diff --git a/html/documentation/changeLog.html b/html/documentation/changeLog.html index 3131ee1d9..11ddf1ecc 100644 --- a/html/documentation/changeLog.html +++ b/html/documentation/changeLog.html @@ -1,5 +1,6 @@ + @@ -19,545 +20,660 @@ Allsky Version Change Log + - -
- -
- -

-This page lists the changes to all Allsky releases. -You can also see the Known Issues and Limitations -of the current release. -

- -
-Wonder what all the colors below mean? -Check out this page. -
- -

v2023.05.01_01 - Point Release # 1

-
-

Enhancements

-
    -
  • If multiple consecutive "bad" images are found, - a warning image is now displayed saying how many "bad" images were found. - A system warning in the WebUI is also displayed with instructions on what to check. -
    - When Allsky starts it displays an "Allsky is Starting" image until the first - good image is saved. - Depending on your settings and the sky brightness, - it may take many images before it gets a good one to save. - The new warning image makes it obvious Allsky hasn't hung. -
  • In the WebUI's Editor page, - the buttons (e.g., "Save changes") are now at the top of the page - and stay there as you scroll down. - A new "Top" button appears at the bottom of the page after you scroll - to make it quick to get back to the top. -
  • Selecting Refresh from the - Camera Type drop-down - can be used to change cameras of the same - Camera Type. - For example, replacing a ZWO ASI120 with an ASI290. -
- -

Bug Fixes

-
    -
  • REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES would often flag dark, - but "good" images as "bad" and not save them using the default - REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES_THRESHOLD_LOW - value of 1 (which is still a good default). -
    - If after installing this point release you are still getting a lot of "bad" images, - do NOT disable REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES - instead, - modify the REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES_THRESHOLD_* values as needed. -
    -
  • The s3 upload protocol now sets the destination file name to - image.jpg instead of - image-YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.jpg. -
  • The scp upload protocol now uses the - REMOTE_USER setting. -
  • The sunwait command is no longer included with Allsky. - It was created but never used so was simply taking disk space. -
- -
-
- -

v2023.05.01 - Current Major Release

-
- -

Core Allsky

-
    -
  • New camera support: -
      -
    • All ZWO cameras as of May 1, 2023. -
    • RPi HQ and Module 3 cameras. -
    • ArduCam 16 and 64 MP cameras. -
    • The RPi "Global Shutter Camera" is NOT supported - high speed shutters aren't useful for allsky images. -
    -
  • "Mini" timelapse videos can be created that contain a user-configurable - number of the most recent images. - This allows you to continually see the recent sky conditions. -
  • Installation improvements: -
      -
    • If there is not enough swap space configured you are prompted to add more. - Doing this decreases the chance of timelapse creation problems. -
    • If allsky/tmp is not a memory-resident - filesystem you are prompted to make it one. - This SIGNIFICANTLY decreases the number of writes to the SD card, prolonging its life. -
    • If a ~/allsky-OLD directory is found it's - assumed to be a prior release of Allsky and you are prompted to have its images, - darks, and other items moved to the new release. - See the Installing / Upgrading -> Allsky - page for instructions for installing this release. -
    -
  • scripts/check_allsky.sh was added to perform basic sanity - checking of your Allsky installation. - Run it after you're done configuring Allsky to see if you have any issues. -
  • latitude and longitude - can now be specified as either a decimal number - (e.g., -105.21) or with N, S, E, W (e.g., 105.21W). -
  • Removed several settings from config.sh: -
      -
    • CAMERA: To update the camera type, use the new - Camera Type setting in the WebUI. - This is an advanced setting so you need to click the "Show Advanced Options" button to view it. -
    • POST_END_OF_NIGHT_DATA is no longer needed since - Allsky automatically determines if you have a local Allsky Website, a remote one, or both. -
    -
  • New ftp-settings.sh variables: -
      -
    • REMOTE_PORT specifies a non-default FTP port. -
    • SSH_KEY_FILE is the path to an SSH private key. - When scp is used for uploads, - this identify file will be used to establish the secure connection. -
    • The Secure CP (scp) and Google Cloud Service - (gcs) protocols are now supported for file uploads. -
    -
  • The Wiki now points to files in the GitHub documentation directory. - A copy of that directory is also on the Pi and accessible via the Documentation link in the WebUI. -
  • The Allsky Documentation has been significantly enhanced and expanded. - Its goal is to be a single source for everything you need to know about Allsky. - If you don't know how to do something, look it up. - If it's not in the documentation, let us know. -
  • AUTO_STRETCH now works, and is documented with sample images. -
  • Images can now be uploaded using the full image-YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.jpg - name instead of the shorter image.jpg name. - See the IMG_UPLOAD_ORIGINAL_NAME Allsky setting in the documentation. -
  • Many minor enhancements and bug fixes were made. -
- - -

