'AllSkEye' all-sky imaging Software (Windows)

[Altocumulus]

Just a quick comment to keep me subscribed to this topic!

Am impressed with the work done on this, it seems to beat other software options.

I'm going to stick my neck out and ask if anyone has been able to solve a conundrum of a spare NexImage 5 (that I have lying about) and a driver hack to get it to work! Otherwise it's back to the purse and a ZWO option from FLO! I've let Mike know on his site that I've had troubles, but someone - somewhere might have a solution

[Jkulin]

Hi, Downloaded and have spent the best part of the evening to try and get it to work, I have re-installed it 4 times and tried the 32bit and 64 bit.

Your uninstall routine leaves comments all over the registry that really didn't please me.

And I constantly get this error coming up out of the blue and no matter how hard I look I cannot find anywhere to restore all the settings to a default: -

I've attached the log files if they help.

Can I suggest two things, firstly always have a reset configuration option as that would have saved me keep re-installing and installing.

Please make sure when you uninstall that it leaves absolutely nothing left in the registry or hidden anywhere.

So my question is how do I reset the configuration?

I am using an ZWO ASI 120MC Camera

So far I have not been able to capture a test image whatsoever, but I have have checked the camera is fine by reunning it up in sharpcap.

Thanks for your assistance.

NB. Finally got it to work, it refused to use the Ascom drivers for the camera, insisting on using its own, I changed a few of the other settings as well and that removed the error, so now I will set it up on my laptop and see if it will work, I didn't wish to be ungrateful and if it works nicely then will make a donation to your cause., Thanks.

AllSkEyeLogProcessing.txt AllSkEyeLogAcquisition.txt AllSkEyeLogGeneral.txt

Edited June 1, 2019 by Jkulin

[AngryDonkey]

Hello!

5 hours ago, Jkulin said:

Your uninstall routine leaves comments all over the registry that really didn't please me.

The windows installer has only been added very recently so that is good feedback to look into. I'm a bit surprised though because AllSkEye does not use the registry at all so if it is related to the installation it must be the installer software itself that's making these entries (and not removing them). It's a widely used commercial installer so it's strange that it should leave entries behind. I will look into it.

5 hours ago, Jkulin said:

Can I suggest two things, firstly always have a reset configuration option as that would have saved me keep re-installing and installing.

This has already been added and will be available with the next release. Also it's worth mentioning that all the settings are stored in the users AppData folder. The current uninstall routine will leave this settings file behind (which is realise is not ideal) but I am working on making this optional.

5 hours ago, Jkulin said:

So far I have not been able to capture a test image whatsoever, but I have have checked the camera is fine by reunning it up in sharpcap

There is an issue with this camera where the ascom driver incorrectly reports the bit depth of the returned image. This can be overcome by overriding the bit depth in the advanced settings (set 16). Although using the ZWO native driver as you are doing now is probably better.

Kind Regards,

Mike

[Jkulin]

Thanks Mike, I've set it up on my laptop now and will give it a try, just a quick question I want to reduce down the refresh and captures to about 5-10s minimum, where can I do that in the settings and I want to make the camera more sensitive. I've not used a CMOS camera before so all new to me as I usually use a CCD.

Thanks once again.

[AngryDonkey]

On 01/06/2019 at 14:12, Jkulin said:

Thanks Mike, I've set it up on my laptop now and will give it a try, just a quick question I want to reduce down the refresh and captures to about 5-10s minimum, where can I do that in the settings and I want to make the camera more sensitive. I've not used a CMOS camera before so all new to me as I usually use a CCD.

If you mean exposure time then you need to adjust the 'Auto Exposure' settings. To set how often images are taken you can use the pause/interval time settings in the 'Image Acquisition' section. If using a pause then the program will wait a fixed amount of time until the next exposure is taken after the current exposure is completed. When using an interval the program will attempt to take start image acquisitions at fixed time intervals e.g. every 60s.

