, but please do not make the mistake of equating shareware with the commercial demo: there is a world of difference. True shareware is, or should be, fully - and continuously - functional. Above all, remember that the term shareware defines a distribution method rather than the nature of the software itself. You should find an application suited to your needs and pocketbook, whether it be shelfware or shareware. The shareware system simply makes fitting your needs easier, because you can try before you buy. And because shareware overheads are negligible prices are often low, or at least lower than the equivalent shelfware products. Shareware offers the ultimate money-back guarantee: if you don't use the program, you don't pay for it. If you do use it, however, you are expected to bring out your wallet in just the same way as you would for a more conventionally marketed product, whatever its type. ( Please see the file SHR_WARE.DOC for a fuller treatment of the shareware concept and marketing system. It also contains suggestions for further reading. ) Share without Wear Using Coeli beyond the decent (60 day) period allowable for evaluation is a clear infringement of several U.S. and international laws, but let's not delude ourselves that the vast majority won't be doing just that. On the other hand, if you've every intention of registering you can be content and confident in the knowledge that you will gain and the majority will lose. The others, ultimately, get only the 'nag screens'. Registration brings many benefits, not the least of which will be a sensation of warm altruism accompanied by a clear conscience. Some of the features setting Coeli's registered version apart from your shareware copy are: The Sky Quiz(TM), total personalization, complete absence of reminder screens, and the capacity to load the entire first-level database of over 9000 stars without memory problems, and the complete Messier Catalog in ImageIcons. Coeli is not finished: what program ever is? So if you get in touch, doing the decent thing and registering, Swimming Elk Software will keep in touch with you, informing you of the latest additions as they see the light of day. And Coeli is still in a phase of rapid development. Bug-reports and suggestions for improvement will not go unheeded. Your feedback will never be more valuable than right now. In return for your registration and any suggestions or criticisms you might have, Swimming Elk Software will send you a personal (dedicated) copy of the latest version of Coeli with the initial observer slot pre-programmed with your name, home location and startup preferences. It will arrive complete with the integral Sky Quiz(TM). Thenceforth, you will be advised of major Coeli updates and be uniquely eligible for our exclusive offers. You may also contact us by post or E-mail at any time after registration with problems and queries concerning the inner workings of Coeli. Swimming Elk Software welcomes any pre-registration enquiries you might have, even if their sole motive is to confirm to yourself that we actually exist. A simple postcard or e-mail with your name and address will suffice to get you a reassuring reply, along with details of some exciting new incentives. We undertake to answer ALL Coeli-related correspondence, whether it concerns registration or not. Payment Alternatives ---------------------- * Registering Coeli costs 20 pounds sterling ($34 U.S.) Payment might be in the form of a sterling cheque drawn on a UK bank (made out to R.Hughes), any major credit card, International Postal Money Order, IRCs, or even the equivalent at present rates in your own hard currency. Regrettably, we must charge a handling fee if payment is in non-sterling currency or IMO, bringing the total to $36 U.S. at the current exchange rate in whatever other tender you decide to send. If paying by PERSONAL CHECK, as opposed to banker's check, in non-sterling currency, please add another $3, bringing the total to $39 U.S. It costs us more in bank charges to handle these items. This surcharge also applies to orders by CREDIT CARD (see below for details) A final alternative is 140 Finnish marks, to which handling need not be added if payment is in cash or any cheque drawn is on a Finnish bank. If you wish to make an electronic transfer of funds (hard currency), please take note of the following account details: 1) National Westminster Bank PO Box 2403 8-11 Pavilion Buildings Brighton BN1 1DP United Kingdom Sorting code 