I would appreciate some input from anyone out there how is using anything including the June 17 2013 update to Guide8 or Guide9

 

How are you uploading fresh comet data now?

 

The process with that version and later ones is to simply allow for using the EXTRAS/Asteroid/Comet Options and then clicking on Add MPC Comets.....

In there is a link to download the current comet data and it loads in Guide as the Soft02cm.txt file.

 

However, this is not working for us.  According to Bill, the method of copying the MPC Soft02cmt.txt file for latest comet data and then changing the designation to 'comets.dat' and over-writing that file in Guide should no longer work....but it is the only method by which we can load the current comets to some of our computers.   Other computers will not load ANY comets at all, regardless of which method is used.

 

Any experience and insight on this would be helpful.  I have copied my last message to Bill explaining better the details of this situation....BELOW:

 

****Hi Bill.
I am not sure what has happened on my comets list.  I have two files in Guide
(version 17June2013):

1) comets.dat
2) soft02cm.txt

The listed comets that are coming up are coming from COMETS.DAT, not from the new
file on the computers linked to the internet....the Download does not appear to be
working.

If I zero (delete existing comets and place "0" in the file and then save as I have
been doing) out and then save the comets.dat file, then I have absolutely no comets
showing even with the soft02cm file in place.
If I try to update via the Internet and upload the latest comets via the Extras, I
still have no comets showing.  I can place the data FROM the Download
(soft02cm.txt....NOT coming in as 'soft02cm.dat - TXT rather than DAT file
extensions)

However, if I go back to the original MPC Soft02cmt.dat file and change that name to
'comets.dat' and copy and paste in Guide, it still works as it did before.  This is
not how it is supposed to work, correct?  When I wrote to you last night I still had
the 'comets.dat' file latest update on my office computer and that is what was
providing the correct list, NOT the soft02cm.dat file.  I can delete the soft02cm.dat
file altogether on this computer and it still works just fine.

So it appears that the automatic internet upload on the Extras is NOT working and
that is where the problem might be.  It does save and rename the file, but my version
of Guide is not finding this file for its comet list.  It is still going to the
comets.dat file....

Clay *****