lumpy darkness

Observation notes (with equipment details), photos, sketches, reviews, software tips, random thoughts, by an amateur astronomer.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

keyboard and mouse shortcuts SkyTools 3 Pro

This content was copied from the original word processor document. So to reduce horizontal space issues, the notes column content was moved below the tables and referenced by numbers.

 

preamble

This reference document lists shortcuts specific to Skyhound’s SkyTools 3.2 Professional edition. Subject to change without notice. Please note that these software keyboard shortcuts are case-sensitive.

There are five chart views that these shortcuts work in: the Overhead chart, the Naked Eye chart, the Interactive Atlas, its Context Viewer, and the telescope/binoculars (multi-panel) chart.

This document (last revised on Fri 16 Mar 2012) was prepared by Blake Nancarrow. Please contact him at astronomy AT computer-ease DOT com for accolades, errors, omissions, questions.

The presentation and style in this document is protected. Copyright © 2012-2014 Blake Nancarrow. All Rights Reserved. This document content is not meant to be copied or modified. It is provided for SkyTools users so that they may use the software with greater convenience and speed.

SkyTools and SkyTools Real Time are trademarks of Skyhound (formerly CapellaSoft) in the USA.

 

general

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
retrieve on-board help F1  
close a box (most of the time) Esc  

Nightly Planner and Real Time lists

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
position at first or last list entry Home or End  
move to next or previous list entry below Down or Up arrow  
scroll down or up many list entries PgDn or PgUp  
scroll right or left to view other columns Right or Left arrow  
display object info box i  
toggle checkmark Enter  
delete list entry Del  
refresh or update list F5  
display interactive atlas chart a 1
display overhead sky chart o 1
display naked eye chart n 1
display (preselected) telescope/binoculars chart t 1
centre in current chart c  
print chart p  
slew telescope to F3  
slew telescope to and centre in chart F4  
sync telescope Spacebar  
create quick log entry (and view existing) l 2
create log entries m 3
get digital sky survey image d  
mark as observed Alt-F5  
mark to re-observe Alt-F6  
mark as not yet observed Alt-F7  
clear marked status Alt-F8 4
mark as high priority 1 5
mark as normal priority 2  
mark as low priority 3  
clear marked priority 4 4
show imaging exposure calculator e 6

all charts

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
display keyboard shortcuts page from help k 7
toggle star labels s  
toggle all labels l 2
toggle target cross hairs t  
disable identification of object at mouse location Shift  
display object info for mouse pointer location double-click  
turn equatorial coordinate grid lines on F5  
turn horizon coordinate grid lines on F6  
turn ecliptic coordinate grid lines on F7  
turn coordinate grid lines off F8  
get digital sky survey image at mouse location d  
get supplemental starfield data at chart target S 8
show the View Controls dialog Ctrl-v  
print chart Ctrl-p  
copy chart to clipboard Ctrl-c  
adjust motion trails Ctrl-t  
adjust motion trace Ctrl-a  

all charts except Context Viewer

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
step ahead a time unit =  
step back a time unit - 9
copy J2000 coords for mouse pointer location C 10

all charts except Interactive Atlas

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
(via numeric keypad only!)    
decrease light pollution (show more stars) + 11
increase light pollution (show fewer stars) - 11

all charts except Overhead

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
pan - a large jump arrow  
pan - a small jump Ctrl-arrow  
centre view on current mouse pointer location Home  
zoom out or in - a large jump PgDn or PgUp  
zoom out - a small jump Ctrl-PgDn or Ctrl-PgUp  
zoom centred object to “best” magnification b  
toggle double star companion labels c  
display object info for mouse pointer location Insert  
slew to chart target F2  
slew to mouse pointer location F3  
slew to and centre at mouse pointer location F4  
sync telescope Spacebar  
abort telescope slew Esc  
centre chart at telescope location Bksp  

all charts except Overhead and Context Viewer

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
zoom out or in - a large jump roller wheel  
zoom out or in - a small jump Ctrl-roller wheel  
zoom in to a particular area drag  
zoom out of a particular area Ctrl-drag  
zoom to 180° field (hor.) * 1 5
zoom to 90° field (hor.) * 2  
zoom to 60° field (hor.) * 3  
zoom to 30° field (hor.) * 4  
zoom to 10° field (hor.) * 5  
zoom to 5° field (hor.) * 6  
zoom to 1° field (hor.) * 7 12
zoom to 30" field (hor.) * 8 12
zoom to 10" field (hor.) * 9 12
zoom to 1" field (hor.) * 0 12
set field of view Ctrl-f  
* The zoom level values shown are the default settings.

Interactive Atlas

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
flip view horizontally (invert) End  
flip view vertically (mirror) Del  
show fainter stars (as per Magnitude Limits) . or > 13
show brighter stars (as per Magnitude Limits) , or < 14
set stellar magnitude limit to default /  
measure angular distance a  
create a skymark (X) at mouse location x  
set magnitude limits Ctrl-m  
change plottable images display i 15
star fields currently displayed Ctrl-s 16

Naked Eye chart

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
look to the north Alt-n  
look to the east Alt-e  
look to the south Alt-s  
look to the west Alt-w  

telescope/binoculars chart

function or action key/mouse shortcut notes
eyepiece view only F9  
finder view only F10  
naked eye view only F11  
all views on F12  
move a panel in the layout Shift-drag  
resize a panel or panels drag the divider line  

notes

  1. will update if open
  2. lower-case letter L
  3. new log defaults
  4. mark as no value
  5. digit one
  6. Pro version
  7. ah ha!
  8. for very low mag
  9. in QWERTY area
  10. to clipboard
  11. in numeric keypad
  12. except in Naked Eye
  13. period
  14. comma
  15. none, outline, image
  16. Standard Edition only

 

about

Blake Nancarrow is a geek. He is an amateur astronomer and photographer by night and a member of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. A computer professional by day, he regularly delivers high-quality software training. You may reach him at astronomy AT computer-ease DOT com. Visit his astronomy blog at http://blog.lumpydarkness.com. He loves keyboard shortcuts, cherry pie, and lives in Toronto.

 

 

 

links

    lumpy darkness sites:
    blog proper
    lists home
   
    telescopes:
    SP-C8 SCT
    GoToStar system
    Edmund 6" newt
    ETX90-RA MCT
    FirstScope 3" newt
    accessories
   
    life lists:
    planets, moons, etc.
    constellations
    notable stars
    double stars *
    Messier objects
    NGC objects
    other deep sky objects
    eclipses
    occultations
    photo gallery
    magnitude limit
    to do
   
    resources:
(*)   SkyTools
    Stellarium
    TheSky
    NexStar 11
    Aladin quick query
   
    other lists:
    Greek alphabet in HTML
    judging angular size
    atlases, books, software
    what's up for the year
    meteor showers
    with just your eyes
    assessing darkness
    observing preparation
    presentations
    articles
    tips and tricks
    builds and hacks
    wx dashboards
   
    web site links:
    magazines
    sky conditions
    predicting aurora
    science and research
    space telescopes
    double stars sites
    retail stores
    clubs and associations
    DIY observatories
    miscellaneous