60-30-09 Account no. 00435465 Account holder R.W.J.Hughes 2) Merita Pankki OY 1519 Lahti-Aleksi 5 Lahti Finland Account no. 151950-15736 Account holder Roger Hughes If you decide to wire funds to our Finnish bank or order by credit card online, you may E-mail your completed registration form to Swimming Elk's Internet address (as a MIME attachment, for example). This is by far the fastest method of receiving your registered copy of Coeli, since we have online banking and are always informed immediately a credit card payment is cleared. We will of course check for the arrival of funds the moment we receive your e-mailed form. Order by CREDIT CARD via PsL ---------------------------- CREDIT CARD ORDERS ONLY - You can order with MC, Visa, Amex, or Discover from Public (software) Library by calling 800-2424-PsL (free inside the U.S.) 713-524-6394 or by FAX to 713-524-6398 or by CIS Email to 71355,470 or by Internet Email to 71355.470@compuserve.com or online from Coeli's own Web site (see below) If calling from outside the U.S. don't forget to prefix the correct international code to the telephone numbers! You can also mail credit card orders to PsL at P.O.Box 35705, Houston, TX 77235-5705, U.S.A. THE ABOVE NUMBERS ARE FOR CREDIT CARD ORDERS ONLY. THE AUTHOR OF THIS PROGRAM CANNOT BE REACHED AT THESE NUMBERS. When ordering, please quote item/product ID 14900 ( Coeli - Electric Planisphere ) Order by CREDIT CARD via ShareIt -------------------------------- This solution is tailor-made for our European customers. ShareIt! takes worldwide orders online by Visa, MasterCard, EuroCard, American Express, or Diners Club. Just navigate to one of the following using your Web browser: http://www.shareit.com/programs/100041.htm http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/coeli/onlreg.htm and follow the signposts, or telephone +49-221-2407278 or fax +49-221-2407279. THE AUTHOR OF COELI CANNOT BE REACHED AT THESE NUMBERS - THEY ARE FOR ORDERS ONLY! ShareIt! also takes credit card orders by post at: Reimold & Schumann Internet Services GbR Jahnstrasse 24 50676 Koeln Germany When ordering from ShareIt! please quote program/product ID 100041 - Coeli Electric Planisphere Any questions about the status of the shipment of the order, refunds, registration options, product details, technical support, volume discounts, dealer pricing, site licenses, non-credit card orders, etc, must be directed to Swimming Elk Software Manskiventie 1031 16790 Manskivi Finland or via the Internet to Swimming.Elk@sci.fi or through CIS at 106217,2576 To ensure you get the latest version of Coeli fast, PsL and ShareIt! will notify us the day of your order and we will ship the product directly to you (an e-mail MIME attachment is an option). So please send your registration/customization form to us here at Swimming Elk Software either electronically, online, or through the post. To sum up, the following payment methods are accepted: Non-sterling equivalents are given in U.S. dollars. METHOD TOTAL COST 1A) Sterling currency (cash) 20 pounds UK 1B) Sterling cheque (personal or banker's) 20 pounds UK 1C) Sterling electronic transfer (to UK bank) 20 pounds UK 2A) Non-sterling currency (cash) $36 U.S. 2B) Non-sterling banker's check/draft $36 U.S. 2C) Non-sterling personal/business check $39 U.S. 2D) Non-sterling electronic transfer $36 U.S. 3A) International Money Order $36 U.S. 3B) International Reply Coupons $36 U.S. 4A) 140 Suomen markkaa 140 Fmk 5A) Credit card order via PsL $39 U.S. 5B) Credit card order via ShareIt! $39 U.S. Aside from the possible handling fee all else (postage, media etc) is included. You have only to press the [r] key, and a registration facility is available from within Coeli itself. Here, you may set out your preferences for a personalized copy, enter comments and criticisms, and prepare/print out a registration form. We could also come round to your door and collect it, but that might be taking service a bit too far... ;-) ************************************************* Maybe you'd like to register online right now? ************************************************* - Just point your Web browser at: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/coeli/homepage.htm and follow the link to the special secure order forms of PsL and ShareIt. Alternatively, you could simply print and then fill out REGISTER.FRM, which should be amongst the files you received with Coeli. If you cannot find this, a simple letter along with your registration