WebUI

-
    -
  • The WebUI is now installed as part of the Allsky installation and must be - used to make all settings changes. -
    - The allsky-portal - repository will be removed as it is no longer needed. -
    -
  • New links on the left side of the WebUI: -
      -
    • Overlay Editor allows you to drag and drop the text - and images you want overlayed on the images. - This is a significant improvement over the old mechanism and lets you - vary the font size, color, rotation, etc. for everything you add. - You can use variables in the text which get replaced at run-time, e.g., the time the image was taken. -
    • Module Manager allows you to specify what actions should - take place after an image has been saved. - For example you can add an overlay or count the number of stars or periodically control a dew heater. - Users can develop (and hopefully share) their own modules. - Full notes on how to develop modules - is included in the documentation. -
    • The Allsky Documentation - link accesses the documentation on your Pi. -
    -
  • Minimum, maximum, and default values are now correct for all camera models. -
  • Required fields with missing data are shown in red with a message saying the data is missing. - For example, Latitude is a required field. -
  • New settings on the Allsky Settings page: -
      -
    • Camera Type is either ZWO or RPi. - This replaces the CAMERA variable in the - config.sh - file and also allows you to switch between cameras connected to the Pi. - For example, if you have both an RPi and ZWO camera attached, you can switch between them using this setting. -
    • Max Auto-Exposure for day and night. - When using auto-exposure, exposure times will not exceed this value. -
    • Max Auto-Gain for day and night. - When using auto-gain, gain values will not exceed this value. -
    • Auto White Balance, Red Balance, - and Blue Balance are now available for day and night. -
    • Frames to Skip for day and night determine how many initial - auto-exposure frames to ignore when starting Allsky, while the auto-exposure - algorithm homes in on the correct exposure. - These frames are often over or under exposed so not worth saving anyhow. -
    • Consistent Delays determines whether or not the time between the start of - exposures will be consistent (current behavior) or not. - When enabled, the time between images is the maximum exposure time plus the delay you set. -
    • Overlay Method determines if the text overlay (exposure, time, etc.) - should be done by the legacy program or by the new "module" system (see above). -
      The default method will change to the module method in the next release of Allsky, - and after that the legacy overlay method will be removed. -
      -
    • Require WebUI Login specifies whether - or not the WebUI should require you to login. - Only set this to No - if your Pi is on a local network and you trust everyone on the network. - Do NOT disable it if your Pi is accessible via the Internet! -
    • Cooling and Target Temp. - (ZWO only) now have separate settings for day and night. -
    • Aggression (ZWO only) - determines how much of a calculated exposure change should be applied. - This helps smooth out brightness changes, for example, when a car's headlights appear in one frame. -
    • Gamma (ZWO only) changes the contrast of an image. - It is only supported by a few cameras; for those that don't, - the AUTO_STRETCH setting can produce a similar effect. -
    • Offset (ZWO only) - adds about 1/10th the specified amount to each pixel's brightness, - thereby brightening the whole image. - etting this too high causes the image to turn gray. -
    • Contrast and - Sharpness(RPi only). -
    • Extra Parameters (RPi only) replaces the - CAPTURE_EXTRA_PARAMETERS - variable in the config.sh file, - and allows you to pass parameters to the libcamera-still - image capture program that Allsky doesn't natively support, such as auto-focus options. -
    • Mean Target (RPi only) for day and night. - This specifies the mean target brightness (0.0 (pure black) to - 1.0 (pure white)) when in auto-exposure mode. -
    • Mean Threshold (RPi only). - This specifies how close the actual mean brightness must be to the - Mean Target. - For example, if Mean Target is 0.5 and - Mean Threshold is 0.1, - the actual mean can vary between 0.4 and 0.6 (0.5 +/- 0.1). -
    • The Focus Metric setting is now available for ZWO cameras. - Higher numbers indicate better focus. - Use only when sky conditions are NOT changing. -
    -
  • NOTE: the following settings moved from - config.sh to the WebUI, - and are "advanced" options so you'll need to click the "Show Advanced Options" button to see them: -
      -
    • DAYTIME_CAPTURE is now - Take Daytime Images in the WebUI. -
    • DAYTIME_SAVE is - Save Daytime Images. -
    • DARK_CAPTURE is - Take Dark Frames. -
    • DARK_FRAME_SUBTRACTION is - Use Dark Frames. -
    -
  • Debug Level is more consistent: -
      -
    • 0: errors only. -
    • 1: level 0 plus warnings and messages about taking and saving pictures. This is the default. -
    • 2: level 1 plus details on images captured, sleep messages and the like. -
    • 3: level 2 plus time to save image, details on exposure settings and capture retries, and module execution. -
    • 4: lots of gory details for developers only. -
    -
  • System messages appear at the top of the WebUI whenever you need to take an action. -
  • Many minor enhancements were made. -
- - -

