Stellarium
Improve 'Equatorial Grid [E]' button functionality/labeling
Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe. The Equatorial grid [E] button on the main tool bar does not have an option to disable that button (ie that button is always on the main tool bar). Further more, the button label and manual description on page 15 lacks clarity. I am running Stellarium version 24.4 on 64-bit Windows.
Describe the solution you'd like
- Make the Equatorial grid [E] button optional by adding it to the Configuration, Extras, Show additional buttons dialog.
- Re-label this the above button to more completely reflect what the button does, for example, something like: Equatorial Now grid [E].
- Enhance button description in the manual on page 15 for the now, current date epoch.
- Add shortcut to toggle the Equatorial J2000 grid button. An example would be: [Alt-E]. Of course, this button should be appropriately re-labeled.
Describe alternatives you've considered I have not considered any alternatives.
Additional context The idea behind this issue is to improve clarity of button labels and allow user to remove equatorial buttons from the menu bar when they are not needed.
We don't consider removal of this button beneficial. Why would you remove it? Labels should be short, so as not to clutter the screen. You can assign your own shortcut to show the J2000 grid right now. We should not waste default shortcuts. Showing two buttons seems more confusing than beneficial. If we change anything, we should also add yet another button for the fixed equatorial grid.
We don't consider removal of this button beneficial. Why would you remove it?
RESPONSE: I apologize for my sentence structure. What I meant is the user can decide if the Equatorial grid [E] button appears on the menu toolbar or not. That behavior would be like the other buttons that can be added from the Configuration, Extras, Show Additional Buttons.
Labels should be short, so as not to clutter the screen.
RESPONSE: I agree, they should be short. They should also convey the correct information so as to avoid confusion. An example of this is when 2 Equatorial grid buttons exist on the menu bar: one button is labeled Equatorial grid [E] and the other button is labeled Equatorial J2000 grid. I would ask myself what is the difference? A cleaner, and less confusing approach would be to change Equatorial grid [E] label to Equatorial Now grid [E]. As it currently stands, it is unclear as to what Equatorial grid [E] means. Even the manual does not make a distinction. The only way I discovered the true meaning was to examine the descriptions found on dialog: View, Markings.
You can assign your own shortcut to show the J2000 grid right now. We should not waste default shortcuts.
RESPONSE: Not sure how to do that. Perhaps you could explain. I do know there is an optional button that can be added to the menu bar to toggle the J2000 equatorial grid.
Showing two buttons seems more confusing than beneficial.
RESPONSE: I agree and that is the exact situation on my menu toolbar. There are 2 unique Equatorial grid buttons: one for Equatorial grid and another for Equatorial J2000 grid. I'm pretty sure Stellarium could incorporate logic that would only allow the user to select one or the other Equatorial grid butttons to be displayed on the menu toolbar.
If we change anything, we should also add yet another button for the fixed equatorial grid.
RESPONSE: Not completely sure what the context is for a fixed equatorial grid.
Here is an example of the 2 Equatorial grid buttons on my Menu toolbar: [image: image.png]
Hope this helps clarify what I am requesting.
Thanks,
Rod
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On Mon, Jan 20, 2025 at 11:36 AM Georg Zotti @.***> wrote:
We don't consider removal of this button beneficial. Why would you remove it? Labels should be short, so as not to clutter the screen. You can assign your own shortcut to show the J2000 grid right now. We should not waste default shortcuts. Showing two buttons seems more confusing than beneficial. If we change anything, we should also add yet another button for the fixed equatorial grid.
— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/4091#issuecomment-2602966122, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AK4GDALGBMKNQNQJ5YVIQEL2LUX2DAVCNFSM6AAAAABVQZVSKKVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDMMBSHE3DMMJSGI . You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: @.***>
I forgot, we have both buttons. The optional one has "J2000" in its help string and shows ICRS (maybe this can be amended, it's not 100% correct), the more important one doesn't have it. By not having it, it is "the one that fits what you see just now". While J2000 coordinates are used in printed atlases for obvious referential reasons but have no direct value for observing (we are halfway to 2050!), the current coordinates are of so fundamental importance that I don't see us removing the button.
If you are not sure how to do something like editing keyboard shortcuts, check the instructions in the User Guide.
The fixed equatorial grid does not rotate and shows hour angles. It is fundamental for astronomers using telescopes on mounts with non-rotating setting circles.
Your point is well stated. There are some other use cases where J2000 coordinates are useful for astrophotography.
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After a single target has been found in Stellarium, the J2000 coordinates are entered into my acquisition software that controls the telescope mount. Those coordinates are typically taken from the target information panel.
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When multiple targets could be captured in one image, the J2000 coordinates would be in the middle of those targets. In that use case, the coordinates can be obtained from the Equatorial J2000 grid. For that reason, I would prefer having the option to disable the Equatorial Now grid option in the Menu toolbar in favor of just using the Equatorial J2000 grid.
Under the current paradigm, it is possible to have both equatorial grids active simultaneously, which is confusing. I would prefer allowing the user to determine which equatorial grid option will be present on the menu toolbar.
Rod
On Mon, Jan 20, 2025 at 3:53 PM Georg Zotti @.***> wrote:
I forgot, we have both buttons. The optional one has "J2000" in its help string and shows ICRS (maybe this can be amended, it's not 100% correct), the more important one doesn't have it. By not having it, it is "the one that fits what you see just now". While J2000 coordinates are used in printed atlases for obvious referential reasons but have no direct value for observing (we are halfway to 2050!), the current coordinates are of so fundamental importance that I don't see us removing the button.
If you are not sure how to do something like editing keyboard shortcuts, check the instructions in the User Guide.
The fixed equatorial grid does not rotate and shows hour angles. It is fundamental for astronomers using telescopes on mounts with non-rotating setting circles.
— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/4091#issuecomment-2603276125, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AK4GDALT6DX7JFHV3XG7MAD2LVV5PAVCNFSM6AAAAABVQZVSKKVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDMMBTGI3TMMJSGU . You are receiving this because you authored the thread.Message ID: @.***>
Hello @ss396camaro69!
Thank you for suggesting this enhancement.
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I think adding some extra notifications about difference between various equatorial grids in Stellarium User Guide for newbies (in chapter The User Interface) should be enough, because difference already descibed in chapter Astronomical Concepts...
