Re: Mark IV control software and actions

[hjohnson@pluto.njcc.com (Herbert R Johnson)]

Chris, my point of view is pretty close to the hardware. Here is how
I would integrate your suggestions and mine:

A library of routines that operate the camera and mount, documented
for access by third-party software (i.e. someone else's programs).

A simple way to USE the library for testing hardware or for simple applications,
like a simple command interpreter (as you suggested).

Then, any language
or GUI or front-end you care to write for whatever purposes you believe
are appropriate for non-technical users to operate the Mark IV. The front-end
language need not be anything like the command-level language. I think
this "covers all the bases".

As for the *simple* command interpreter:
whether you call it BASIC or Java or TCL, all SIMPLE command interpreters
look about the same, just as long as it is SIMPLE. And, as you say, there
are a number of them around to be borrowed. Again, it does not matter what
it "looks" like: as you suggest, it will only be "seen" occasionally.

After a certain point, this discussion becomes "here's how you write your
code", and that's not a productive discussion. Bottom line: make it
easier for other programmers and their needs, and for whomever has to fix
and debug the hardware. You need a library of hardware routines anyway, just
document them, and glue them to a command interpreter. The rest I leave
to you and the "end-users" and their peers.

That's all I have on this subject.

Herb Johnson

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Herbert R. Johnson                      voice/FAX 609-771-1503 day/nite
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