AstroPlanner Beta Testing
Introduction
Anyone is free to download and test the latest beta version of the application. Please note that beta versions of the application have a built-in expiration date that is 120 days after the release date. After that date, you can still use it, but you'll be "nagged" to download a more recent release. This is to prevent bugs being reported on older beta versions that have already been fixed in later releases.
Please discuss beta issues only on the Beta Testers mailing list. Click here to join/leave the list.
Click here for more information on how to report a bug.
V2.4 Notes:
- This version requires a larger minimum screen size: 1280 x 720 pixels (2560 x 1440 pixels for Retina/HiDPI).
- This version might not be fully backwards-compatible with V2.3, so backup before trying it, especially the Image and Observation databases.
- As of V2.4a11, the Mac version will run natively on M1-based Macs.
- As of V2.4b6, the Mac and Windows-64 versions are compiled with "aggressive" optimisation switched on. This should make the application perform a bit faster. However it makes the code file a lot bigger, and it takes forever to compile (not your problem).
- As of V2.4b14, the minimum OS requirements for running the application are: MacOS 10.14 or later, Windows 8.1 or later. For the present, betas that run with MacOS 10.11 - 10.13, and Windows 7 SP1 - 8.0 are included below.
- Note that only the 64-bit, non-special versions of the application have been optimised for speed. However, you won't notice much of a difference in real life.
This page last modified: 2023/09/05 07:54 (Pacific time)
Download
Version | Release Date | Expiry Date |
2.4b24 | 2023/09/03 | 120 days from release |
Macintosh
64-bit Application (.dmg) | Download | 158.7MB | 64-bit version. Intel-based Mac with MacOS 10.14 or later. Apple Silicon-based Mac with MacOS 11 or later. |
64-bit Application (.dmg) | Download | 105.4MB | Special version for MacOS 10.11 through 10.13. Intel-only. |
Windows
32-bit Application (.exe) | Download | 154.1MiB | 32-bit version. Installer. Windows 8.1 or later |
32-bit Application (.exe.zip) | Download | 153.6MiB | 32-bit version. Zipped installer |
64-bit Application (.exe) | Download | 142.1MiB | 64-bit version. Installer. Windows 8.1 or later |
64-bit Application (.exe.zip) | Download | 141.6MiB | 64-bit version. Zipped installer |
64-bit Application (.exe.zip) | Download | 143.3MiB | Special 64-bit version for Windows 7 SP1 through 8.0. |
32-bit Application (.exe.zip) | Download | 152.9MiB | Special 32-bit version for Windows 7 SP1 through 8.0. |
Both platforms
User Manual (.pdf.zip) | Download | 82.8MiB | V2.4 beta user manual |
Note: Beta versions of the application typically do not include the user manual or scripting manual in order to reduce download size.
Release Notes
A list of unresolved bugs can be found here, and feature requests here.
Version: 2.4b24 | Release Date: 2023/09/03 | Fixes: 9, Enhancements: 0 |
ID: Status: Date: |
CometObject.AddPlanObject: Key Not Found Exception Exception Type: Key Not Found Exception 1: Sub Dictionary.Value()
Latest release 2,4b23 Analysis: Resolution: |
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ObservationWindow.SessionFieldThread_UserInterfaceUpdate: Out Of Bounds Exception Exception Type: Out Of Bounds Exception 1: Sub DesktopListBox.RowTagAt( int64 )
Merging two observation sessions in the Observation Database window. The sessions were adjacent in time, one before midnight the other after midnight. Not sure if this is relevant but the Obs and Plan/s columns for all sessions changed to a clock icon. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Highlighting "Only show color of" not working correctly When selecting a highlighting rule and the option "Only show color of - First triggered rule set" is selected, colors of other rules are displayed, too, unless the option "Stop checking when - Any rule set triggered" is also selected. Resolution: |
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Hitting the "Now" button in the calendar When clicking the "Now" button in the calendar, the date is set to the current date in planfile, but the calendar itself remains at the previously selected date. Only when the "Now" button is clicked again the calendar switches to the current date. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Saving custom highlighting rulesets When saving a rule set in the Custom Highlighting dialog, it is saved without the ".hrules" file extension. Resolution: |
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Download User-contributed plan never finishes To reproduce: Analysis: Resolution: |
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Error on application close Version: 2.4b23 Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub APToolbar.Update( APToolbar ) Resolution: |
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error alert when clicking in New Observation button Position dialog issue Analysis: Resolution: |
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Internal error - scripting Hi Paul, Tried to compile a script (worked on b22) and received this error message. Internal error on line 6941: Ambiguous call to overloaded method.. PLEASE REPORT THIS TO THE DEVELOPER! Analysis: Resolution: |
Version: 2.4b23 | Release Date: 2023/09/01 | Fixes: 33, Enhancements: 0 |
ID: Status: Date: |
Export not working as intended The strange export window bug is fixed, but the export is not. Values as (pre)set for export do not result in correct values being exported. Attached is a screenshot from the export dialogue window and the preset used. Attachment: VAvW 2023-07-13 om 11.14.01.jpgAttachment: Autostar.txt Analysis: Resolution: |
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Steps to duplicate: Look at the User Object Notes and notice that all the For this one you want to specify to merge all objects with the Name containing "12 Com". replacing by ID or any objects within 2 arc seconds.
