Synchronicity

WiFi is great but people tend to forget it's really for when you can't be plugged in. My house wifi has 4 phones, 3 laptops and a tablet that all use the WiFi. TVs, media server, NAS and security cameras would add even more if I hadn't cabled them all. Add to that the 100 year old solid walls of the house and I'd be fighting for every packet of data even when everyone else is asleep! 😄😄 The pier is only 3m from the house at it's closest point - carefully positioned so I can see Polaris but not the two nice shiny LED streetlights, one either side of my house! I hadn't thought about beefing up the earthing but I guess the I can get a benefit from the wire armour being tied down at both ends. I will be running a signal earth anyway to avoid any issues with induced noise etc. All the best Michael

I'm using a USB extender cable at the moment but the permanent cable route is far to long and I want to avoid wireless if I can. That's exactly what I need. I saw and replied to Shimrod before seeing your post but both devices will do the trick. Thanks Michael

That is exactly what I need - thank you! I'm already using two Pi 4s - OctoPrint and OpenMediaVault but I think I'll get my setup working as is before tackling Astroberry - one step at a time! Thanks Michael

Thanks for posting but I really do mean something that can combine the USB connections to my devices and then transfer the daya down a CAT 6 network cable. I've got hub similar to the one you show and feed the data down a USB extender cable at the moment but I'm doing a permanent installation to a pier and the cable route is way too long for USB. All USB to network adapters I can find seem to be for adding wired network to a computer using a USB port so I don't know if they would work directly to devices. Michael

Thanks folks but I did mean 'wired' ethernet. I have been using a USB extension cable up to now but I'm putting in a pier and running a data cable from it to my home hub so just need something to interface with the devices. WiFi is great but I live in a 100 year old house with solid walls that seriously limit coverage. I hadn't thought of looking for some sort of 'point to point' Bluetooth or WiFi device where I could have the receiver on the wall outside and wired from there so I'll look into that. All the best Michael

Hi I'm working on remote access for my setup and am looking for a USB hub which can connect my cameras, mount etc to the laptop via ethernet. There are quite a few on Amazon etc but most seem designed to plug into your computer to get extra USB plus wired ethernet. An example on Amazon Does anyone use such a device which doesn't need connectedto a computer, or know of one they'd recommend? Thanks Michael

There are quite a few online courses including this from the Open University. https://www.open.edu/openlearn/science-maths-technology/comparing-stars/content-section-0?active-tab=description-tab Michael

There's no way I'm trying to explain bringing welding equipmet (or a welder!! ) home - my wife already tolerates me spending lots of time with "...whatever the hell all that stuff you play with is..." so I'm not rocking the boat 😃. A friend thinks a blacksmith he knows might help so I've drawn up plans for something more traditional (I like playing with Freecad anyway) Thanks especially to tooth_dr, Davey-T and Starflyer for pictures and information. I notice that most piers have a mount adapter plate fitted but I thought I'd achieve the same effect with an extra plate at the top cut out to suit the mount. All being well I get one made for my EQ5 and another sized for an EQ6 head which I plan to upgrade to at some point. Edited to add it has a 'Slenderness Ratio' of 43 from Kevs spreadsheet using 150mm diameter 6mm walled pipe. All the best Michael

That's exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for. I don't know anyone who could do welding, which is why I started on the path of getting plate cut and bent for self assembly. I'll price my idea anyway and ask around to see if anyone I know knows anyone who knows someone 😉😉 Do you have a sketch or plan for that which you'd share? Thanks Michael

Thanks for the input everyone. Concrete is out due to the location. The base effectively replaces a slab at the edge of our patio so the pier must be easily removed if not needed any more. I'm already thinking about how I fix plant baskets onto it for disguise purposes 😀 I had thought about a pipe but the designs I found browsing all had it burried in the concrete so again, not easy to remove. My budget is less than the £400 a new manufactured unit will cost but I'm thinking that might be where I end up! I'll pop a 'wanted' ad on and see if anything comes from that Thinking cap back on... Michael

I can't help with your question but your images aren't showing in the post - gives a Gmail 404 temporary error. Michael

Hi all I've been playing at designing a pier for my setup and am looking for some input. I'm thinking about a box section as in the picture, mainly because it there's some local fabricators that do cutting and bending, though I don't know about costs yet. It's 150mm square and 1150 high excluding the top piece. The material choice is presumably aluminium or stainless steel and I'm wondering how each of these fare outside after a few years. This will be in a prominent position in the garden so I don't want i looking grotty after a couple of winters. I've got an EQ5 pro and am likely to upgrade to an EQ6 at this location - any more and it would be an obsy elsewhere so a new design all round. Would 8mm steel or 10mm aluminium be strong enough to avoid flexing? I know that'll be a risk with a bolt together design but hope well tightening and maybe some loctite in the threads will mitigate that. Thanks for any input Michael

