12 New Photo Galleries (Celestia add-ons, etc.)

[don]

If you've not seen some of the very cool Celestia add-ons available in the Add-Ons forum, or if you would just like to look at some screen-shots of Celestia add-ons -- along with some Hubble Space Telescope and Sloan Digital Sky Survey pics of Deep Space objects ... then visit my Celestia page and look for the "Photo, Screenshot and Video Gallery" section towards the bottom of the page.

Enjoy!

[piellepi]

Very nice job , don
I only looked at the first gallery and it's impressive...
If it's possible, I would like to suggest you to add the relevant "cel" file related to the pictures, in order to be able to recreate the jpg file or, better, to create other images, just to share them with Celestia users!
Thanks!!

Pierluigi

[ElPelado]

Very nice images you have there...
but:
1) where can i get the Arceibo addon?


2) The iss and mir meshes in your images dont look so good in my opinion... there are better models I think...

[don]

If it's possible, I would like to suggest you to add the relevant "cel" file related to the pictures, in order to be able to recreate the jpg file or, better, to create other images, just to share them with Celestia users!

Thank you for your kind words.

Since I don't actually have every one of these add-ons installed on my system, many of the images are from the web sites of the add-on creators. Thus it is not possible to show the cel URL, sorry.

Hope you enjoy the other galleries too!

[don]

Very nice images you have there...

Thank you!

1) where can i get the Arceibo addon?

For anyone wondering where they can get any of the add-ons shown in these galleries ... try a forum Search (text link at the top of each forum page) on the name of the add-on or the creator's name. In this specific case, doing a search on "arecibo" returns the topic VT of Arecibo's telescope in Puerto Rico.

2) The iss and mir meshes in your images dont look so good in my opinion... there are better models I think...

I use an ATI graphics card and there are some problems with reflectivity in recent Celestia versions.

The ISS and Mir models are the ones that come with Celestia. Yes, I think there are 2 or 3 other models available.

[Bob Hegwood]

Don,

Lots of *very* nice images to peruse for those of us without high-end graphics
endowed machines. Thanks - as always - for your excellent contributions.

Take care, Bob

[don]

Thank you for your kind comments Bob.

It would be REALLY nice if someone like Joe (alpha1plus -- the guy who is setting up a single place to go for links to addons) were to add a screen-shot to each add-on entry. It would definately take time, but would be VERY helpful, in my humble opinion. A link to a zip file is great, but only if you already know what it contains. The Users forum topic regarding this web site is here and the location of his web site is here.

That's why I tried to use the add-on author's description of the add-on, when available, and include their name, in the file name displayed on top of each image, so at least people know where to go looking /asking for it.

Cheers,

[Jeam Tag]

It would be REALLY nice if someone like Joe (alpha1plus -- the guy who is setting up a single place to go for links to addons) were to add a screen-shot to each add-on entry. It would definately take time, but would be VERY helpful, in my humble opinion.

Yes, this is what i try to do, when i have time. There are hundreds of (little) picts in my catalogu, and I have some other pages and picts soon ready to host. Maybe last week. Jeam
(And I'll add your galleries in the Gallery paragraph in the 'Contributors' page')

[don]

There are hundreds of (little) picts in my catalogu, ...

Your add-on catalog site is quite nice, and growing little by little. However, I have a difficult time reading the text on the main page because of the bright background graphic.

(And I'll add your galleries in the Gallery paragraph in the 'Contributors' page')

Thank you Jeam.

[Jeam Tag]

However, I have a difficult time reading the text on the main page because of the bright background graphic.

I Know, I planned to paint another illustration wich includes Celestia screenshoots when i'll turn the site more simple and reactive... but no time for the moment Try to rearrange colors in a next update Jeam

[alphap1us]

Don-
I plan to include screenshots and a longer desription of each file in my catalog in the near future. However, at the moment I am trying to make sure that all the links work, and that the catalog is complete. If you (or anyone else) feels motivated to add them, I would be happy to give you password where you can modify the catalog pages. Just let me know. I would also be very happy if anyone would come up with a more inviting layout to my pages, sine they are very anti-septic at the moment. Maybe I can find a decent template somewhere on the web....

Added later: Oh wow! Your screenshot section is very nice. Would you like to somehow integrate it into the add-on catalog. It looks like you have done much of the work already. I have more space where we can host all the screenshots. I am excited about this. Another idea even occurs to me. Since Jeam is planning an overhaul of his site, should we make one master catalog in French and English with screenshots and the like? Let me know what you guys think. Cheers,

Joe

[don]

Howdy Joe,

I'd love to help out a few hours a week, in any way I can, just let me know (via PM).

