Summary

Here is a one-volume guide to just about everything computer-related for amateur astronomers!

Today's amateur astronomy is inextricably linked to personal computers. Computer-controlled "go-to" telescopes are inexpensive. CCD and webcam imaging make intensive use of the technology for capturing and processing images. Planetarium software provides information and an easy interface for telescopes. The Internet offers links to other astronomers, information, and software. The list goes on and on.

Find out here how to choose the best planetarium program: are commercial versions really better than freeware? Learn how to optimise a go-to telescope, or connect it to a lap-top. Discover how to choose the best webcam and use it with your telescope. Create a mosaic of the Moon, or high-resolution images of the planets...

Astronomy with a Home Computer is designed for every amateur astronomer who owns a home computer, whether it is running Microsoft Windows, Mac O/S or Linux. It doesn't matter what kind of telescope you own either - a small refractor is just as useful as a big "go-to" SCT for most of the projects in this book.

Choice Review

Monks is a research professor of paleontology at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, as well as an amateur astronomer and author of a number of articles on observational astronomy. His book displays an eclectic collection of topics broadly related to the use of computers in observational astronomy. It includes a discussion of home computers and operating systems; lists of astronomical Web sites, mailing lists, and discussion groups; a review of planetarium and other astronomical software; and a discussion of computer-controlled telescopes and digital astrophotography. Although amateur astronomers interested in any of the many topics covered in this book would find it to be a useful resource, its specificity is its downfall. Given the fast rate of change of Web sites, computer hardware and software, and telescope technology, this book will quickly become dated. Given its relatively high price for a paperback and its limited shelf life, it cannot be recommended for purchase by most libraries. ^BSumming Up: Not recommended. S. H. Schimmrich SUNY Ulster County Community College