Okay, got my new LX-200, my first scope after lots of reading and research:

1. scope is just portable enough
2. why can' parameters stay in memory as saved options (like location
settings?
I like to look at VG, EX, or SU objects and need to set minimum height
around
me to clear trees, etc. The constant input every time I turn up the
scope is a
pain in the booty.
3. did a quick tour of Messier objects up in the sky right now...all
disappointing.
A few showed as more than faint blurs but that was it. Here's a few
things to
consider: I live an hour due west of NYC. The moon was lurking around
for part of
the tour. I haven't seen many true black sky nights in my area. MY
question is
how much better is it going to get in a less lit area? FYI, the best
were M35,
M36, M37, M38, M81, M82, M3, M53, Star 133, Star 305, Star 316,
NGC2632, NGC3034,
NGC3031, NGC5272. Again all these Messiers were still disappointing.
4. Should I have bought the 10" which I was leaning towards but talked
myself out
of it due to the portability issue? Most say when indecisive opt for
the smaller
scope. I did...I know you get 40% more light but is lack of light
problem due to
the smaller optics diameter or due to the ambient NYC light?
5. The double stars were neat...very sharp pinpoints in close proximity.
How do I
know if they are double stars gravitationally bound together or one
behind the
other just looking like a double star to our line of sight?
6. no planets up now...when is a good time? When do I see Jupiter, Saturn,
& Mars?
7. moon partly ruined my night vision even with a moon filter (Meade's)
just made
my eyes feel like I was looking into the sun
8. Bought the Lumicon UHC filter for nebulas but it just seems to darken
things so
it hasn't yielded noticeable results. Is this helpful to the NYC glow?
What is my
best choice for viewing and NO I have not been able to find the
Astronomy and
Sky and Telescope Articles on filters on the 'NET. I have not found the
Mapug
archives particularly decisive on this subject in my location.
9. My alignement has been through Alkaid (thank god for the Big Dipper)
and Capella
figured this out due to the GOTO tip on the Mapug Web Page for second
star
acquisition and some rough knowledge of the sky.
10. The Alignment charts on the manual are POOR. Where can I get better ones
outside of star charts and PC programs which are very difficult to match
up to the metro area NYC sky? Perhaps some charts that just reflect the
alignment stars... Also, I know that there is software that allows me
to extract
the databases out of the scope but are'nt they somewhere on the 'NET?
Seems like
I do need them in spreadsheet form so that I can sort by name,
location, etc.
10. Despite various dealers putting the fear of god in me about Meade
quality on ship
I bought direct for least amount of money from a camera-scope dealer in
Brooklyn
by mail to save on taxes. One dealer even wanted EXTRA money to inspect
the
scope and mediate problems with the scope. Bullxxxx! I'm in technical
sales of
telecommunications and optical networking and my customers would have
me out in
the street if I tried to sell them that story. Overall, Quality is
excellent.
Setup was easy. By golly, even a non-astronomer like me can do it!!!
11. When my scope does a full RA turn, there a section that the slew noise
sounds
different (lower frequency or harder effort on slewing) than the rest
of the spin.
Is this normal?
12. When I tell it to find the Excellent or very good objects in the sky
why doesn't
the scope seem to find all the bright stars, of the big dipper for
example? These
are some of the few visible objects in my sky so why if I can see them
with my
naked I diesn't it pick them. It seems to pick even fainter objects.
13. What's the double star in the handle of the Big Dipper? Had a hard time
identifying it once I manually slewed over to it. Couldn't get the
field command
to give me an idea even though my alignment was well near center
consistently on
a 12 mm eyepiece (52 degress S4K Plossl). It kept showing a big 0 for
object.
14. How much do I affect collimation with every time I move the scope from
my room
to my deck (have to disassemble and reassmeble)?
15. Why are the handles in the fork facing in not out (like Celestron)? You
can't
handle that much weight angled off your hands.
16. How do you all feel about the 8" vs the 7" Masukov (?-spelling). I
notice since the
F stop is higher it gets higher magnifications out of the same
eyepiece. But doesn't
the smaller diameter mirror limit the highest usable magnification?
Therefore I
would be better with the 10" F10???

Thanks. For the record I'm a beginner whose researched this purchase over
the last 6 months.

P.S.

Was in Hawaii this summer and travelled up to Mauna Kea and saw the Keck
observatory,
wow!!! Going to Palomar in two weeks to see Hale's baby (1/3 the way
through the book
on building the scope).

Great hobby!!!

Guess I'll need a hundred inch scope next.

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