I can only answer a couple.
In the Ekos CCD page there is a checkbox by temperature, setting the checkbox will delay the sequence until the set point is reached.
Also in the Ekos CCD page there is a "Prefix" field under file settings where you can enter your target name. If you use the scheduler this may automatically be filled in.

Best
David

Thanks for the reply David. Okay, so I think I figured out what I did wrong with the temperature - I though I had set the checkbox on, but didn't save it to the entry in the sequence. Doh!

For the prefix, I thought the gray "Target" placeholder would put the name of the target in the scheduler in the filename. It doesn't seem to autofill it when using the scheduler.

Gabe

It doesn't autofill target unless the scheduler is doing the request. For regular sequence, put anything you want in there.

Do you have the logs? Please attach the log file. Most of the questions you asked can only be answered by examining the logs (Check my signature for more details)

The FOV arrow point to the frame UP side. For focus, try to use SEP detection and see if that helps. I'll try to improve auto-selection to avoid cores of clusters and galaxies as it still sometimes select them.For the guide rate issue, what AP servo box are you using? GTOCP2, 3, 4..etc? There is a known issue for guide settings in one of the older firmware as confirmed by AP. You also need to need to make sure mount is tracking before engaging guiding.

At any rate, the logs would shed more light on this.

Here's the log. The timestamp for when I did the guiding attempt (the problem was recreated here) was 2018-04-29T21:52:53.006.

Also, I can't get it to calibrate when using the subframe selection, even when setting the box to be the largest possible. The reverse RA step goes back to the original point and beyond, eventually falling outside the subframe. I then get a "GUIDE_RA: Scope cannot reach the start point after 35 iterations. Possible mount or backlash problems". I know the mount doesn't have backlash or any other issues. This starts at timestamp: 2018-04-29T21:55:58.747.

Thanks for your help!

Gabe

Try to use PHD2 and see.Maybe you will get better result in guiding.

Did you set guiding rate to a lower value? I can see there are big jumps in the star position.

For focusing, can you sync your initial position to have a slightly high value? The problem is that I see focusing starting from 0, but it will have problems when it tries to go the opposite side. Use Sync to set it to some high initial value like 50,000

I see you were not using Pulse Guiding.. please enable that in the driver AP driver.

Jasem, I set the guiding rate to 1x, which from what I understand is what I should use since AP mounts track at 1x. Am I misunderstanding this issue?

I have synced before, but not that time. Is there a way to sync to a pre-defined value within the scheduler? I'm under the impression that I can have the scheduler loaded and all the settings will propagate, including the sync settings for the focuser. Is this the case?

I'll set Pulse guiding in the AP driver next time I test (hopefully tonight).

Thanks Jasem for all your help!

@tmheroes, PHD2 would be fine, but I want the raspberry pi to run headless. Can PHD2 be run in a headless mode?

Gabe

BTW, I found the issue I was having w/ the focuser position. Operator error - I forgot to save the configuration. I'm still learning

Oh, also, to answer your previous question Jasem, I'm using GTOCP4, the latest controller, and have upgraded the firmware to the latest version - P01-11. I thought Pulseguide was for older mounts. Since I'm using CP4, did you still want me to check w/ Pulseguide turned on?

Gabe

My understanding is you should be using Pulse Guiding if your not using an ST4 cable and selecting internal (on camera). Instead of internal, your guide device should be set to your astrophysics mount.

Guiding commands can be either set via ST4 cable (usually from camera to mount), or directly to the mount itself. In the latter option, Meade-based protocols (including AP) use either regular NSWE motions with timers to move the mount (quite inaccurate) or pulse commands. So if you're not using ST4 cable, turn on pulse commands.

Maybe I should turn it on by default since this feature been available for a long time. Still, a few mounts there do not support it.

Thanks guys for the replies. I'm a dunce. I overlooked the pulse guide button in the settings and once that's enables everything works quite well. Thanks for the advice and information!

One thing that I'm wondering is whether there can be an autostar selection in the guide tab. I can't seem to get past the "select star" for autoguiding part, making the process of going through different targets over a night more difficult.

Gabe