StevieDvd

A few points to note. Some ASIAir Pro (AAP) users who just want to control from inside their house look for ways to run the ZWO app on their PCs - both Stellarmate & Astroberry can do this. The metal case of the AAP hinders the wifi signal, for some they need to add wifi extenders Regardless of your choice there will be folk here to help out.

Would a test of the cell content length be suitable? For example to test: =IF(LENB(B1)<1, "ignore","use") The "use" text would have the function to do if the data is there, and the "ignore" would be left blank. You can embed IF statements but it does get messy, looks like you need to break your needs into seperate functions.

As Malcom has said, whilst I was typing. this is a user modification, changing the 2.1mm tip to the same connection type that the Skywatcher AZ-EQ5 / AZ-EQ6, EQ6-R and EQ8-R mounts use. It's known as a GX12-2 see https://www.firstlightoptics.com/search/for/GX12-2/ They are not unique to astro so you may be able to get them locally. I'd be worried about the internal connection being OK and wired correctly even before using the correct cable from reputable suppliers like FLO. If you post a picture I'm sure someone can say if it's correct, and hopefully not blown.

There is a usb to serial cable included in the AsiaAir Pro kit, the serial end is 9 pin male. So if you have a cable that fits the handset port on the HEQ5, ending in a 9 pin female you should be good to go.

OK this makes a little more sense to me . You have made a backup disk and used that to create a copy, that's not the same as creating a new sd-card which writes out the boot information. The boot header created was a windows one hence all the files being shown in each partition. How did you create the backup? I'd be interested to see any link explaining this and how it should be used for a restore, as the only ZWO info on backups I've seen indicates using a downloaded image file written to a clean sd-card. That's not to say that a Linux backup is a bad thing to do, done hundreds of Unix & Linux ones for work with no issues but those were normally on the Unix/Linux machines 🙂

It's to do with the partition information and how Windows & Linux store their size & location. When it works you can usually see the boot partion in Windows and the rest as empty/invalid drives on the PC. And the other impact is that Linux does not see the boot settings correctly either. The app used to write the image files to sdcard has to keep up with changes, that's why I like Rufus it gets updated often. ZWO keeping the hardware locked down to it's own devices has resulted in them closing down normal channels to connect to the AAP, it's easier to do upgrades on astroberry & stellarmate when you can connect over the network.

It should create more than one drive letter, though windows won't see the data on any but the d: drive. I use a windows app called Rufus (run as admin) to create my sd cards for Linux, it copes better with sd cards previously created from image files.

The aerial on the Pi is part of the circuit board and has no external connector as standard, a few have modded their pi boards (needs somone with small part soldering skill). So yes poor wifi is normal when using the AAP as the host. Better to add a stronger signal source next to the AAP - my home signal is boosted so can now be used in my garden. Others use TPLink routers etc - some of which will let you connect a short ethernet cable to you AAP to get the best network connections. I had that error before but I only had to power the AAP off and kill the phone app as well and retried it. Did not resort to a new SD card though I'd already created a couple of backups just in case.

I just tried with mine. I connected an ethernet cable to the AAP from my router and booted it up, in the IOS app it shows it is connected to my home network via the 'Wired Ethernet' and gives the ip address. My iphone is connecting wireless of course and can interact with the AAP fine. Are you just using the AAP as host and connecting your phone to it? I reset mine to do the same and tried the network cable on that setup too, it seems to default to a wired network (probably as that's the default of the Pi too)

What's the usual network you use with the AAP? It's trying to update by passing the firmware from your android/ios device across to the ZWO - so they both need to be using the same wi-fi host. As James has mentioned, you may be able to get a good network connection if you boot the AAP with an ethernet cable to your home network and connect your ipad to the same network and retry.

Yes the Canon DSLR will work well with the ASIAir Pro, needs to be on manual setting and Bulb mode - worth a read of the manual for all the settings needed. No other camera make is allowed except the listed DSLR (limited) the same goes for focus motors and filter wheels - it's ZWO or No!

If you have trouble with an INDI based driver it's worth going to the INDI lib site and checking for a solution. For example the drivers for Celestron are not written by Celestron themselves but by the INDI crew - who can obviously debug their own code - https://www.indilib.org/telescopes/celestron.html In their forum thay have given instructions, to people having issues, on adding a debug version of the driver to get more detailed log information and hopefully get a fix sorted. Though to be fair to INDI, if the issue is in the Nextsar protocol they call, then it may not be fixable from the INDI driver side.

