SkySafari 4+

I have been using this software for three months now. Except for a couple of caveats, I am very satisfied with it. Its a very capable software that does what it says it does. It simply works.

I use this with an Orion StarSeek WiFi device attached to a Meade LX-90. Combined with an AVS DSO-1 Bluetooth astro camera, the whole setup allows me to "observe" from inside my house using a one-wire connection.

The user interface is intuitive, and not overly complicated. The learning curve is very short that one or two sessions with it is enough to become adept with its usage.

The product support is superb. I remember posting a question on one of the popular astro forum, and within an hour I got a reply from Bill Tschumy, SCCs principal software developer and also an avid amateur astronomer. (I couldve called their tech support, but it was already late, and I wasnt sure if it was an issue with Orion or SkySafari.) Another layer of support they have which I have just recently discovered is the Yahoo Users Group, and Bill is also very active there.

Now for the two aforementioned caveats. The telescope slewing bar needs to have more variance especially bet between the second "gear" that is painfully slow, and the third "gear" that is abruptly fast. The alignment feature could be improved by using two- or three-star alignment instead of just one. Neither of this two are showstoppers, and take away anything substantial from the product.

Overall, I find this software worth every penny. I would recommend it to anyone who would ask about it. Im giving this a 5-star grade for this reason, but realistically it should be 4.5 just to allow consideration for improvements.

Corolla1978 about SkySafari 4 Plus: Map the Universe! Discover Sun, Moon, Mars, Stars, Planets, and Satellites with your telescope and NASA space missions!