Orion 52085 Software Driver Installation, Mount, Computer, Power, Software Installation

Cooling fan

Power
input	USB cable
jack

Figure 3. The 12VDC power cable and USB cable turn the camera on when plugged in.

Mount

Deep sky imaging with the StarShoot Pro requires an equatorial mount with a right ascension (R.A.) motor drive. The goal for your mount is to seamlessly track the apparent movement of the sky as the Earth rotates. The tracking must be very accurate, or the object you want to image will drift and blur across the camera’s field of view while the exposure is taken. Even a small amount of drift will cause a star to look oblong instead of a round point. We recommend using a high-quality equatorial mount which utilizes periodic error correction (PEC) or has the ability to interface with an autoguider.

Computer

The StarShoot Pro requires a PC to operate the camera. For astro-imaging in the field at night, a laptop computer is highly recommended. The included software is Maxim DL Essentials which requires Windows XP, or Windows Vista operating systems.

Note: The StarShoot Pro drivers and MaxIm DL Essentials do not support 64-bit operating systems

The following hardware is also required:

•Processor: 700 MHz speed or higher, Pentium™ III equivalent or higher

•Recommended minimum memory size is 512 MB

•Disk Space: 100 MB for program installation, 500 MB or more to store images is recommended

Figure 4. The Launcher provides an easy menu for software installation.

•Video Display: 1024 X 768 or higher, 16-bit color or higher

•Mouse

•Internet Explorer 4 or higher required to display on-line help

•High-speed USB 2.0 port

Power

The StarShoot Pro requires 12 volts DC (12VDC) with approximately 1 ampere of current. Power to the entire camera, including the thermo-electric cooler (TEC), and fan is supplied by the included power cable when plugged into a 12VDC power source (Figure 3).

Imaging in the field usually requires the use of a portable field battery to supply power, or you can use a 110VAC to 12VDC power converter if you have access to an AC outlet. Make sure the power supply provides at least 1 ampere of current.

Note: The StarShoot Pro can operate with as low as 8 volts in situations when your battery starts loosing power.

Software and

Driver Installation

Before the camera can be used, the software and camera drivers must be installed onto your computer. Turn on your computer and allow the Windows operating system to load as normal. Insert the included CD-ROM into your computer’s CD-ROM drive, and the Launcher will appear. This allows you to install the Maxim DL Essentials software. After the software is installed, the drivers will install automatically once the StarShoot Pro is initially connected to the computer. Do not connect the camera to your computer before you have installed the software.

Software Installation

To install Maxim DL Essentials Edition:

1.Insert the CD-ROM into the drive. The Launcher will appear (Figure 4). (For Windows Vista computers, the AutoPlay window will appear first. Select Run Launcher.exe, then the Launcher will appear.)

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