What is Starry Night Pro
Now available free with the purchase of a new textbook. This software allows users to manipulate and take control of the sky. They become active observers and gain a far better understanding of how the sky works.
Starry Night Pro is the premier astronomy software package on the market. Users can see how the sky will look tonight, tomorrow, or far into the past or future. They can view the stars as they appear from their own backyard, from a country on the other side of the world, or from another planet. Starry Night Pro allows a user to witness a total eclipse from the Moon, watch the Sun set from the surface of Mars, or even ride a comet!Getting Help
Starry Night Pro is easy to use, but there are places to turn if you run into trouble. Your first choice should obviously be the Starry Night Pro Manual. This manual can be found from inside Starry Night Pro by selecting Help‹Starry Night Pro Manual. In particular, Appendix B: "Frequently Asked Questions" has an extensive list of the most common questions asked about Starry Night Pro.
More helpful information about Starry Night Pro is available at the website www.starrynight.com/support/. You can get there directly from inside Starry Night Pro by selecting Help‹On-line Help.Installing Starry Night Pro
To run Starry Night Pro, you need to install two programs: Starry Night Pro and QuickTime. If you already have QuickTime 3 or later on your computer you do not need to install it again. To install Starry Night and QuickTime, follow these installation instructions:
Windows 95/98/2000/NT
1. Insert the compact disc in the CD-ROM drive. A window will pop up onscreen with the options "Install QuickTime 4" and "Install Starry Night Pro".
2. If you do not have a version of QuickTime 3 or later, choose "Install Quick Time 4" from the onscreen menu and follow the instructions that appear. You will be asked to select an installation option for QuickTime. Make sure that you choose the "Full Install" option. (Certain Starry Night features will not work unless you choose this option.) If you encounter and error message when installing QuickTime, please see the section "QuickTime" on page 105 of the Starry Night Pro Manual. Once you have successfully installed QuickTime, proceed to step 3.
3. Choose "Install Starry Night Pro" from the onscreen menu and follow the instructions that appear. If you encounter problems, please see the section "Installation Problems" on page 106 of the Starry Night Pro Manual.
Macintosh: to install Starry Night Pro for the Macintosh, follow these steps:
1. Insert the compact disk into the CD-ROM drive.
2. Open the "Read Me First" file for instructions and late breaking product and compatibility information.
3. Drag the Starry Night Pro folder from the CD to your hard drive.
NOTE: The data files for very dim stars are not automatically placed on the hard drive during installation due to their large size. If you run Starry Night without the CD in, these stars will not be accessible. See the section "Stars" on page 117 of the Starry Night Pro Manual on moving these files onto your hard drive.Starting Starry Night Pro
Once you have installed Starry Night Pro, you can start it by clicking the Start button on your desktop and then choosing Programs‹Starry Night Pro (Windows) or by clicking the Starry Night Pro Icon in the Starry Night Pro folder (Macintosh).Setting Your Home Location
The first time Starry Night Pro opens, a window pops up asking you to set your home location. Once you have done this, you do not need to change your home location unless you move. To set your home location:
1. Click Lookup on the left hand side of the screen.
2. Select your location form the list of cities that appears and click OK. If your location is not in the list, proceed to step 3, other wise, proceed to step 4.
3. If your home location does not appear in the list of cities, close this list by clicking Cancel. Type in the name of your location and enter you latitude and longitude. You must also enter the correct time zone. Time zones are calculated according to the difference with London, England. For example, all communities on Eastern Standard Time are 5 hours behind London, so you would enter "-5 h" if you are Eastern Standard Time. See the section "Viewing Location on page 110 of the Starry Night Pro Manual, if you do not know your latitude and longitude or the section "Time & Date" on page 108 of the Starry Night Pro Manual if you do not know your time zone."
4. Click Set Home Location.
TIP: If you ever move and need to change your location (or if you initially enter your home location incorrectly), choose Go‹Set Home Location from the main menu.Starry Night for the First Time
Once you have set your home location, a screen will appear asking you to enter your name and registration number. You DO NOT have to fill in this screen. Simply click on the Ok button to proceed.
The main screen of Starry Night Pro will appear. This window shows what you would see if you stepped outside at the current time, and looked south from your home location. Direction arrows along the horizon help you to orient yourself. If you open the program at night, you see a star-filled night sky. If you open the program during the day, you see a daytime scene with blue sky and sunshine. A horizon and trees are shown to give you some perspective. If it is daytime, shadows form the trees indicate the position of the Sun. Your viewing location and the time are shown across the bottom of the window.
NOTE: The current date and time are calculated from your computer's clock. If your computer's clock is incorrect, Starry Night Pro may show night when it is day outside, or vice versa. See the section "Time & Date" on page 108 of the Starry Night Pro Manual if you do not know how to change your computer's clock.
TIP: If you are using the UK version of Windows, Starry Night Pro will not automatically show the date in the European format (dd-mm-yyyy). See the section "Time and Date" on page 108 of the Starry Night Pro Manual to learn how to change this.
Remember to consult the Starry Night Pro Manual for additional help and tips. This manual can be found from inside Starry Night Pro by selecting Help‹Starry Night Pro Manual.
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2006 McGraw-Hill Higher Education