John:

I am working with CCDAP version 3.3 for the first time. During initialization I noticed that the exposure time was selected at 15 seconds. Is there anyway to alter this time?

Don

Hi Don,

You don't say which exposure you are referring to - image exposure or guide exposure. The image exposure for plate solving is set by the plate solve exposure entry, immediately below the Initialize button. The guide exposure is determined by whatever exposure you used for the manual guider calibration, that must be done immediately before initialization. From the help file:

Initialize: This function determines a number of key parameters for your system for subsequent seamless automation. A plate solving method is an absolute necessity for initialization. Before hitting this button, your camera, telescope, plate solving method and rotator (if used) must be connected. For guided operation, you must have centered a guide star on your guider and have run one manual calibration at your chosen binning, insuring the guide star stays on the chip for all movements and actually moves properly in each direction, just as you would do for a normal calibration...

Merry Christmas!

John:

I was referring to the guider calibration. I did not perform a guider calibration prior to selecting "Initialization"--the star on which I wanted to calibrate the guider was right in the middle of the chip so I knew it was going to work. However, I did have the autoguider exposure time set to 1 sec prior to selecting "Initiialization".

Merry Christmas,

Don

Don,

Right, but you need to run a manual guider calibration first before initializing. CCDAP gets info from that.

John:

Ok. I just ran a manual guider calibration with a 1 sec exposure. CCDAP still forced a 15 sec exposure when calibrating the autoguider.

Don

Don,

Hmmm. That is most unusual. Please describe your system - camera control program, version, camera and guider model, guide method (DirectGuide/Camera Relays if CCDSoft, Camera Relays only with Maxim), Mount and Guider setting on the CCDAP Settings page, also plate solve exposure settings.

Thanks,

John:

Information that you requested:

Camera Control Program: CCDSoft vesion 5.00.182
Camera: ST10 XME
Guide Method: Direct Guide
Mount: Paramount ME MKS 4000
Plate Solve: Sub Frame = 1/2, Exposure = 3 seconds, Filtern = Clear, Bin = 2
Mount and Guider Settings: Guider Pixel Size = 7.4 um, Bin = 2, Guide Scope Focal Length = 1161, Guide Rate = 0.5, Mount = Equatorial, Guide = Self Guide

Don,

I haven't a clue what is going on here. Everything you noted appears nominal. I assume you leave the guider image window showing in CCDSoft before running initialization, right?

There is absolutely nothing in CCDAP that seta a 15 sec. guide exposure time. All I can suggest is the coward's way out - remove CCDSoft, reboot, reinstall from the distribution disk, update to .182 and get the latest SBIG drivers.

Sorry.

Don,

One more thought...

After you have completed the manual calibration, highlight (select) the guider window in CCDSoft. Then, select from the CCDSoft menu View | File Information. What is the reported exposure time? It should be 1 sec. if you calibrated at that exposure time. Were there any other windows open at the time of calibration, for example an imager window? If so, use the same technique to highlight the imager file and check the exposure time reported by the file information window.

Thanks,

John:

Yes the guider window is showing prior to initialization, however, I can not tell you if that window was selected in CCDSoft prior to selecting initialization.

I'll give your suggestions a try at the next opportuinity.

Don

Hi Don,

Thanks to some good detective work by Sandy Barnes, I was able to duplicate your issue. It turns out to be a CCDSoft bug. If the guide exposure specified in the Take Image tab is different from the guide exposure in the Autoguider tab, the former will be used, regardless of what the latter entry is.

I have instituted a workaround for this in the 3.30.x preview, currently at 3.30.4 and available here: http://ccdware.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/1141040351/m/2101004202

If you want to stay with your current CCDAP version, just make sure the two exposure times identified above are the same.

Thanks guys. I'll download the new version.

Don

Hi John:

I thought I would report back on the workaround included in 3.30.5 While the workaround resolved the issue with the exposure time for initialization, it caused another problem. When beginning guiding, the initial full frame autoguider exposure to select a guide star now defaults to the expousure in loaded into the Take Image for the autoguider. This causes a problem when narrow band filters are in place as the exposure may be too short and no guide star will be selected.

Sincerely,

Don

Don,

You need to properly set the guide exposure in CCDAP. For 3.30.5, see the help file under light frames.

Hi John:

I reconfirmed this again this evening. I had the guide exposure set for 15 sec in the Light Frames section of CCDAP and the exposure time in the Take Image for the autoguider set at 20 seconds. When CCDAP took the autoguider exposure to locate a guide star, the exposure time was 20 seconds even though the autoguide exposure was shown to be 15 second in the Autoguide window.

Don