Chat - General

Curious about status of WWT

Starbuck — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:15:13 GMT

I own a small business providing custom development services for businesses. It's not "satisfying" work but we do what's necessary to keep the doors open. While I have a strong background in astronomy, the only reason I got into I.T. was that I always thought it would be difficult to pay the bills on the salary of an astronomer.

But WWT offers a possiblity to do something I love using skills that I have - specifically, using the WWT API to help people discover the universe. As wonderful as WWT is, I have to ask a couple questions which I hope people here can help me to answer:

I can't write cool projects with WWT for free. Where can I find people/companies who want to make use of WWT and pay people to make their visions a reality?
There are of course various business models for generating revenue. You can create a cool utility for people to fly around the universe, and as popularity grows there should be advertisers paying for the eyeballs. That model isn't as solid as it used to be but it's not dead yet. So has anyone proposed an application using WWT that seems like it would be a really hot thing - but someone just needs to code and publish it?
Microsoft isn't making such a big deal out of WWT. I'm guessing that's because the market for astronomy isn't as big as it might be for something like maps of Earth. But what sort of applications has Microsoft envisioned using these tools?
I'm sorry to say, but this part of the website has not yet attracted a critical mass of people. Popularity here can be measured by some number of forum postings per year. Where is everyone? Is this just the wrong forum? Where are the people raving about what they can do here, what they want to do here, and where are the people who can provide some vision about how the tools can be used? I'm willing to some extent to "build it and hope they will come" but there has to at least be a "they" first.
Why isn't there a blog or wiki just for WWT? No interest?

As you can see, I'm concerned about where this project is going, but I absolutely love what's been done, and if I just knew that I wouldn't lose my home providing free or low-cost solutions I'd be happy to do so.

If this isn't the right place for this discussion, please let me know where I can find a more active community. I'm trying to match supply and demand. Without demand there will be no supply, and with no supply (of useful solutions) WWT may not live long or prosper.

Thanks!

Missing post?

Starbuck — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 19:47:00 GMT

I'm wondering if the post I submitted the other day was deleted intentionally, or somehow lost.
If someone is moderating this forum, please advise. My post was entirely appropriate for public consumption but now I'm worried that this forum is being censored for undesirable questions about the software.

Planetarium progress....

PeterTurcan — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 21:07:26 GMT

So far so good. The images below show the cardboard triangles being assembled into a geodesic dome - and the "hobbit house" below it shows the dome angled at 20 degrees on the wooden support.

The next stage is to calibrate the dome and test the projector/mirror system.

The dome so far has cost around $600 in cardboard, wood, clips, paint, tape, brushes, rollers, hinges and handles and other minor bits of hardware.

New Versions of WorldWide Telescope

PeterTurcan — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 02:20:06 GMT

New releases of both the Windows Client, and Web Client, versions of WorldWide Telescope are now available for download. Called the Aphelion beta, the new releases contain a range of new features.

The Windows Client has upgraded graphics for the popular Solar System view - including the Sun's halo, nighttime lighting on the Earth, and eclipse shadows on Jupiter from its four largest moons. The cosmos is now enabled by default, and a viewer can zoom out from the Solar System to view the Milky Way as a huge spiral galaxy, and zoom out further to view many of the galaxies in the known Universe.

For the professional astronomer there is support for reading and analyzing FITS images. Different algorithms can be applied to the intesity of the pixels in an image - such as Linear, Log, Power and Square Root. And the range of intensities, and Histogram Equalization, can also be applied.

For the educator there is now the ability to create interactive tours - such as tests of a student's knowledge. For example, an image of a planet or moon can be shown, with a multiple choice of possible answers. Depending on the text entry that the student clicks, the interactive tour will go to a different slide - perhaps a "Correct" and a "Wrong" slide. Alternatively a tour designer can add "Back" buttons to their slides, so a student can repeat one or more slides before proceeding.

The Web Client has been updated to match more closely the features of the Windows Client. It includes the support for FITS images. The advantage of the Web Client is that it can be configured and extended using the SDK, which is fully documented along with both code and data samples. The latest release requires Silverlight 3, though support is maintained for developers who have written scripts for Silverlight 2.

