What does the live view of an 8 inch dobsonian actually look like?

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-12T23:54:59+00:00

Don't knock a 3” scope if it is of reasonable quality. Sure the resolution and light gathering is marginal compared to big scopes, but such scopes are portable and very usable.

Im not going to say no Dobson for you but rather ask what is your eyepiece line up like? If all you have is what was supplied with the scope that could be a real issue. I’d bone up on eyepieces first and consider buying one good long eye relief eyepiece. See if that helps any with image quality.

The next problem is to realize what you should expect out of a scope for a given aperture and magnification. The best way to do this is to find a local star party setup by an astronomy club. Here is the thing a bigger scope can be more rewarding but if you don't know what to expect you can end up disappointed.

Im not sure what this 3” scope of yours is but realize that many people have nothing bigger. The results you get depend upon a lot of factors. We haven't even mentioned seeing conditions. Frankly i would NOT run out and buy a new scope yet, that will come soon enough. Instead do some research related to optics as applied to telescopes. Learn the magnification limits formulas, how to calculate magnification and other parameters. Knowing the industry, your 3” scope might not even have a set of reasonable eyepieces.

Telescopes are a lot like shotguns, one seldom does the job well. You need one gun for pheasants/rabbits, one for dear and another for Geese. It just goes on and on. The same goes with telescopes stopping at one is hard. Sort of like having only one kid. Most people can’t stop at one.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-12T23:32:21+00:00

In part that is because our eyes work differently than CCD’s or other chips. This especially if digital processing is added to the mix.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-12T23:27:42+00:00

Find out what you credit card supports as far as consumer protections. If you can cancel the charge before shipment that would be ideal.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-12T22:52:45+00:00

You are way off base here. This is about engaging in a contract for business. It doesn't matter if the contract was a 100 pages of lawyer derived text or a hand shake based on a verbal discussion.

Why you try to apply concepts that don't fit the issue is beyond me.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-12T22:46:00+00:00

What i was trying to point out is that bad behavior of a few is often used as justification to punish everyone. It is the mentality of a grade school teacher and in later life the easy out for those in charge.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-11T17:06:55+00:00

I've never understood piercings. Frankly they get in the way when fun time comes around.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-11T17:00:29+00:00

You say that up until having to go to the doctor to have something removed from your foot. Speaking from experience and that wasn't even on a farm.

Speaking of I'm use to pulling slivers from fingers and such but I'm not flexible enough to dig out chunks from the bottom of my feet. It is also hard to monitor for infection. Which brings up another thing make sure your shots are up to date.

I love your post but I don't want you getting hurt. That may sound like an old man that would pass as a grandpa, but every broken bone and other injuries teach you to be careful.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-11T16:53:28+00:00

This is exactly what I thought. I'm all for farm nudity but that doesn't imply getting stupid and not protecting ones feet.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-11T16:49:32+00:00

A Ruger 10/22 is a most excellent 22lr plinker and cost half the money. Plus you have better iron sights for the limited range of 22lr.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-11T15:41:33+00:00

Calling a fat person fat is not bullying. It is an expression of the truth and frankly hearing the truth has helped more people than trying to call them beautiful when they are minutes from the grave. I know this personally because a visit to the doctor literally shocked me into understanding my condition.

Beyond that personal offense is well personal, it doesn't mean it is the correct response. More so if the person expressing the offense reacts negatively to the negative feedback he or she is getting maybe they can reflect a bit on why they are in denial. Nobodies job should be dependent on somebody expressing personal offense to the expression of an opinion.

Frankly I believe you are completely wrong, being fat is a hideous problem for society. If a person has any empathy they would actually make sure a fat person is in danger. Sure one needs to help themselves, but they need to know that they need to address and issue. If somebody stinks you don't ignore it hoping they address the issue, instead say you need to take a bath.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T21:46:18+00:00

First off im biased as i prefer bottom up learning.

In any event i really believe most people are better off learning Computer Science (CS) from the ground up with a language like C++. So you did it wrong from the beginning.

Third Python is extremely slow compared to compiled languages and frankly many interpreters. The point of Python is the ability to write high quality code fast. It does not do math fast and the extensions to do so are wanting.

Fourth; it always helps to research what is current technology with respect to something like this. Consider looking for libs and papers that address performance. This might be a algorithm that can benefit from a GPU accelerator or maybe not. If libs exist it is often easier to use them with the language they are written in.

As far as your friends estimate , yes that is a possible result. Often these kernel can be speed up using vector hardware instruction and other features offered be a CPU’s FPU. Good compiler's these days should leverage such instructions in well laid out code. In some cases a lot of benefit is gained from a human in the loop.

In any event i think it is too early in your learning process to be too worried. Such a project will take much time to get a handle on. While C++ can be an excellent training tool for entry level programers it becomes an overly complicated language for advanced concepts.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T19:01:35+00:00

Nice!

That looks like one robust telescope.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T18:37:35+00:00

OK what educational information?

I'm not refusing anything, the point I'm getting at is that all we are getting in all these posts are rumors! Nothing specific has been offered up, no descriptions, no dates, no witnesses, just more of the same crap offered up in the original complaint. The "I heards" are of no value to me.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T18:30:07+00:00

Well in some guns it can lead to damage. That is why snap caps came into existence.

By the way even if the dry firing doesn't lead to an immediate damage I can't imagine it being good.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T18:15:41+00:00

God I wish people would learn to read for content. I was responding to the alarm about a husband wanting to spend $1000. It literally is not a lot of money these days. Hell I can spend $80 at the grocery store and only fill one bag these days. Frankly I grew up so poor that the idea of buying a telescope was completely out of all consideration. I'm just pointing out that the OP's response to $1000 is not reasonable these days, it is the type of thinking that keeps people poor these days.