Resolution: |
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Colors and Spacing not Saved for User Object Notes Steps to duplicate:
Resolution: |
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MainWindow.UniqueObjectsByID: Nil Object Exception It always ends up hanging me up while typing but I had time to copy the Steps to Dupe: Version: 2.4b22 Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Function MainWindow.UniqueObjectsByID( MainWindow Attachment: 2020-02-20 Test of Celestron SkyPortal and User Objects.apdAttachment: Main Objects.apdAttachment: AstroPlannerV2-W32.prefsAttachment: AstroPlanner Resources Resolution: |
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ObjectSelector.mw.Get: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Function ObjectSelector.mw.Get( ObjectSelector, int32 ) as MainWindow
Error at export comet data to SequenceGenerator. Resolution: |
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Can't Get Magnitude with a Cross-Reference Steps to duplicate: 4. Click OK. =20 Just a little more info. I noticed later on that it did get the magnitude value. It had not immediately refreshed on the Object Properties tab after the cross reference. Once I came back to the object later on, the Magnitude value showed up on the tab. Resolution: |
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Not All Settings Stick with Catalogue Refreshes and Cross-Refs This has caused me problems on several occasions where I had to go back and check all the objects in my plan for unintentional changes. Sometimes I was not sure what the settings were before on multiple objects. It would be nice to have the setting stick after changing to Selected Objects like the other settings do, have it default to Selected Objects, or do both. Steps to duplicate: 4. Click OK. It should say it found 1 object out of a total of 1 (SAC works at 60 and above).=20 Note that all the previous settings will have held except for "Objects to Refresh" which always goes back to All Objects. 6. Right-Click the object and choose Other > Refresh Objects from Catalogues. Note that all the previous settings will have held except for "Objects to Refresh" which always goes back to All Objects. Resolution: |
ID: Status: Date: |
App startup hangs if sync items are corrupted If the application is started and items to be synced are present and cause an issue, such as a hangup, there is no way to reset this, apart from knowing where the sync items are stored and deleting them, or deleting the sync preferences manually. Holding down the Shift key at startup doesn't help. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Greek letters are displayed in the FoV as small squares Greek letters are displayed in the FoV (e.g. Bayer star designations) as small squares. Analysis: Resolution: |
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ObservationTableView.Load: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub ObservationTableView.Load( ObservationTableView )
Really broke now :( Analysis: Resolution: |
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Edit List Columns changes the column width Open a plan, change the column widths with the mouse, go to Edit List Columns, the "€œAdjust column width to text" button is not selected, save even without changing any column, and the column widths are changed. I think it returns to the column widths that the plan had the last time it was saved, ignoring the changes made with the mouse. Resolution: |
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Inconsistent alignment of Chart# column In objects list, long text columns are left aligned, and the rest are center aligned, except the Chart# column that is left aligned. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Info appears in wrong columns in Observation Database: Sessions When a column is de-selected, or columns are reordered, the information appears in the wrong columns. Analysis: Resolution: |
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SynonymManager.LoadGUIDs: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub SynonymManager.LoadGUIDs()
Trying to update the location of the Observation Database Resolution: |
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Merging two observations I was observing M11 last night and created two observations by mistake. Each observation had an attachment (image). I went into the Observation Database and selected both observations and used the context menu to select 'Merge selected observations of M11'. The observations were merged, except only one attachment was merged. The other went missing. The Resource Combinations tab showed 2 resource combinations the Attachments tab only 1 image. Tried a test again this morning and again the attachments were not merged correctly. One was merged the other disappeared. Resolution: |
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edit observations not saving When editing an observation, eg, changing time, the dialogue indicates in red observation changed, but when selecting save the screen exits but the change is not saved. Resolution: |
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DesktopPopupMenu.SelectRowWithTag: InvalidArgumentException Exception Type: InvalidArgumentException 1: Sub DesktopPopupMenu.SelectRowWithTag()
This happens every time I try and go into File >Catalog Manager, even from a blank document screen. message=Value not found
Resolution: |
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Inconsistent behaviour of Observation Database -> Location Chart In Observation Database: It would be nice to offer the option to choose between All, Displayed, or Selected observations in Density Chart and Location Chart, as it is done in the Statistics chart. Analysis: Resolution: |
