The best telescope is the one you use. Anything else is just another persons opinion. Brent --- Marilyn Smith <bob-marilyn@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
Dave Dunn wrote:
"I am currently saving money to buy a Sky Commander" and "I think the goto telescope that I am going to save for is the 6" LXD55 refractor that Meade has put out."
Dave-
I've had a Sky Commander (DSC) on my Astrola mount for a couple of years now, and am quite pleased with it. I found it difficult to learn the sky through the light pollution here, and on the occasions that I visited a dark sky site, there were so many stars in the sky that I couldn't recognize any patterns that I HAD learned here. As a beginner, I found star-hopping to be so uniquely frustrating that I was on the verge of abandoning this hobby for something that offered some rewards. Luckily, I discovered the Sky Commander just shortly before this happened, and astronomy has become my most active hobby. I now occasionally connect my laptop to the Sky Commander, which interfaces with planetarium mapping software (I use the free version of SkyMap) to indicate exactly where the scope is pointed. I find the instant feedback of comparing the eyepiece universe with the mapped universe to be an excellent way to learn the sky. I am starting to point the scope by memory of the sky, and there is no longer any uncertainty whether the object in the eyepiece is the object I'm looking for. By using published coordinates, I was able to locate the comet NEAT on my first attempt while the evening sky was still bright enough that I couldn't have done it otherwise. For more opinions of and info about the Sky Commander, check out the Yahoo group on this topic.
Regarding the Meade LXD55, their prices for the 5" refractor got my attention a couple of months ago, so I surveyed the comments from the two or three Yahoo groups relating to this equipment. I found no major complaints with the LDX55 mounts (other than it may not be sturdy enough for the 6" scope), but so MANY complaints about the design quality and quality control of both the 6" and 5" refractors that I lost all interest in the whole assembly. I didn't read what people said about the reflectors. Some people buy the cheapest reflector just to get the mount, and I noticed others who were keeping the mount but selling the refractor that came with it. If Meade learns how bad of a reputation their refractors are getting, they might wise up and start to sell the LDX55 mount just by itself. I suggest that you review the archives of this groups before you make a decision.
Bob Grant
----- Original Message ----- From: "David Dunn" <david.dunn@albertsons.com> To: <utah-astronomy@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Monday, March 03, 2003 10:55 AM Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] In Defense of GoTo mounts
I frequently use other people's (Dale's) goto
telescopes to verify or help
me find an object that I am having trouble finding. I am currently saving money to buy a Sky Commander so that I wont have to bug Dale so often. I thing that DSC's and Goto telescopes are neat technology and enjoy using them. I also enjoy learning the sky and finding things without the computer's help. I have used OAS's 18.5" both with and without the Sky Wizard and have enjoyed the time that I have spent. Sometimes it is real nice to take a list of NGC numbers from the Astronomy magazine and to a tour of an area of the sky or of similar objects. Other times it is nice to take an atlas and look at all the galaxies in the bowl of the Big Dipper.
The other thing that was real fun to view through Dale's LX200 was the astroid that was passing close to earth last year. It was fun to watch it move while Dale tracked it with his LX200.
There is definately room at star parties for all kinds of telescopes.
I think the goto telescope that I am going to save for is the 6" LXD55 refractor that Meade has put out.
Dave
_______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com
http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy
_______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com
http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more http://taxes.yahoo.com/