Hi Ken,
I have an ASA600 scope running in Chile that has built in fans and a primary mirror cover that are actuated with a nice Alpaca driver. The Ascom Action commands of the ACC Alpaca driver for the fans are:
- Start Fans: Action := „fansturnon“
- Stop Fans: Action := „fansturnoff“
- Fans current status: Action := „fansstatus“ (from ACC Version 0.3)
** Value := „True“ if fans are running
** Value := „False“ if fans are stopped
I don’t have the commands for the covers but I’m am sure that they are similarly simple.
I can currently automatically open and close the Alnitak flip-flat on my refractor and I’d like to do the same thing on the big scope. It would be nice to be able to actuate the fans at the same time. Apparently NINA will do this right out of the box but I’ve got SGP set up and running so I’d like to stick with you guys. How hard would it be to add this capability to SGP?? If you are willing to add this feature (which would work with all ASA scopes), I can get more information about the covers commands and test it for you.
Thanks!!
John
PS. Ken, I know how hard it is to prioritize requests like mine given your stack of other requests, bug fixes, and new features. Other users might not like this suggestion but have you ever considered adding a bidding process for new features? That would provide an incentive to bump serious requests to the top of the list. I know that most folks complain about paying anything at all for software, but I’m not in that group. I have a substantial investment in my equipment and I’d be willing to bid a price for a new feature like this one. You add it and I’ll pay the bid. That’s a way to pay for at least some of the time needed to add a new features to your standard product. What do you think?