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IDProjectCategoryView StatusLast Update
0002514SkyChart1-Softwarepublic23-11-25 09:11
ReporterAlan Smith Assigned To 
PrioritynormalSeverityfeatureReproducibilityN/A
Status newResolutionopen 
Summary0002514: Ability to create and use custom line catalogues with Catgen
DescriptionHi Patrick, the ability to create and use custom line catalogues would be very useful in Cartes du Ciel.

It is one area we keep finding is very useful.

This is to allow creation of custom star-hop lines, custom asterisms, and other general lines and pointers on the chart.
We have mulitple uses for it including for own use and for when teaching others.

For a few years we have tried to work around it by creating custom Catgen catalogues using the existing constellation lines, nebulae outline object types, but keep finding we need both the custom lines and constellation/nebulae outline catalogues displayed at the same time, or sometimes some lines visible and other lines invisible.

The ability to make some lines visible and others invisible is essential when teaching others so the sky display is easy to understand and uncluttered.

It would require the ability to:

1. Have a new 'User Defined Lines' object type. So their visiblity can be turned on/off independently of constellation lines, constellation boundaries, and nebule outlines. Perhaps a new object type in Catgen.

2. An easy way to create custom lines - Perhaps create by clicking on posiitons on the chart or via CatGen import. If done via Catgen, a good explanation (with examples) in the help file of how to create them.

3. Save custom lines - Perhaps as a Catalog which can go in the Menu > Catalog > Catalog Tab > list

4. Change visibility of custom lines - Perhaps a separate visibilty on-off button which is separate from visibility of constellation lines, constellation boundaries, nebulae outlines, etc and/or visilbility can be turned on/of in the Menu > Catalog > Catalog tab > list

Many thanks in advance
TagsNo tags attached.

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Patrick Chevalley

22-03-09 12:04

administrator   ~0007449

Maybe there is something I not understand, but Catgen can already produce line catalog for years.
This is what is used to display the nebulae outlines but it can be used for any line you want.

As an example you can look at the nebula outline data and catgen prj file available here:
https://github.com/pchev/skychart/tree/master/tools/cat/DSoutlines

Here you have the documentation for the different line options:
https://www.ap-i.net/skychart/en/documentation/catgen#page_2

Do you need something different or more options?

Alan Smith

23-11-25 09:11

reporter   ~0008627

Hi Patrick, many thanks for the reply and very sorry for the very long delay in replyng to all of my bug and feature requests.

I have unfortunately had to spend many months (close to a year) toubleshooting the latest Fedora updates on my astronomy software with no success. This includes with your nice new astrometry features in CCDCiel which unfortunately no longer work on Fedora due to ongoing Python conflicts with astrometry. The Fedora/Python/Astrometry developers have not fixed it despite all being individually asked over a year ago. I have now given up with Fedora for astronomy and set up a dedicated astronomy machine (running Ubuntu) next to the telescope.

Thanks for the reply reference this request, hopefully the below helps, let me know if you need any more details.

- When teaching someone I quite often need to draw lines on the chart.

- Yes I would be happy to use catgen. It just needs a way to make it easier to create and save the lines than hard coding. The missing feature is the ablity to quickly create the lines in the sky view by clicking and draging on the sky screen, and then an option so line(s) i have drawn on the screen, can be saved (e.g. into a catgen file).

- Ideally the line would be created by clicking on the start point in the sky on the screen, then dragging to the endpoint, then CDC fills in the middle vertexes so the line follows the 'great circle' of the sky (for example perhaps a vertex every 0.5 degree) so they bend to follow the sky depending on which projection method is used.

I have included an example workflow on the attached screenshot

Many thanks

Issue History

Date Modified Username Field Change
22-03-09 11:35 Alan Smith New Issue
22-03-09 12:04 Patrick Chevalley Status new => feedback
22-03-09 12:04 Patrick Chevalley Note Added: 0007449
23-11-25 09:11 Alan Smith Note Added: 0008627
23-11-25 09:11 Alan Smith File Added: Screenshot from 2023-11-25 08-07-51.png
23-11-25 09:11 Alan Smith Status feedback => new