Hi Richard,

This seems to be a database problem, and it's like having a finder scope
out of adjustment. The following works with most stars, Sirius is just
really out of whack and the Bayer/Flamsteed Goto|Star positions are even
worse! Toggle the center cross (+) on, turn on Common Names in the Star
Display, set the level to 20 (1" field), Goto|Object name|Sirius. There
will be nothing but black.

Right-clicking on the field shown in the Legend zooms out one level. Keep
zooming out a level at a time, and you'll see Sirius pop up at the bottom
when you have backed out to level 16 (15"). Holding down the right mouse
key, drag a line from Sirius to the + and release it. You'll find that
Sirius is 7" from the center of the screen.

In my case, if I boot Guide with CD1 in the drive, there is a false image
to the left of Sirius at level 16. The only way to tell them apart is by
the label. If you right-click either image, it gives you the same Sirius
dialog. "Doubling" does _not_ happen if I boot _without_ CD1 in the drive,
but Sirius will still be 7" from the center of the screen.

Polaris is only 0.34" from the center of the screen. It has the same
"doubling" problem, but its appearance also depends on whether or not CD1
is in the drive. You have to back out to level 14 (60") to see it. This
spurious image is directly below Polaris (Alt/Az, zenith up) and 19" from
the center. The symbol has the same size as Polaris, but if you right-click
on it, you get data for a rather nondescript 8 magnitude star.

If you go to these stars using Goto|Star|Common names|... you'll find their
distances from center are the same: Sirius 7", Polaris 0.3". However, if
you use the Goto|Star|Bayer/Flamsteed... route, Alpha Canis Major (Sirius)
is 19" from the center, as opposed to the 7" found above. Alpha Ursa Major,
(Polaris) is 6" from the center, as opposed to the 0.34" found above.

Check out the Summer Triangle, Deneb, Vega, and Altair for comparison.

Sorry for the length, I wanted enough exact detail to let others check and
see if they have these problems. If you do - or do not - please post.

Larry



At 10:43 PM 9/9/2005 +0100, you wrote:

>If I go to Alpha Canis Majoris it appears in the centre of the screen.
>If I gradually increase the level, it gradually drifts downward; so
>that, at level 20, it is no longer in the visible part of the screen
>(because it is below the lower boundary of the window). If I repeat 'go
>to Alpha Canis Majoris' it still does not appear, because it is still
>below the bottom of the screen. If I gradually decrease the level, it
>reappears from the bottom of the screen.
>
>Richard.

Laren Dart
http://ldart.got.net