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Subject: Re: Computer lockup
From: YasuYUKI Kinoshita
Reply To: mapug@shore.net
Date: Sat Sep 23 07:37:50 1995
In message <199509200754.PAA25575@hntp2.hinet.net> you write:
> On Tue, 19 Sep 95, YasuYUKI Kinoshita <yuki@sm.sony.co.jp> wrote:
>>I use Version 4.30L(12"LX200), and I recently find it's always locking up
>>when I happened to 'ENTER'ed into 'FIELD' menu after I 'GO TO'ed Saturn.
>>
>>And also before 'GO TO' Saturn and if I was in the FIELD menu,
>>I am locking up by pressing MODE just after 'GO TO'ed Saturn.
>>
>>After that happened, the control goes dead, but the LX200 mount was still
>>tracking Saturn...
>>I had to reboot my LX200 2 or 3 times yesterday ;-(
>>I did not try other planets.
>>
>>Is this a common to other versions?
>>Anyway, everyone please be careful not to do such operation on your LX200!
>
> This may be a problem either with the Keypad coil cord, or the electronics. To
> eliminate the possibility of the coil cord, just use the same one that is on a
> standard telephone handset and see if you get better performance.
>
> If not, you need to check all of the internal connections in the drive base to
> make sure you don't have any loose connections. Sometimes these connectors
> don't appear loose, so its best to disconnect, then reconnect again.
>
> If after all of this, you are still having problems, please contact Meade
> customer service (in Japan, contact your distributor).
After examining the behavior of my scope, I suspect the control software in the LX200, not the problem of my cord nor the electronics.
To my conclusion: Not the Saturn, nor the planets, is the direct cause. It seems the small area or boundary exists at about R.A. 23h30m (that is near the Saturn's current position). If the scope is pointing a bit left of the boundary, FIELD menu locks up the control. Near the Saturn, the boundary NGC objects are the following:
NGC 7692, NGC 7721 --- FIELD locks up, nothing displayed, none of keys work NGC 7663, NGC 7600 --- FIELD shows these objects with no ploblem
The FIELD displays the object where the scope is pointing in realtime, that is great function! I can see the FIELD display changing in realtime sync with moving the scope by N,S,E,W key, but I fell into very dangerous situation when I slew the scope around about the boundary. I can not stop the scope slewing even by releasing the direction keys!! None of keys work, and the display was still showing "Objects: 0", I had to power it down to stop slewing.
Yes, I've contacted my dealer about that, but have no answer yet.
Yasuyuki Kinoshita Tokyo, JP, yuki@sm.sony.co.jp