Sorry if came across like that it was more intended for any reader contemplating updating the standard focuser then adding a stepper motor that does hold the camera in place well even on the standard focuser. I did want to name and shame any of the other focus motors that don't keep the focus set (without the locking screw being needed), seems like the ones which allow manual focus would need a decent focuser for that option to work.

If you plan on imaging and adding a motor to the focuser, the need to upgrade the focuser deminishes as some stepper motors can hold the camera train weight. I say some as the trend now is for smaller motors, with the usb electronics encased in one unit, and some allow manual focusing to be done (others don't).

I was going to answer this in a little more detail but it's a complex issue to simplify. For those interested have a look at references to ISO 8601 e.g: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboututc.shtml https://www.w3.org/TR/NOTE-datetime Given 2 times (from different locations) in the fullest format I can calculate the number of hours, minutes between those values without knowing the DST rules for those places. This is because the offset is provided for each having the rules accounted for. So in UK in can be +1:00 or +0:00 depending on our DST setting. When your mount asks for a time & date it expects you to give it more details of whether you are in DST period so knows you will have entered the time on your watch and clicked DST yes. Or the equivalent time on your watch and the current UTC offset of 1. In modern computer systems the date, time and location plus the offset, are passed to a standard routine which works out if DST rules are valid for that date and if necessary amends the offset accordingly. And that's the abbreviated version 🙂

Local time is UTC +/- an offset, the offset can change based on a rule such as DST. So for the software to work out local UK time it needs to know the offset and the date hence we are on GMT/UTC now but will be UTC +1 when the clocks change in March.

You don't mention power as you'll need a few different voltages for the Pi (5v) Mount (12v) and DSLR (7-8v as a guess) and the routing for various cables from mount & cameras to the Pi.

A common problem that has errors like this is where the software does not understand the directory names with spaces. To make matters worse if the user selects the directory using a file explorer the code 'could' write the location in a config file with quotes but if the types it it saves without the quotes and at run time gives these errors. Hopefully, these bugs get weeded out quite quick. For example C:/Program Files or C:/Program Files (x86) Sometimes it just needs to have the location in quotes or to use the old short names, you can see these by using the 'dir /x' option in a command window.

In the AAP app you can turn the 12v ports off or on and specify if they are for dew control etc. May be worth a quick check of the settings.

I have 2 of them still being used and like a good mainstream car they are upgradeable and have a lot of extras targetted at them so commonly have adapters etc for the ed80 as standard. If you go down the imaging line and opt for a focus motor (newer ones have a smaller case with embedded usb controller like the ZWO EAF or Deepskydad AF3) your current focuser may not even need to be upgraded.

If it helps there are quite a few imagers who use smaller apeture telescopes like the newer ED72 which gives a wider field of view needed to capure some of the DSO targets. One of the reasons why ED80 users also have a reducer in their imaging train. Other DSO targets are small and need better cameras and preferably more light so the exposure times are reduced. Hence the question about capturing much - you could be referring to the field of view (distant DSO targets not filling your image) or you need to capture more light hence the larger scope part. Your equipment is a good choice and in no way just a beginner setup - the weak link will probably be the imaging camera being a dslr but still a good starter to learn with and get some good images. If you want to do the planets and moon you may want to look at an additonal scope and a planetay camera.

Hi Steve Yes the ASIair Pro (AAP) have the same wifi solution as it's primary use is expected to be a standalone, away from home one. The reach of the wifi is a bit poor as the aerial is a small part of the Raspberry Pi circuit board, which the ally case seems to impair slightly. So not good to use from indoors when the mount and AAP are in the garden. The AAP can be the hotspot or it can connect to your home network - but you will come across a lot of folk who recommend an external wifi extender which can be used at home and/or out & about. There are quite a few happy AAP users here at SGL so feel free to ask questions. Regards Steve

Agree with that mentioned already. So you don't feel that you are using it wrong and not getting the best from it, download one of the free star chart/guides such as Stellarium or K-Stars to get an idea of what would be in view from your best viewpoint and compass direction. You can get then an idea of what you want to see and if worth looking at using a site such as http://www.12dstring.me.uk/fovcalc.php you can set your telescope, eyepiece and the target to look at. It will give you a rough idea if the view will be a pinpoint one or a decent image. And best of all it's all free.

I don't have these any more, I managed to get a pair of new Helios so I gave the Kronos to a fellow SGL member who had popped around to see me. I hope yours are in good condition and collimated as it was a bit hit & miss for me colllimating them - but this was the first and only time I have colllimated a pair of binoculars. Steve

Have you tried a new or reflashed sd-card if you have a spare one, with just the power led on it may indicate a known sdcard issue.