You won't be able to increase sensitivity but you can amplify the captured signal by adjusting the gain settings of the camera. There are up and downsides to this as far as CMOS sensors are concerned but I am no expert so it might be best to read up.

In general to it's best to try to capture more signal i.e. increase exposure time, however this is limited as stars will start to streak at some point. To make an image 'brighter' you can vary the gain setting or use the 'clip and stretch' settings to stretch the captured image more.

Hope this helps!

[Jkulin]

Thanks Mike, Much appreciate your reply, hopefully will give it a test this week.

[Ian Gorin]

Hello!
I'm trying to make the AllSkyEye work for me. I'm in a process of building a camera enclosure using ZWO-ASI120MM-S. Couple of questions:

1. Included Lens gives, according to the Specs -150 degrees, had anyone used a wider angle (better?) lens?

2. Is shooting in 2x2 bin beneficial at all. Like, reduced file size, quicker downloads, more stable USB?

3. Related to no.2, I wasn't able to create BPM in 2x2 bin. Gives me an error message in regards to the frame size.

4. Is there a mode for storing only the frames with movement in them, e.g. meteors? Also, any way to discard frames with airplanes?

Thanks all,

Ian

[tooth_dr]

I’m struggling to get this up and running. Any time I try to connect my SX oculus camera I get an error - cannot locate usbsx dll file. 

[symmetal]

47 minutes ago, tooth_dr said:

I’m struggling to get this up and running. Any time I try to connect my SX oculus camera I get an error - cannot locate usbsx dll file. 

You need to install the C++ redistributeable package for Starlight Xpress cameras. I had the same problem mentioned further up the thread. The download link is on the 'Requirements' page of the AllSkeye website. 

Alan

Edited August 21, 2019 by symmetal

[tooth_dr]

2 hours ago, symmetal said:

You need to install the C++ redistributeable package for Starlight Xpress cameras. I had the same problem mentioned further up the thread. The download link is on the 'Requirements' page of the AllSkeye website. 

Alan

Thanks Alan.  I did go onto microsoft and tried to download that but there were so many!  I now have it working at last, thank-you!!

   

[symmetal]

3 hours ago, tooth_dr said:

I now have it working at last, thank-you!!

Good to hear. Your wider angle lens on the Oculus gives a more pleasing image compared to mine which has the narrower angle and crops the circle top and bottom. i know it doesn't use as much of the sensor area, but I think I'll buy the wider angle lens and give it a go. Can't imagine they cost much. 

Alan

[tooth_dr]

6 hours ago, symmetal said:

Good to hear. Your wider angle lens on the Oculus gives a more pleasing image compared to mine which has the narrower angle and crops the circle top and bottom. i know it doesn't use as much of the sensor area, but I think I'll buy the wider angle lens and give it a go. Can't imagine they cost much. 

Alan

Thanks Alan. Mine came with the narrower lens but I contacted Terry at SX and he was able to swop it over for the wider one. I agree the wider one is more pleasing. 

[tooth_dr]

1ms is still too bright for daytime imaging. Any solutions? Does it stop saving images if it doesn’t reach the desired brightness level?

[symmetal]

4 hours ago, tooth_dr said:

1ms is still too bright for daytime imaging. Any solutions?

Mine's the same. The only solution is using an ND filter which isn't easy to incorporate. It would be handy if there was an ND dome which can sit over the existing one. I have mine covered up during the day just to avoid the possibility of the Sun damaging the sensor, although SX said they have no experience of this being a problem.

Alan

[tooth_dr]

19 minutes ago, symmetal said:

Mine's the same. The only solution is using an ND filter which isn't easy to incorporate. It would be handy if there was an ND dome which can sit over the existing one. I have mine covered up during the day just to avoid the possibility of the Sun damaging the sensor, although SX said they have no experience of this being a problem.

Alan

My only wish was that I had got the software working sooner.  I've been using the oculus software and it's really really poor.

[daz]

Just found this thread! Bookmarked for downloading and playing with!