Allsky Website

-
    -
  • The Allsky Website is now installed in ~/allsky/html/allsky. -
  • If an older version of the Website is found during Website installation you'll be prompted - to have its images and settings moved to the new location. -
  • The home page can be customized: -
      -
    • You can specify the order, contents, look, and style of the icons on the left side. - You can also hide an icon or display a new one. -
    • You can specify the order, contents, and style of the popout that appears on the right side. - For example, you can add a link to pictures of your allsky camera. -
    • You can set a background image. -
    • You can easily change the maximum width of the image. -
    • You can add a link to a personal website. - This link appears at the top of the page. -
    • You can add a border around the image to have it stand out on the page. -
    • You can hide the "Make Your Own" link on the bottom right of the page. -
    • You can change the icon that appears on the browser's tab. -
    • See the Allsky Website documentation for other customizations you can make. -
    -
  • Left sidebar: -
      -
    • The constellation overlay icon (Casseopeia icon) is hidden by default and should only be displayed - after you've set the overlay to match your stars. -
    • If you are creating mini-timelapse videos, when you install the Website an icon for the current video will appear on the left side. - You can also manually show/hide the icon. -
    • There's a new icon to display the image full-size. -
    • The startrails and information icons were updated. -
    -
  • Popout on right side: -
      -
    • A link to your Image Settings can optionally be displayed via the - Display Settings option in the WebUI. -
    • The version of Allsky and the Allsky Website are displayed. -
    -
  • Timelapse video thumbnails are now created by default on the Pi and uploaded to a remote server. - This resolves issues with remote servers that don't support creating thumbnails. - See the TIMELAPSE_UPLOAD_THUMBNAIL setting. -
  • Configuration file changes: -
      -
    • The two prior configuration files (config.js and - virtualsky.json) are replaced by configuration.json. -
    • There are several new settings, including the ability to specify the opacity of the overlay. -
    • The overlaySize setting, - which defined both the width and the height of the constellation overlay, was split into - overlayWidth and overlayHeight. - Having separate values can be helpful when trying to get the overlay to line up with the actual stars. -
    • The WebUI Editor page must be used to edit the Allsky Website's - configuration file since it performs various checks before updating the configuration. -
    • The Editor page should also be used to edit a REMOTE Allsky Website's configuration file for the same reason.s - A master copy of the remote server's configuration.json - is kept on the Pi and automatically re-uploaded to the server after every change. - After you do this, the drop-down list on the Editor page will now have - configuration.json (remote Allsky Website) to distinguish it from a local Website's file. - See the Allsky Website Installation documentation for details. -
    -
- -
-
- -

