HELP! stellarium/ascom/EQMOD /Synscan, etc.

[Vlad]

Me and computers are not friends. In fact, we don't even live in the same world. They are Aliens all.

Rocket science, no problem. Differential equations, fine. Spherical trig, easy peasy. computers? no chance. Zilch.

Mind you, being 76 and no training at all in computers, what would you expect.?

I have an EQ3 synscan mount, with EQMOD to control it via Stellarium. I have a laptop and an observatory.

I have no idea how this lot works, tried all week until I am aching, but no way can I make sense of it all.

Obviously, I need help, by the bucket load.

Anyone in East Lancs to whom I can turn for help, maybe even in person?? Just send me a PM, and I would be delighted to know you. Having tried all else, if this doesn't do it, I'm back to hand control with my two motors on my EQ5.

Thanks doesn't cover it!

[The Sailor]

Right, first of all Stellarium does not require EQMOD, it a standalone controller of the mount. When I start up my mount the only thing I take from the computer is to check the date and time and when the mount finishes starting up I leave it at it's last screen. I start Stellarium and if the mount is not showing on the screen I open

1. configuration (F2) and go to

2. Plugins. There I open

3. Telescope Control and click on

4. Configure, if your telescope is not showing, add it following the instructions all the way to the bottom.

5. If it is showing, click on configure and check the PORT, ensure it is the correct one, check this in

6. Win Control Panel under Device Manger/Ports, if it is okay then come out of configure and click start, then return to Stellarium proper, close it down and resstart, your mount will be shown as a bullseye on the Stellarium screen.

7. Click on a target in Stellarium and press Ctrl and 1 as the same time and your mount should slew to that target, that is if all is well.

Once you get the mount working with Stellarium then go on to getting Ascom/EQMOD an suchlike working with it, one step at a time.

Hope that is of some help, if nor plenty of people to put you right .

Jim

[Leo.A]

Sorry, but aren't there dramas with the EQ3 and autoguiding or is that only through the autoguide port?

I have an EQ3 Pro (Skywatcher) with Synscan and would love to know how to do this myself.

Thanks Jim!

I'm going to pull my mount out today and my son can play using his laptop (Hey, I can't remember all this stuff...)

[Kevdan]

Hi,

I use stellarium but use it through stellarium Scope, which is downloadable free, it opens up stellarium when clicked on but It still uses the Ascom platform to drive the mount. I presume you have downloaded all the ascom programs and have set these up, I know I had problems at first because my laptop wouldnt find the com port where the mount was plugged into. But when this was sorted its ok now.

Kev.

[Vlad]

I have downloaded ascom 6, eqmod/ascom, stellarium etc, and I will give "the sailor's" words a good try. Watch this space. (with patience please, as I, too, used to have grey matter and brown hair, but like Leo A, the colours have changed over. Oh, the brown is now dark brown, and the grey is a tiny fringe around the sides).

Thank you for help, it is greatly appreciated.