Enjoy!

Rise, Transit and Set Times in WorldWide Telescope

PeterTurcan — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:50:09 GMT

There appears to be a difference to what might be the expected behavior, and the actual behavior, of changing the Observing Location in WorldWide Telescope.

You might expect that by changing the viewing location to Timbuktu that Observing Times, and rise, transit and set times, are then presented in local time. They are not.

The actual behavior is that WorldWide Telescope is reading your system clock. So to get correct local times you need to close WorldWide Telescope, change the time zone you are in to the time zone of the new locale, restart WorldWide Telescope, then set the new observing location. In the tests I have done this seems to give rise, transit and set times consistent with those published elsewhere on the internet.

It is stretching it a bit to call this a "feature" - given the rest of your applications are now working on Timbuktu time. However it is a workaround until we address whether a fix is required.

A magnification zoom?

Stew — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 02:28:31 GMT

Is there a way to set a counter that would show the magnification as one zooms in? Would be a nice feature to compliment the field of view in the telescope setting. Love the site, more on cloudy nights!

World Wide telescope research partner

Oli — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:03:15 GMT

Hello,

How do Universities find out more information on the partnership program for the World Wide telescope?

In particular what steps are involved in becoming a research partner with the WW telescope?

Worldwide Telescope And Windows Live Frameit

betacode — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 13:02:54 GMT

Has any body come with away use worldwide telescope with windows live frameit.
One great update.And online community group web site wood with windows live messager so i can share on with my windows live messager conntacts.
And sould bee able sync up with my own telescope and upload my photo i take and bee part database on worldwide telescope.

SOLSTICE BOREALIS BETA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

sudar92 — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:50:46 GMT

Hi !

i just downloaded the WWT solstice borealis beta version .... well i havent found out if any extra feature has been added.....so if anyone finds any update in the SB beta version please tell me !!!!! thanxx a lot

Like the new site!

vanillawafer — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 20:03:02 GMT

I like the new look & feel. Very cool

Weird object over jupiter(Black circle)

dom96 — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:55:51 GMT

i'm sorry if this is not a forum for this but, i don't know if it's a error in WWT or a dirt on the telescopes lens or a extraterrestial circular ship, but i just zoomed in on jupiter and there is a black circle on it (it's moving, to the right) it's pretty weird i have screenshot's(but i have no idea how to include them, i'll upload them to my website and i'll post the link here) you can try zooming on jupiter and checking if that black circle is there, it's moving pretty fast

What is the update schedule?

JeffreyET — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 16:52:46 GMT

Hello,

I recently got WWT and am interested in tracking movements. Obviously the known objects i.e. planets & sattelites are clockworked. For unknown objects, therefore, movement will depend on direct observation. So that leads to the question of when updated images get uploaded. Thanks to anyone with information.

Lacking this, I would like to know the dates for the following (when the surveys were obtained, not uploaded) if possible:

DSS Optical

IRIS

@MASS

SDSS Sloan Optical

...and yes, maybe I do have too much time on my hands

superlime and thank you

chappy — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:04:36 GMT

Wow, what a great program. It’s like an old wish of mine come true. I’ve always enjoyed gaining 3d perspective or image of things, to have a mental picture is to get a feel for the spatial relationship and very helpful.

Thank you and great stuff.

It’s about time too, and as usual, I already have a few suggestion to add.

1) Option to turn name labels on/off from main display to see while panning around. Names and/or numbers of stars and constellations etc. Also mythical/astrological names from various cultures etc.

2) Labels on Celestial grid please.

3) My wish is to see a moving 3d model of our planets and solar system, and also shows our solar system in relation to other nearby systems, milky way black hole etc. My focus is not so much to the outer realms but more our immediate constellations. More specifically I’d like to confirm a growing claim that about every 26000 years our solar system completes and orbit around Alcione, the central sun of the Pleiades constellation, approx 400 light years from our sun.

And is the sun Alcione, the Galactic Centre as I’ve seen indicated on some universe diagram?

There is a lot of metaphysical ideas and concepts growing in flavour, and with some credence, but I would like to see if observations can confirm these. With programs like this people can see the evidence under their own light, and are afforded the opportunity make their own deeper conclusions.