v2022.03.01

-
-
    -
  • Switched to date-based release names. -
  • Added ability to have your allsky camera added to the - Allsky Map by configuring - these settings. - Added Allsky Map Setup section to the WebUI to configure the map settings. - The Lens field now shows in the popout on the Allsky Website (if installed). -
  • Significantly enhanced Wiki - more pages and more information on existing pages. - All known issues are described there as well as fixes / workarounds. -
  • Added an option to keograms to make them full width, even if few images were used in creating the keogram. - In config.sh, set KEOGRAM_EXTRA_PARAMETERS="--image-expand". -
  • Added/changed/deleted settings (in config.sh unless otherwise noted): -
      -
    • Added WEBUI_DATA_FILES - contains the name of one or more files that contain information to - be added to the WebUI's System page. - See this Wiki page for more information. -
    • Renamed NIGHTS_TO_KEEP to DAYS_TO_KEEP since it determines - how many days of data to keep, not just nighttime data. - If blank (""), ALL days' data are kept. -
    • Deleted AUTO_DELETE - its functionality is now in DAYS_TO_KEEP. - DAYS_TO_KEEP="" is similar to the old AUTO_DELETE=false. -
    • Added WEB_DAYS_TO_KEEP - specifies how many days of Allsky Website images and - videos to keep, if the website is installed on your Pi. -
    • Added WEB_IMAGE_DIR in ftp-settings.sh to allow the - images to be copied to a location on your Pi (usually the Allsky Website) as well as being copied to a remote machine. - This functionality already existed with timelapse, startrails, and keogram files. -
    -
  • The RPi camera now supports all the text overlay features as the ZWO camera, - including the Extra Text file. -
  • Removed the harmless "deprecated pixel format used" message from the timelapse log file. - That message only confused people. -
  • Improved the auto-exposure for RPi cameras. -
  • Made numerous changes to the ZWO and RPi camera's code that will make it easier to maintain and add new features in the future. -
  • If Allsky is stopped or restarted while a file is being uploaded to a remote server, - the upload continues, eliminating cases where a temporary file would be left on the server. -
  • Decreased other cases where temporary files would be left on remote servers during uploads. - Also, uploads now perform additional error checking to help in debugging. -
  • Only one upload can now be done at a time. - Any additional uploads display a message in the log file and then exit. - This should eliminate (or signifiantly decrease) cases where a file is overwritten or not found, - resulting in an error message or a temporary file left on the server. -
  • Added a --debug option to allsky/scripts/upload.sh to aid in debugging uploads. -
  • Upload log files are only created if there was an error; this saves writes to SD cards. -
  • The removeBadImages.sh script also only creates a log file if there was an error, - which saves one write to the SD card for every image. -
  • Allsky now stops with an error message on unrecoverable errors (e.g., no camera found). - It used to keep restarting and failing forever. -
  • More meaningful messages are displayed as images. - For example, in most cases "ERROR. See /var/log/allsky.log" messages have been replaced - with messages containing additional information, for example, - "*** ERROR *** Allsky Stopped! ZWO camera not found!". -
  • If Allsky is restarted, a new "Allsky software is restarting" message is displayed, - instead of a "stopping" followed by "starting" message. -
  • The timelapse debug output no longer includes one line for each of several thousand images proced. - This make it easier to see any actual errors. -
  • The Camera Settings page of the WebUI now displays the minimum, maximum, - and default values in a popup for numerical fields. -
  • Startrails and Keogram creation no longer crash if invalid files are found. -
  • Removed the allsky/scripts/filename.sh file. -
  • The RPi Gamma value in the WebUI was renamed to Saturation, - which is what it always adjusted; Gamma was incorrect. -
  • Known issues: -
      -
    • The startrails and keogram programs don't work well if you bin differently during the day and night. - If you don't save daytime images this won't be a problem. -
    • The minimum, maximum, and default values in the Camera Settings page of the WebUI, - especially for the RPi camera, aren't always correct. - This is especially try if running on the Bullseye operating system, where many of the settings changed. -
    -
-
- - -