I did a runthrough on the setup and took some pictures - see below. It is useful to know that you can just plug the controller and handset together, connect the power supply and do these checks rather than have to build everything. The SynScaninit app is well worth having as it confirms what you type in. https://synscaninit-2.soft112.com/ If you get to the end of the setup and the Polaris position and hour angle agree with the app then your settings are correct. If the mount still doesn't behave it must be an electrical issue with the control box, wiring or motors. If the polaris data doesn't agree then there's an issue with data entry or you have a faulty handset. I've started using APT so don't need my handset at the moment, happy to let you borrow it if that would help? All the best Michael

For completeness, in APT Camera tab, hold down Shift and press Connect. This brings up a "Select Camera Type" dialog box were I select CCD:ASCOM Camera. Click OK and the Ascom Camera Chooser comes up where I selected QHYCCD-Cameras_Capture Select Properties and that brings up the that then brought up the dialog box with an option to "Remove Overscan Area". This can also be started by navigating to the DriverConnect32 folder and running Ascom.Driver.Connect.exe Hopefully this will help someone in the future... Michael

Solved. I'll post details later just in case it helps someone down the line...

New to me QHY10 OSC camera and I've downloaded APT v3.84 to use with it. When I connect to the camera with EZCAP te images are fine (trees cos I'm trying to set up for tonight. When I connect APT and take an image it is like the second one below - the first one is from Pixinsight after debayering. I know the camera delivers data ok from EZCAP and I think the issue is something to do with the 'overscan area but I can't find anywhere to change a setting in APT to adjust that. Any help much appreciated! Michael #

Me too! I love reading about Gina's work and would like to try a few ideas of my own. I could probably afford to build a giant printer but couldn't afford the accessories required - like the divorce when my wife saw it! 😁😁 Michael

I wouldn't normally resurrect an old thread but it seems to make sense with this one... Does anyone have any other podcasts to add to the list of recommendations? I’ve just started listening to Sean Carroll’s Mindscape podcasts after watching this lecture on quantum mechanics. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqQBIMgcVDM Thanks Michael

Thanks Jim This would be very much a boys toy to see what can be done. There are a few things I'd like to print and I'd like to experiment with the CNC for making decorative bits for woodwork. From your comment I'm guessing you have something more substantial than I'm thinking of. All the best Michael

I hope it's ok to hijack this thread for a bit and ask about combined 3d printer / CNC / laser etching machines. I stumbled across an article about the forthcoming SnapMaker 2 and see that there are a few manufacturers doing these. I've also found some articles on how to add the functionality to a standard Creality CR-10. Does anyone have any experience or recommendations? A cast iron justification for needing one would also help as my wife is somewhat sceptical 🙂 Thanks Michael

Nice! I'm heading there in January, would you mind sharing the settings you used? Thanks Michael

Brian Cox's Infinite Monkey Cage is well worth listening to, it covers all sort of subjects, lots related to astrophysics etc. I got into it a couple of years ago and am now listening to it from the start - 120 episodes. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00snr0w Michael

Clear Outside said it was to be a clear night so I got set up and set about tonight's challenge - Polar Alignment. I've struggled to do this properly since I got the scope, lack of visibility of Polaris being the major issue as I set up close to my house facing south. I've now got the camera, mount and guide camera running through a USB hub and have managed to set up far enough from the house that I could see Polaris. It took me a while to find the star, and longer to convince myself that I was looking in the right place. Looking at the image in the finder scope didn't work for me as I'm looking over the city of Glasgow but once I had spotted it I was able to roughly align it by sighting along the side then top of the scope, and then centre it in the camera frame. Once this was done the final adjustments in the finder scope were a breeze. What a difference that has made! I've thought I was very close before but the goto proved me wrong every time as it never reliably switched between targets. Like most things, it'll be easier to do in the future now that I've done it correctly. There's no substitute for practice! This is a good example of why it is so important to stick to the basics and keep it simple.

That looks perfect for my DSLR, can you tell me where you bought it from? Thanks Michael

I got this a few weeks ago but didn't get to use it until last week. £20 from Amazon, they had several types and models of these but this one seemed accurate enough without being too expensive. It has a magnetic base so I stuck it to my counterweight, adjusted for my latitude and polar alignment was a breeze. All the best Michael