will suffice. ( Don't forget to include any preferences you may have for personalization! Only the most unreasonable requests are refused...) We recognise that in these times many cannot afford even shareware prices, particularly students, state pensioners, the unemployed, and denizens of what we quaintly refer to as the Third World (including former Soviet and Eastern Block countries). If your circumstances happen to fall into any of these areas, simply include a signed declaration to the effect and enclose just HALF THE REGISTRATION FEE*. We will consider it encouragement, pure and simple, and be honoured to serve you. Thank you. Coeli 3.7 - Current 'Features' or Coming Clean After extreme zooms (20x or more), you may occasionally notice whimsicalities in subsequent centring/unzooming operations. The easiest way out of this is pressing [HOME] to return all magnification (and other) settings to their initial state. Remember, we warned you not to overdo zooms, preferring to leave you the freedom to resolve close binary stars at the limit. Registration reminders ('nag screens') and their associated delays will of course no longer be present in your own dedicated copy of Coeli once you register. If you feel we've omitted anything indispensible to you personally, or to your habitual observing circumstances, please don't be too shy to let us know. A final note on 'getting in touch'. You will find our various addresses displayed quite legibly here, on Coeli's loading screen, and whenever you press the [h] key for help. So why not exercise your fingers, the postman, and your undeniably fertile mind by writing us a LETTER... Or if you're lucky enough to possess a modem and an Internet account, why not send us some E-mail? We're always pleased to hear from anyone who has tried or is using Coeli. I assure you once again of my sincerest intent to respond, and continue to respond, to all Coeli-related correspondence. Roger Hughes Swimming Elk Software Manskiventie 1031 16790 Manskivi Finland E-mail to: Swimming.Elk@sci.fi _______ ____|__ | (R) --| | |------------------- | ____|__ | Association of | | |_| Shareware |__| o | Professionals -----| | |--------------------- |___|___| MEMBER Ombudsman Statement This program is produced by a member of ASP. ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442 or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY THIS SOFTWARE AND MANUALS ARE SOLD "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES AS TO PERFORMANCE OF MERCHANTABILITY OR ANY OTHER WARRANTIES WHETHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED. BECAUSE OF THE VARIOUS HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE ENVIRONMENTS INTO WHICH THIS PROGRAM MAY BE PUT, NO WARRANTY OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE IS OFFERED. THE USER MUST ASSUME THE ENTIRE RISK OF USING THE PROGRAM. ANY LIABILITY OF THE SELLER WILL BE LIMITED EXCLUSIVELY TO PRODUCT REPLACEMENT OR REFUND OF PURCHASE PRICE. (For the full disclaimer, we would direct you to the file WARRANTY.DOC included with the Coeli software package.) * The best universal VESA driver is undoubtedly UniVBE from SciTech Software. If you don't already have a copy of UniVBE, it can be obtained easily from the following sources: The Public Domain and Shareware Library (PDSL) Winscombe House Beacon Road Crowborough East Sussex TN6 1UL United Kingdom Just ask for disk number 003813, where it will be found among several other graphics utilities. PDSL's catalogue describes it as the Universal VESA VBE v.4.3, 'a small TSR providing the latest VESA BIOS extensions for most SVGA cards on the market' Here are some numbers for PDSL: Tel. 01892 663298 Fax. 01892 667473 BBS (8,N,1) 01892 661149 / 667090 / 667091 Or, if you have a modem, try one of these: World Wide Web : http://www.scitechsoft.com Internet/FTP : ftp.scitechsoft.com Compuserve : GO VESA (file library 12) America Online : Keyword VESA Finally, SciTech Software's own direct mailing address is: SciTech Software 5 Governors Lane, Suite D Chico, CA 95926 USA Tel. (orders only) : 800-4UNIVBE : 800-486-4823 Main & Technical Support: 916-894-8400 Fax 510-208-8026 ooOOoo THE PROGRAM COELI (TM) AND ITS DOCUMENTATION COPYRIGHT (C) Roger Hughes, Swimming Elk Software, 1995, 1996, 1997. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. UniVBE is Copyright (C) 1993-1997 SciTech Software. All other registered trademarks and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. * Surcharges apply ooOOoo