HitecAstro DC Focuser Software choice for [non-psychic] dummies!

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As a kindness to those who are not mind readers and would rather avoid endless hours chewing their extremities, I offer the following image:

I have just heard back from David at HitecAstro who has kindly pointed out the bleeding obvious for those of us who weren't born psychic. 

Not to mention those of us have just wasted more than  a whole day of their remaining lives discovering this terrifyingly simple reality for themselves. All because the great minds who put this list together never even thought to tell us!  No thanks required.

Saturday after lunch: First I removed the incorrect [2nd] ASCOM driver and restarted. Then I downloaded and installed the first ASCOM driver on the list. Sadly it made only one difference: SharpCap stopped warning me about the non-functional Hitec focus controller.

The simple control panel remained in the start menu but no extra ASCOM controls nor icons. I could still Connect and the motor driven focuser is proving very useful. Far superior to manual knob twiddling in obtaining a sharp limb on the regularly, cloud-obscured Sun. This is with over 4.3 meters of focal length on the 7" with the ZWO [fitted with the 2x WO Barlow] in the 2" Lacerta solar prism. It is far too cloudy to do any useful imaging but it was an interesting exercise.

But wait! On reopening SharpCap I spotted a yellow bar right at the bottom of the camera control panel. It is called "Telescope Control" and opening the menu shows the Hitec focuser. I have dragged the bar further up the list for easier access. But guess what? Every time I select a box I get an error message: Error communicating with device! Will it never end? Hitting SETUP and ASCOM tells me to use the supplied software.That would be the error prone software, I suppose? Or is there some other software I have to guess at? Is it like a parlour game?

For those who are still interested the 3.5" FT focuser moves 1cm in 17 seconds. That was with the default settings which I haven't fiddled with yet. I have two, new, larger toothed pulleys in the post if PostNord ever get around to delivering them. I could have cycled there and back to collect them by now. Driving the black [direct drive] focuser control knobs proved to be easily possible. Higher gearing will provide higher slew speeds. With slower speeds available within the SharpCap focuser control panel buttons. If only I had a larger screen than 15.6" and could actually read the text.

Click on any image for an enlargement.

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