From: "ji425bp" <ji425bt@earthlink.net>

Date: January 15, 2006 10:00:30 AM MST

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: considering making the switch- suggestions?

Hello to the group:

My name is Jon Iverson and I'm a new group member.  I have been doing

planetary imaging for some time using webcams/ firewire cameras on a

Win platform.  Recently, however, I have been considering making the

switch from a Win platform to the Mac, but having never used the Mac I

know nothing about it.  However, after some research of the archives

here and around the web, it seems that this software offers some

remarkable options that just don't exist (or have trouble existing) on

Win platforms.  Although I was going to contact the group moderator/

owner directly, I thought that since my questions were a bit drawn

out, they might better be expressed here:

1)  Currently, I have been using a P4 laptop and webcams/ Lumenera

camera.  If I made the switch, my budget would be limited.  Currently,

I am looking at one of the DMK cameras, either the DMK 21F04 or

21BF04.  My understanding is that the BF04 offers long exposure

capability, but with this software (IIDC), wouldn't I be able to have

longer exposures with just the DMK21F04?  At least, that's what I

think I read in the software description.  

2)  The Mac I've been wondering about is the Mac mini as found here:

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/72702/wo/5W5vEB8bmDKy3oim5aJ1py8l9LU/0.SLID?nclm=Macmini&mco=B183D5F8

This almost seems like a laptop to me due to its small size and I

wonder if I could use it as such with a small LCD monitor?  The price

is certainly reasonable, but the big question is how well it would

work with the DMK camera?  Would it be fast enough to do processing

equivalent or nearly equivalent to a P4?  

3)  The only other thing I'm wondering about right now are the ports

on this Mac mini.  Since the keyboard and mouse are plugged in

externally, that leaves little (if any) room for the camera.  Am I

wrong, or could the camera still be plugged in?  Also, what about an

external hard drive?  I use one now with my P4, but $100 more for the

internal 80 GB hd wouldn't break the bank.  

I know, lots of questions, but the Lumenera has *plenty* of problems,

IMO, and I have had a chance to use a DMK camera in the past on the

Win platform except the control software was no good (noise was less

than a Lumenera however).  Of course, these are just my opinions, but

I am more and more impressed with the images I see coming from the Mac

side of things, so I am seriously considering this switch.  I would

greatly appreciate any suggestions/ tips you could provide.

thank you,

Jon Iverson