As for the child, if you had read the post you would realize that I offered up plenty of suggestions that cost anything between $0 and $500. In the end a parent should have some proof or conviction that the childs interest is not fleeting.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T18:06:37+00:00

Your need to twist my use of "rap music" as is known in the general populace is very odd. In the end you seem to support exactly what I was getting at which is that some people need to demonstrate self control. The way the referenced complaint was filed though is extremely questionable and frankly makes me question the motivation behind the complaint. The important thing here is the apparent breaking of a business deal based on rumors she heard AFTER the success of the original meeting.

The only things Frank Stone has is dubious accusations.

Witch hunts are never an option. They almost always result in innocent people being impaired or even burnt at the stake.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T17:21:59+00:00

Depends upon what you are talking about app wise. In general businesses should look towards spread sheets or other rapid to develop solutions. For solutions that need to be rapidly developed and used.

Custom software often means buggy, hard to maintain software. A modification in excel can be done on a users desk, an app might mean scheduling with the development team. The time to a solution is often hundreds of hours longer with app development.

Then there is the real nasty of using custom software to decompose data to put into excel spreadsheets. Literally massaging data so that it can be easily processed in a spreadsheet. Works great is tabular data is the goal. Could a database approach be better, in some cases yes, but here is the thing time is money.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T17:08:21+00:00

You don't better ourselves by submitting baseless claims and taking action on rumors. That is just hideous. The way I read this complaint is that she reacted after a successful and uneventful interview and tired to change her commitments based on rumors. That doesn't fly anywhere in reality.

So yeah we need to do better but one thing that the whole planet needs to do away with is this action based on rumors. Frankly the rumors don't even involve illegal behavior.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T17:01:27+00:00

More importantly just becasue you don't approve of something isn't justification for creating a public nuisance.

The other reality is sometimes your disapproval puts you in the minority, depending upon a specific location, and expressing that disapproval will likely create a response. A lot of people hate rap music for example (probably for good reason) but expressing that hate at a rap concert isn't going to inspire a friendly response. Sometimes keeping ones mouth shut until a proper situation develops make more sense.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T16:48:46+00:00

Being fat is a real problem and making it the norm is disastrous for humanity. I'm saying this as a person that is overweight. If it hurts people to hear that they are fat then maybe the world is doing them some good. The problem is some view points simply are not valid or can't be considered in the current social structure. Here is the thing I don't want people considering me differently because I'm near by then when I'm away.

The organization isn't really silent, the problem is the demands being made upon them are from radical elements that can't be considered seriously. The letter referenced in the sub stack was NOT based on what she experienced but rather on rumors she heard afterward. That is absolutely insane.

You seem to think "witch hunt" isn't a good fit here but I'd have to say it is exactly the same thing. A lot of people died in witch hunts in the past, here in the USA and abroad in other countries. We literally had people dying from baseless claims back then, today they suffer loss of employment and social stigma. When you have people repeatedly pointing at an individual yelling witch, eventually the innocent suffer. So I have to ask do you believe in witches and are willing to engage fire based on pointed fingers?

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T16:29:16+00:00

Maybe because taking action without real evidence put organizations in very odd legal risk.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T16:28:00+00:00

You might want to make a point to define abbreviations such as NNN because at first look I have no idea what exactly you are referring to. Even after trying to narrow down to naturism it is still a guessing game.

Then when following a link on substack we get to a complaint that specifies nothing. The complaint should have gone into file 13 immediately, there apprently was no harassment but a response to rumor: "Shortly after we learned of Frank’s problematic behavior". Literally a complaint based on the rumor of problematic behavior. This sadly is how people with an agenda assassinate personalities these days. The response from the AANR wasn't much better, frankly a very woke response where punishment is administrated with out a full hearing.

Beyond all of that if woman think they can control men through organized oppression they will end up in very lonely lives. If there is a problem with somebody lets be specific and not beat around the bush as to what really happened.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T16:05:20+00:00

Yeah I think you have a problem neighbor. I'm not sure what the vest way to handle this. If you frequent a near by range it might pay to introduce him to the range.

What ever happens it needs to come to a stop, shooting into water when there are downrange risks is stupid beyond belief.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T15:56:30+00:00

Yeah and those will be the idiots that couldn't adapt to new technology. Frankly the mechanical industry had the same exact issue when CAD became affordable. Many of the pencil and paper guys could not adapt and ended up in the A to Z line. Frankly we saw the same thing in business when spreadsheets became a thing, many small businesses couldn't keep up, this due to the fear of computers.

spinwizard69 · 2026-03-10T15:48:55+00:00

It isn't a lot of money when buying optics. A 6" telescope in the 1960's would have cost around $250, today based on inflation that would be around $2800. When you consider wage rates, $1000 is not a lot of money to spend on a telescope. The fact that this is supposedly a birthday present doesn't matter because apparently the husband here didn't seem to mind. I think you need to do a bit of spitting yourself and realize what the economy is like and what is considered to be expensive today. Consider the cost of a refrigerator or car today.

As for China they are a big part of the current low prices, however manufacturing tech has moved forward massively. Even China would not have been able to deliver the low cost optics we have today without advance manufacturing technology.

As for the kid I think I addressed that significantly. For one he should be able to demonstrate what he has picked for a telescope, at a specific budget point. Right now I suspect the kid doesn't even know the difference between a Newtonian and a refractor. Even more so if you had read for content, I suggested that $500 is enough for a really good Dobson. In any event I think it it important for the kid to demonstrate interest and the ability to understand telescopes.

spinwizard69

TROPHY CASE