Deep Sky Browser Reviews

Great tool

Dalagra

This is just a magnificent astronomy application for any observer who is hunting all those faint galaxies, globulars and nebulas! It is very simple and easy to use - you see the object image in just three steps!!! I used it a few times already and I just love to have images of all (that I need) deep sky objects in my pocket or on my new iPad. :-) Be prepared, because It takes a bit of time to download all the images but the application has a batch download mode, hence no user interaction is required - just leave it downloading, preferably over WIFI. It is great to use at the eyepiece. The application has a night mode, just make sure you set the brightness of your i(thingy) to the minimum and it will not affect your dark adaptation. The application has a magnitude filter so you can reduce the objects list to just objects visible in your telescope. Overall I am very happy with the application. The developer seemed very knowledgeable and willing to improve the application. (this is my very first review on the app store)

Good reference, but application lacks polish

ckat

The catalogs are complete, but many of the images are old and the application needs some tweaking to support features like autorotate. I suppose it's not a bad value for the price. Users should also note that the images of catalog objects are downloaded from the network server only when they are selected. This makes for a compact app, but it also means the app will grow in size substantially as more objects are viewed and saved locally. iTouch (and iPad users without 3G) located at remote sites cannot use this app to access images of new objects (objects not already downloaded).

Review so far...

Galaxyhunter

So far the app seems good. A few suggestions though: App should take advantage iPhone multitasking. As it is now, each time you switch out then back in it has to reload. It should go back immediately to where you left off There needs to be a settings for: Ability to make a list or multiple observing lists of images. For ex. If you wanted to observe 15 objects from different catalogues, you should be able make a list of the 15. Then you could click on an image from your list rather than writing down each object on a piece of paper and going in and out of each catalogue to find each object Ability to download batch images at a certain filter setting, like IR. Or even multiple filters

Very nice app

Astro nut

This is a good app, yes, it does need some work, especially in the downloading of the images. I have emailed the developer and, much to my surprise got a response back in a couple of hours and even replied back to me. That is an encouraging sign. I plan on using this app in the field!!!

Great App!

DAS1963

This is a great app. I really like the ability to bulk download pictures for each catalog. When I am in the field I can pull up the picture ot the object I want to see. There is lots of info for each object and even a reference to find object in Uranometria. The included catalogs provide a wide range of objects. I hope in future releases to see the Abell Galaxy Clusters, Bernard Dark Nebulae, and maybe the PK planetary nebulae catalogs. A 5 star app! Highly recommended

Just what I've been looking for.

Jbredmo

This is an intriguing way to evaluate potential observing targets. It has a professional feel to it, and a no-nonsense layout that I appreciate. The NASA website server from which images are downloaded was down when I first tried to connect, which caused some confusion, but the developer was right on the ball, and explained the situation in response to my support contact. I'm very glad I happened to notice this app. I think I'll really find it useful and enjoyable. John

It Leaks! Still!!

2boldlygo

I complained about this two years ago with a different device! It hasn't changed! See prior review below - It still will not save data long term. Please fix or tell me what I'm doing wrong! I'm tired of reloading everything! ------------------------------------- This is a handy app for those with a deep sky telescope. Unfortunately, it's not as good as it could or should be. The worst problem is that the downloaded object images don't seem to consistently be saved or stored, but instead are volatile, and many must be downloaded again after a power down/up cycle. There are thousands of deep sky object images available, and downloading them can require lots of time, personal involvement, and bandwidth, so this is quite a problem, especially if you have no internet source available at your telescope location.

Now a useful reference for deep sky viewing

TheKemer

This app was first introduced as "DSS Browser." At that time it was mildly interesting, a little idiosyncratic in its interface, but it was a little unclear as to what its real strength or value was: it didn't do any one thing exceptionally well. Was it a database, DSS image retrieval program, or a scope controller? That has changed, although the interface is still a little idiosyncratic. It has a carefully thought out selection of catalogs, and each catalog is complete. The selection of catalogs is a complex issue: there are so many and with such large overlap. Deep Sky Browser has selected those that will be of greatest utility to the more advanced observer. Inevitably, some users will miss a favorite specialized catalog, such as the Palomar or Terzan globular clusters. Deep Sky Browser will download and save images for each entry. The user can initiate a bulk download for each catalog, but should recognize that gtheir device memory will be easily consumed and exceeded by the larger catalogs. So, it this app a database, DSS image retrieval program, or scope controller? The answer is “yes” to all, but I find it most useful as a large reference database of deep sky objects with the ability download and store associated DSS images.