0.8.3

-
-
    -
  • Works on Bullseye operating system. -
  • RPi version: -
      -
    • Has an improved auto-exposure algorithm. - To use it, set CAPTURE_EXTRA_PARAMETERS="-daymean 0.5 -nightmean 0.2" - in config.sh. -
    • Has many new settings including support for most of the text overlay features that are supported by the ZWO version. -
    -
  • New and changed config.sh variables, - see the Software Settings Wiki page for more information: -
      -
    • IMG_UPLOAD_FREQUENCY specifies how often the image should be uploaded to a website. - Useful with slow uplinks or metered Internet connections. -
    • IMG_CREATE_THUMBNAILS specifies whether or not thumbnails should be created for each image. -
    • REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES now defaults to "true" since bad-image detection is now done after a - picture is saved rather than once for all pictures at the end of the night. - This helps decrease problems when creating startrails, keograms, and timelapse videos. -
    • IMG_PREFIX: no longer used - the name of the image used by the websites is now - whatever you specify in the WebUI (default: image.jpg). -
    • When upgrading to 0.8.3 you MUST follow the steps listed - here. -
      -
    -
  • Replaced saveImageDay.sh and saveImageNight.sh with - saveImage.sh that has improved functionality, - including passing the sensor temperature to the dark subtraction commands, - thereby eliminating the need for the temperature.txt file. -
  • The image used by the websites (default: image.jpg) - as well as all temporary files are now written to allsky/tmp. -
    If you are using the Allsky Website you will need to change the - imageName variable in - /var/www/html/allsky/config.js to - "/current/tmp/image.jpg".
    -
  • You can significanly reduce wear on your SD card by making allsky/tmp - a memory-based filesystem. -
-
- - -

0.8.1

-
-
    -
  • Rearranged the directory structure. -
  • Created a Wiki with additional documentation and troubleshooting tips. -
  • Renamed several variables in config.sh and ftp-settings.sh. -
  • CAMERA type of "auto" is no longer supported - you must specify "ZWO" or "RPi". -
  • Startrails and keograms are now created using all CPUs on the Pi, drastically speeding up creation time. -
  • Installing the WebUI now preserves any website files (keograms, startrails, etc.) you have. - This allows for non-destructive updates of the WebUI. -
  • New script called upload.sh centralizes all the upload code from other scripts, - and can be used to debug uploading issues. - See this Wiki page for more information. -
  • The RPi camera does much better auto-exposure if you set the -mode-mean and -autoexposure options. -
  • The WebUI will now show the Pi's throttle and low-voltage states, which is useful for debugging. -
  • Darks work better. -
  • Many bug fixes, error checks, and warnings added. -
-
- - -

0.8

-
-
    -
  • Workaround for ZWO daytime autoexposure bug. -
  • Improved exposure transitions between day and night so there's not such a huge change in brightness. -
  • Decrease in ZWO sensor temperature. -
  • Lots of new settings, including splitting some settings into day and night versions. -
  • Error checking and associated log messages added in many places to aid in debugging. -
  • Ability to have "notification" images displayed, such as "Allsky is starting up" and "Taking dark frames". -
  • Ability to resize uploaded images. -
  • Ability to set thumbnail size. -
  • Ability to delete bad images (corrupt and too light/dark). -
  • Ability to set an image file name prefix. -
  • Ability to reset USB bus if ZWO camera isn't found (requires uhubctl command to be installed). -
  • Ability to specify the format of the time displayed on images. -
  • Ability to have the temperature displayed in Celcius, Fahrenheit, or both. -
  • Ability to set bitrate on timelapse video. -
-
- - -

0.7

-
-
    -
  • Added Raspberry Pi camera HQ support based on Rob Musquetier's fork. -
  • Added support for x86 architecture (Ubuntu, etc.). -
  • Temperature dependant dark frame library. -
  • Added browser-based script editor. -
  • Added configuration variables to crop black area around image. -
  • Added timelapse frame rate setting. -
  • Changed font size default value. -
-
- - -

0.6

-
-
    -
  • Added daytime exposure and auto-exposure capability. -
  • Added -maxexposure, -autoexposure, -maxgain, -autogain options. - Note that using autoexposure and autogain at the same time may produce unexpected results (black frames). -
  • Autostart is now based on systemd and should work on all raspbian based systems, including headless distributions. - Remote controlling will not start multiple instances of the software. -
  • Replaced nodisplay option with preview argument. - No preview in autostart mode. -
  • When using the WebUI, camera options can be saved without rebooting the RPi. -
  • Added a publicly accessible preview to the WebUI: public.php. -
  • Changed exposure unit to milliseconds instead of microseconds. -
-
- - -