 

[AngryDonkey]

22 hours ago, tooth_dr said:

1ms is still too bright for daytime imaging. Any solutions? Does it stop saving images if it doesn’t reach the desired brightness level?

When it reaches the limits it just keeps on going, hoping for the best 🙂. With the Oculus you can actually set 0ms as well. This should give a slightly better picture during daytime imaging.

Mike

[AngryDonkey]

On 21/08/2019 at 18:49, Ian Gorin said:

Hello!
I'm trying to make the AllSkyEye work for me. I'm in a process of building a camera enclosure using ZWO-ASI120MM-S. Couple of questions:

1. Included Lens gives, according to the Specs -150 degrees, had anyone used a wider angle (better?) lens?

2. Is shooting in 2x2 bin beneficial at all. Like, reduced file size, quicker downloads, more stable USB?

3. Related to no.2, I wasn't able to create BPM in 2x2 bin. Gives me an error message in regards to the frame size.

4. Is there a mode for storing only the frames with movement in them, e.g. meteors? Also, any way to discard frames with airplanes?

Thanks all,

Ian

Hi Ian,

• Yes there are plenty of lenses that will work with the ASI cameras. There is an Allsky camera facebook group where this is regularly discussed: https://www.facebook.com/groups/172438633343696/
• Yes binning 2x2 will reduce the file size, download and processing speeds but at the resolution of the ASI 120 I wouldn't recommend it as you will loose a lot of detail (not sure if it improved USB stability). The only time I have used binning in the past was for dedicated meteor detection with short exposure times (e.g. 5s).
• I will investigate this, might be a problem with he software!
• Yes, when you activate meteor detection you can set it to save the detection image and also the original fits file (this function is independent from the other functions like the latest image or image conversions for video creation). Yes, the meteor detection algorithm has settings to suppress airplane trails.

Kind Regards,

Mike

 

[AngryDonkey]

Hello!

A new preview version is now available on the AllSkEye website. The main additions are:

• Multiple ‘Latest Images’
• Multiple Text Overlays
• Native support for Altair Cameras
• Output Video Scaling

Full details are here: AllSkEye New Preview 0.9.14.1 - Details

Mike

[Altocumulus]

Late to this thread - but will add my thumbsup to the software.... 👍

[AngryDonkey]

On 26/12/2019 at 16:44, Altocumulus said:

Late to this thread - but will add my thumbsup to the software.... 👍

Thank you, glad it's working well for you!

[tooth_dr]

I bought a licence of the Pro version of AllSkeye a couple of days ago.

I use the software everyday, and it felt fair to pay the author Mike the small asking fee of £20.

I tried the star trails feature from the Pro version, and am very impressed with the simplicity of it.  I will definitely be setting it to automatically produce a star trails image automatically each night!  I picked a random night in May to try it out, and by chance there was superb meteor during that night.  The bright light in the trails photo is from my observatory - my all sky camera is attached to the shed and with the roof open I had some lights on getting set up.

 

Adam

 

 

 

 

Edited June 13, 2020 by tooth_dr

[Wiu-Wiu]

This software looks amazing, and I'd give it a shot, but what are you guys running your allsky setup on?

The software needs windows to run, so do you have a dedicated laptop running 24/7 or is it just needed to log in and manage settings? 

I can't seem to find the part that describes the hardware. 

 

thanks!

[Altocumulus]

It is perfect. I run the software 24/7, dedicated PC, but it only takes images through defined nightime settings. It's all there on the website and there's plenty

of support on offer. I started using it on a stick PC, but although it's ok for taking images it failed to have enough storage and enough power to

do the behind the scenes work.

 

[suttonr]

Mike

Just asking for a little advice or maybe a future update. My camera asi178mc I currently have in a box with stellamate installed I use kstars to take the photos as I can do this all over wifi network as my allsky camera is not in a place I can keep a windows pc next to. I then use the utilities to process all the images etc which all works great.

Is there anyway of looking for the camera through your system or any plans for an update that would allow this sort of connection, No problem if not just checking.