I would also be very happy if anyone would come up with a more inviting layout to my pages, since they are very anti-septic at the moment. Maybe I can find a decent template somewhere on the web....

How a page looks depends on it's content and how you want it to look. One way of displaying large amounts of data (like your site) is to use simple tables, like yours is currently laid out, with all the data for each entry on a row.

Another way (such as when including screen-shots) is to still use tables, but use columns for each add-on entry. For example, 2 or 3 columns wide, where a column contains all information about the add-on, in it's little "boxed" area of the page. Sort of like how some photo gallery pages are laid out.

The hard part is getting a "majority" of people to agree on a particular layout.

Oh wow! Your screenshot section is very nice. Would you like to somehow integrate it into the add-on catalog. It looks like you have done much of the work already. I have more space where we can host all the screenshots. I am excited about this. ... Since Jeam is planning an overhaul of his site, should we make one master catalog in French and English with screenshots and the like?

Thank you for your kind comment.

Personally, I would love to see a single site that folks could go to for add-on information, as this fits in perfectly with the Add-On project. BUT, the web host requirements would include ...

* Long-term account (no school accounts),

* Good connectivity speeds (like when 500 people all want add-ons at the same time),

* Have a high bandwidth allowance (depends on the screen-shot sizes provided),

* Allow multiple accounts (instead of workers all trying to use a single account).

* It is a site that will also be HIGH-MAINTENANCE because of it's nature, thus there needs to be enough people involved so that someone would normally be available to make changes and additions.

* It would also be nice if the final site was located under the "official" Celestia domain name (shatters.net or spacesim.net -- Chris?).

* Other?

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As for checking links, I use HomeSite (among other web-site programs, such as FP 2003) which can check a full page of links via a single button click, in a matter of seconds. I'm sure there are also stand-alone link checkers to be had. This comes in very handy when running a reference site like yours.

For example, at the end of this message is a list of failed links on your Babylon 5 page that took about 20 seconds to create with a 384 kbps (real speed), copper-wire-based, DSL connection.

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Jeam, what do you think about combining the sites and providing a French translation? Then other folks could add other translations as well.

Cheers,

-Don G.

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Failed links on your Babylon 5 page...

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[alphap1us -Not logged in]

Hey Don,
Check the deep-space section of my catalog. The thumbnails don't link to anything yet, but is this the type of thing you're thinking?

Joe

[don]

Hi Joe,

That will certainly work, but you will probably need to link the small screenshot pics to larger ones for folks who use higher resolution screen settings, such as 1200 or 1600.

The graphic below demonstrates what I meant by each add-on being in it's own column. This allows for a larger screenshot that doesn't need to be linked to a second picture...



Just one idea.

Cheers,

[Jeam Tag]

Jeam, what do you think about combining the sites and providing a French translation? Then other folks could add other translations as well.

This is what I want to purpose when i'll have time to harschly refresh my pages this summer: verify broken links, rewrite some notice about install that i've wrote for 1.2.4 or 5 celestia version, and so on. Turn the pages in a better html scripting for help an english translation, especially for the descriptions -and linked all the little explanations i've wrote for some of add-ons (probes missions for example: the links 'Notules VF' in some of them). And last but not Least finding a common format to show little picts of add-ons (like those I made)for quickly discover the object, and, 'course, all linked to more detailled ones.
A common system (even if each author may add some different visuals on mirrored site) must be a very useful tool. And the Main site associated with the Celestia Main pages seems to me good idea. Chris?

Maybe the great idea of Gordon will be associated toohttp://arnaud.macron.free.fr/recherche.php It was no really understood, here: this is a site page FOR the add-ons creators too, for adding themselves their works in the repertory. Because we can't have always a look at all the improvments, yes?...
Gordon, do you read this thread?
That's all for the moment, folks, tomorrow i must go away for few days, Jeam

[Jeam Tag]

Hi Joe, Don;

The graphic below demonstrates what I meant by each add-on being in it's own column. This allows for a larger screenshot that doesn't need to be linked to a second picture...

Yes, if I understand: this is what i try to say in my previous post, a little stamp that can be enlarged in a more detailled size, yes?
Another things about descriptions: when i was able to do it, I wrote little summary about the object : 'N?buleuse Plan?taire dans la constellation de la Licorne' or '"La premi?re sonde qui a photographi? la plan?te xxx le 3 janvier 197..."
And, sometimes, i add some instructions for the addon installation when it is necessary. (changes in the main repertories, replacing basic textures, dates to see it when there are beginning and ending lines, for example)...Jeam

[don]

Hi Jeam,

Thank you for your messages. They have good ideas in them.