I reckon universal awareness is something everyone will need eventually.

Thank you & regards

Using WWT in a museum?

Sam — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 15:19:42 GMT

Hello,

I am just discovering WWT and I would be interested to install it a local science museum as part of an exhibit on astronomy and cosmology we are organizing this summer.

Does "personal and non-commercial" use of WWT extend to installation in a museum ?

Thanks,

Sam

Wide World Telescope Users Group on facebook

galaxies — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 06:08:31 GMT

Greetings, I would like to invite everyone here to come and join the Wide World Telescope Users Group.

The WWT Users Group was set up on the very popular facebook.com and I am its creator.

We have 231 members of this group and it is growing weekly.

The intent of the users group is to share and chat about the Wide World Telescope and help popularize the WWT.

We have both astronomers and non astronomers who are memebrs of this group and all are welcome.

My name is Toney Burkhart and I have been doing astronomy for many years and would love to have you come and joing our group. After registering with facebook if you are not please click here and join the group. Then please post to me there and let me know that you read about the group here.

WorldWide Telescope Users Group

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=13895306732

Hope to see you soon!

Clear skies,

Toney

world wide telescope

Jpm — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 22:22:05 GMT

How do i get world wide telescope two work windows live space and windows live messager and popfly.

WWT research project

mike — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:06:50 GMT

Can anyone suggest research that can be performed on WWT for a high school science research project. The student is a novice astronomer and can use all the help you can offer.

About the World Wide Telescope...

satrionic1 — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 01:34:56 GMT

Hello everybody. I had some doubts about WWT, like if it's going to work with my system etc.. Well here i just downloaded it and it works perfectly fine.. I can say that, it's the thing i was looking for.. And i can also say that i will never ever use Google-Earth from now on and i don't think i'll ever use my own telescopes as well. I want to thank all of the designers and people who made this program and everyone in Microsoft made this thing possible. It's a well designed, usefull, inspiring software which leads you to your dreams. I just wanted to say thank you..

(PS: I couldn't figure it out, is there a way we can take photos of the images we like? I'd be so pleased if you guys help me out here..)

Thanks again... Thanks a million times.. Thank you, thank you, thank you.........

Phoenix Mars Mission

jeradc — Mon, 26 May 2008 04:15:35 GMT

It would be pretty cool to get these new Mars images up in a panorama: http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/images.php?gID=0&cID=7

strange shadows?

Cunning — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 22:32:53 GMT

hello all

first post

i was browsing wwt which i downloaded the other day and noticed on some star[ish] object, strange shadows.

it looks like a central square with 4 arm crossing it like a crossroads.

does anyone know what this is? i presume its something to do with the telescope which took the pictures, or maybe some interferance from a satellite or the such?

i would post the coordinate but i dont know how to get them

perhaps someone knows what i'm talking about?

thanks james!

When will WWT leave "Beta" status?

jameswatson3 — Mon, 19 May 2008 14:24:26 GMT

I am in charge of distributing software at my organization and the installation process for WWT is a bit of a kluge frankly. Even though an MSI installer exists, the DirectX portion of the install is invoked as a custom action outside of the windows installer engine and therefore fails when running without administrator rights.

I noticed that when the app is installed, it reports its version on the initial splash screen as "Spring Beta." Is there a timetable for moving this product out of beta status? I am hopeful that the installation process will be cleaned up when this happens. Does anyone know if this is scheduled to occur?

re: Improvement World Wide Telescope

garygech — Thu, 15 May 2008 03:36:22 GMT

I think that the World Wide Telescope is a great product, much better than google earth.

There are a number of reasons, but I believe the major one was the level of collaboration and the true scientific nature of the product.

Overall, there needs to be a way to delay the tours, or have them load in the background. Background loading is a technology used by some web based television services that are integrated with microsoft media center.

My point is that you should be able to download a number of tours completely.

In addition, there needs to be a way to incorporate amateur images of common objects. That was one of the goals of google video which never really caught on but youtube did.

I don't think initially the product will scale like you tube. But if the technology is powerful enough, I would imagine the same structure can be used for anatomy to histology, or any scientific structure which combines knowledge with images.

Gary