Previous Next

This is another pure educational program. It will not produce star maps as such but instead produces rather simple maps to demonstrate the shape and position of any one of 15 constellations which can be viewed under option One, which produces a slide show effect. The maps are annotated to name the important stars and to demonstrate how they form patterns. After the constellation has been plotted you are asked if you require any further information; answer Y and the lines of text appear at the bottom of the screen.

Should the text refer to particular stars, then they will flash to make their position known, followed by an interesting fact or two, eg 'if Betelgeuse occupies the position of our sun, then it would reach beyond the orbit of earth and Mars'.

Option three gives access to a menu of 75 stars. Each one has a page showing which constellation it is in, the type of star it is and its distance in light years from the Sun. If any technical terms are used in the description you will find a cross reference to the glossary section accessed by Option Five. This option only holds explanations for ten technical names, but the explanations are useful.

Option Four accesses a quiz to test your knowledge on constellations and stars. The questions are not as searching as those in Stargazer.

The graphics and writing have been designed to aid viewing, the colours chosen greatly enhance the clarity. The method of menu selection can be a little clumsy, again the programmers have not used the one touch system throughout and performing the same function on different pages, such as returning to the menu, will require different key presses depending on the mode you are in, this can make the package slightly more confusing to use. On the whole a useful package for getting the basics across to an audience.