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MainWindow.AdjustColumnsToFit: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub MainWindow.AdjustColumnsToFit( MainWindow, int64 ) Resolution: |
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Incorrect constellation image saved When saving the constellation image, displayed at right in the objects tab (in this example for the constellation of Ursa Major), an image for the constellation of Tucana is saved instead. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Edit observation: 1 observation changed In Observation database, when opening for the first time an old observation that has notes, it opens it with the red text “1 observation changedâ€Â. If you save the observation, the second time you open it, the behaviour is correct. This happens with old observations, that were included in the database with previous versions of the program. And only if they have text notes. Resolution: |
ID: Status: Date: |
PlanObservation.RADec.Set: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub PlanObservation.RADec.Set( int32, ReturnValue )
Was editing an observation from within the observation database, selected the first field under "Dec:" at top right, typed "+" (plus sign) and this exception popped up. Resolution: |
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DreyerWindow.!ShowWindow: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub DreyerWindow.!ShowWindow( string )
Looking at the Herschel Dreyer Key
Looking at Catalogue object details Resolution: |
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Changing the time of an observation does not work In Observation Database, open (edit) an observation, change the observing time, and save the observation. The time remains unchanged. Resolution: |
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RA isn't Exporting to TXT file I am playing around with the exporting function. I am trying to create a database for the NexusDSC. The RA data isn't being passed through to the file I have created. It could be user error, but I have everything else right. Could you check this for me please? Maybe a script would work better. Resolution: |
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Exception thrown on exit This has happened twice so far when exiting AP. This time I opened AP, looked at some observations from the night before (Observation Database). No changes made. On exit AP prompted to save changes to the plan, pressed save. A window flashed (too fast to see what was on it) and the error report below was generated. Version: 2.4b22 Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub APToolbar.Update( APToolbar ) Resolution: |
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APToolbar.Update: NilObjectException After closing the program, I have been getting this error. Version: 2.4b22 Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub APToolbar.Update( APToolbar ) Resolution: |
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GravatarConnection.Event_ContentReceived: Nil Object Exception Exception Type: Nil Object Exception 1: Sub GravatarConnection.Event_ContentReceived( string, int64, string ) User description of above error trace: I had just made some document changes and was running a backup when this happened. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Enter key when editing an observations in the obs database When editing an observation from within the observation database, specifically the 'Notes' field: when hitting the return key on the keyboard to create a line break, this is not recognized as a change to the observations and the Save button remains grayed out. Resolution: |
ID: Status: Date: |
Sorting and (custom) highlighting I find the Custom Highlighting really useful, but I might not be understanding how it functions when it comes to sorting the highlighted objects to the top of the plan. I thought that every 30s the plan's objects would be sorted and hence any highlighted objects would shuffle to the top of the plan. This does not happen, either in real-time or fixing a date and stepping the time. The only way it sorts is when I manually click on the 'Sort List' button and select the sort I require. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Scripting: Fix issues with paste and searching in MacOS A side effect of #7595 I believe. Pasting and searching are not operating at the correct position in the text. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Scripting: syntax coloring issue Syntax coloring issue. Note that this was not seen by anyone other than the developer since it happened after 2.4b22 was released. Analysis: Resolution: |
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Scripting: Missing observation fields I'm running into difficulties with fully populating an observation record. The created observation as viewed in the Observation Database has all the normal fields (ID, name, type etc) but is missing the associated plans name. I have tried setting the APObservation Plan (String) to the Plans Name (string) field, but it comes up n/a in the Observation database. If I print it out in debug, it looks good ('7th July 2023.apd'). The more important question is how to populate the Object Fields? The tab for Object Fields is blank. Having said that, sometimes even creating an observation through the interface results in blank observation object fields (a separate bug report #7589 - ed.). Analysis: Resolution: |