A recurring process has been the task of looking for better
Good post processing software has been more or a challenge. I have tried many packages and options. Some were easy to use and others...well...not at all. So far the ones that have worked for me are:
1. PIPP. Works well to process recorded video into a format usable by other products.
2. Registax. Does a great job of stacking results from PIPP. The Wavelet process can be a bit of guesswork, but the results are always good.
3. AutoStakkert. Pretty much same as Registax.
4. Windows Paint. A very simple tool that can be handy for quick things like resizing an image, or a quick crop.
5.
6. Apple macOS Edit. Great tool for basic image enhancement. Work well for things like contrast, brightness, black point, levels, curves, rotation, sharpness, vignetting, etc. It is very easy to use, very fast, and can easily export to other sources.
7. FITS Liberator. A great tool for taking FITS image files, doing some very basic processing and then exporting to more common formats like JPG.
I have also tried a number of other packages with generally little or zero results. These include:
A. PixInsight. Never got anything out of it. My initial impression was that the User Interface was decades out of touch.
B.
X.
I see lots of references for these as requiring lots of learning curve. Having been professionally involved in software development for 50+ years, I don't really buy these arguments.
It reminds me of a telephone call conversation from about 45 years ago. The call was from an Air Force officer at a nuclear planning site that used software we developed. He had an error message on the screen/output that said “Wicked Voodoo Error”. He had no clue. I got out the detailed manuals and looked it up. The text read “This error can never occur”. His comment was along the lines of “You know, that really doesn't help me much…”. I told him I would check further and get back to him, which I did much later that day.
I learned a lot working with the Air Force folks over the years. They had very complex jobs to do and wanted software that was easier to use. I don't think that concept has changed much. Many good packages today have different modes based on user level and desires. That's generally a step in the right direction.
I know many
I welcome comments, suggestions or other ideas.