What ASCOM downloads?

[swag72]

I am thinking about trying ASCOM and so have gone onto the site and downloads page here. I assume that I will need to download some sort of driver for my HEQ5 and SW 120ED scope - But I can not find what I THINK I need on these pages.

I am sure that this has been asked 2 million times before, so apologies for the same old, same old. If someone can point me in the direction of what I need to download, that would be a start!

Cheers folks.

[barkis]

Hi. You need to install the Ascom Platform 5.0, followed by the update to 5.5. You will find them here, top right of the page.

Ron.

http://www.ascom-standards.org/index.htm

[swag72]

Thanks Ron - I was looking on the scope downloads, thinking I'd have to get a driver for that. So if I download what you say, that is it? No more downloads?

[Psychobilly]

EQMOD/EQASCOM ?

EQMOD EQASCOM

[swag72]

Thanks Peter, now I am totally confused!! I don't want to use EQMOD yet - So what would I gain with just ASCOM?

[Psychobilly]

EQMOD Pre-requisites

[Chris Stacey]

What is it you want to do with it Sara? control your mount through your laptop? or are you thinking of something else?

[swag72]

I control my mount through my lappy at the moment using Stellarium. I have just dabbled in APT using the trial version and wonder whether integrating that more fully would be of benefit. I understand that I would need ASCOM to go any further than I am using it at the moment, which is purely for exposure runs.

I'm not really sure what benefits I would get over and above what I currently do.

I suppose the crux of the matter is that the other night I had a total mare. EOS utilitity died on me, even after an uninstall and reinstall - So had to use APT to get any subs. The goto was awful and for some reason that night I couldn't find anything - Probably just trying to find solutions for when it all went wrong!!

[Psychobilly]

I suppose the crux of the matter is that the other night I had a total mare. EOS utilitity died on me, even after an uninstall and reinstall - So had to use APT to get any subs. The goto was awful and for some reason that night I couldn't find anything - Probably just trying to find solutions for when it all went wrong!!

Welcome to the wonderful world of Astrophotgraphy... You will get nights like that..

Unfortunately the more complex you make it the more likely they are to happen especially if your having to set the kit up every night......

Peter...

[swag72]

Obsy build in the pipeline Peter!!

Hopefully by the end of the year. Another reason for EQMOD was so that I could custom the park feature of my mount horizontally for the roof height when the obsy gets done.

[Psychobilly]

Indeed... you can then largely "Tune" out the problems .. butt from time to time something will still crop up and bite you on the butt.....

This will normally be after you have checked everything is ok and left it to its own devices for a long imaging run...

Peter...

[chrisshillito]

Thanks Peter, now I am totally confused!! I don't want to use EQMOD yet - So what would I gain with just ASCOM?

ASCOM provides a standard driver interface so using it means that your mount potentially becomes compatible with a much wider range of applications (planetariums, guiding, automation, etc.). Of course it may be that applications you are already using provide the level so mount control you need without ASCOM.

The generic celestron ASCOM driver and EQMOD essentially provide the same functionality from an ASCOM perspective (slews, tracking, guiding). However EQMOD is much much more than just an ASCOM driver, but rather is a mount management program that just happens to provide an ASCOM interface - here's a list of EQMOD's benefits

What's your reasoning in avoiding EQMOD? There's plenty of support around thorough documentation, videos and experienced users to guide you through it.

Chris.

[swag72]

What's your reasoning in avoiding EQMOD? There's plenty of support around thorough documentation, videos and experienced users to guide you through it.

Chris.

Fear!!!! Chris, I had my scope for 8 months before I got it out the box because I'd looked at the polar alignment information / How too's etc and it was too scary!!

Not sure on cabling, from what I see, it doesn't look like a straight plug in here and off you go either.

[Bizibilder]

Just one cable from lappy to mount: Cables, Leads and Controllers - HitecAstro EQDIR adapter

And off you go! It really is simple to use EQMOD/ASCOM - I would suggest Chris Shillito's videos on youtube (just search for chris Shillito's channel) - for the time being ignore all the fancy stuff about PEC and whathave you - just watch the basics.

Guiding is the same - camera USB to lappy and EQMOD takes care of that too.

[swag72]

Would I still guide using PHD?

[Bizibilder]

Yes - PHD for guiding - it runs by "tweaking" the mount drive stepper motor pulses (It either adds or subtracts a few milliseconds to the drive motor pulse length) via EQMOD/ASCOM so you don't need a seperate guide cable. (Some folk have been confused here as they still use a cable from the guide camera to the guide port on the mount but with EQMOD/ASCOM this is actually not doing anything at all!)

[swag72]

So no ST4 cable from the QHY5 to the mount? But still the cable to the PC I guess, else you won't 'see' anything!!

So where does that cable (link you provided) plug into? I notice that there's still a serial port on the end - Does no one do a USB one?

[Bizibilder]

That's right.

[chrisshillito]

So no ST4 cable from the QHY5 to the mount? But still the cable to the PC I guess, else you won't 'see' anything!!

So where does that cable (link you provided) plug into? I notice that there's still a serial port on the end - Does no one do a USB one?

If you prefer ST-4 guiding there's nothing to stop you still using the cable - its just if you have the option to go a different rout - ASCOM pulse guiding if you wish.

The 9 way D connector plugs into the mount, replacing the synscan. The other end of that device you connect to the USB.

Provided you have a synscan handcontroller running V3.25 firmware or later then you can try out EQMOD without buying any new cables. Just leave the synscan connected to the mount, connect the PC to the PC via the cable that came with the mount and then place the sysncan into PC-Direct mode (that's a menu entry somewhere).

Chris.