0.5

-
-
    -
  • Added Startrails (image stacking) with brightness control. -
  • Keograms and Startrails generation is now much faster thanks to a rewrite by Jarno Paananen.. -
-
- - -

0.4

-
-
    -
  • Added Keograms (summary of the night in one image). -
-
- - -

0.3

-
-
    -
  • Added dark frame subtraction. -
-
- - -

0.2

-
-
    -
  • Separated camera settings from code logic. -
-
- - -

0.1

-
-
    -
  • Initial release. -
-
- - -
-
+ +
+ +
+ +

+ This page lists the changes to all Allsky releases. + You can also see the Known Issues and + Limitations + of the current release. +

+ +
+ Wonder what all the colors below mean? + Check out this page. +
+ +

v2023.05.01_01 - Point Release # 1

+
+ +

Enhancements

+
    +
  • If multiple consecutive "bad" images are found, + a warning image is now displayed saying how many "bad" images were found. + A system warning in the WebUI is also displayed with instructions on what to check. +
    + When Allsky starts it displays an "Allsky is Starting" image until the first + good image is saved. + Depending on your settings and the sky brightness, + it may take many images before it gets a good one to save. + The new warning image makes it obvious Allsky hasn't hung. +
    • +
  • In the WebUI's Editor page, + the buttons (e.g., "Save changes") are now at the top of the page + and stay there as you scroll down. + A new "Top" button appears at the bottom of the page after you scroll + to make it quick to get back to the top.
    • +
  • Selecting Refresh from the + Camera Type drop-down + can be used to change cameras of the same + Camera Type. + For example, replacing a ZWO ASI120 with an ASI290. +
    • +
  • Speed up the installation process by using prebuilt binaries where possible
    • +
+ +

Bug Fixes

+
    +
  • REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES would often flag dark, + but "good" images as "bad" and not save them using the default + REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES_THRESHOLD_LOW + value of 1 (which is still a good default). +
    + If after installing this point release you are still getting a lot of "bad" images, + do NOT disable REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES - instead, + modify the REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES_THRESHOLD_* values as needed. +
    • + +
  • The s3 upload protocol now sets the destination file name to + image.jpg instead of + image-YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.jpg. +
    • +
  • The scp upload protocol now uses the + REMOTE_USER setting. +
    • +
  • The sunwait command is no longer included with Allsky.
    • + It was created but never used so was simply taking disk space. +
  • Set the upper limits on the x and y spinner controls in the overlay property editors to the size + of the image, previously these were hard coded to 2048
    • +
  • When adding a new variable to the overlay variable list it can now be selected without + refreshing the page
    • +
  • When an image is moved out of bounds using the x and y spinner controls a red rectangle will be + drawn around the image, the same as if it were dragged out of bounds
    • + +
+ +
+
+ +

v2023.05.01 - Current Major Release

+
+ + +

Core Allsky

+
    +
  • New camera support: +
      +
    • All ZWO cameras as of May 1, 2023. +
    • RPi HQ and Module 3 cameras. +
    • ArduCam 16 and 64 MP cameras. +
    • The RPi "Global Shutter Camera" is NOT supported - high speed shutters aren't useful for + allsky images. +
    +
  • "Mini" timelapse videos can be created that contain a user-configurable + number of the most recent images. + This allows you to continually see the recent sky conditions. +
  • Installation improvements: +
      +
    • If there is not enough swap space configured you are prompted to add more. + Doing this decreases the chance of timelapse creation problems. +
    • If allsky/tmp is not a memory-resident + filesystem you are prompted to make it one. + This SIGNIFICANTLY decreases the number of writes to the SD card, prolonging its life. +
    • If a ~/allsky-OLD directory is found it's + assumed to be a prior release of Allsky and you are prompted to have its images, + darks, and other items moved to the new release. + See the Installing / + Upgrading -> Allsky + page for instructions for installing this release. +
    +
  • scripts/check_allsky.sh was added to perform basic sanity + checking of your Allsky installation. + Run it after you're done configuring Allsky to see if you have any issues. +
  • latitude and longitude + can now be specified as either a decimal number + (e.g., -105.21) or with N, S, E, W (e.g., 105.21W). +
  • Removed several settings from config.sh: +
      +
    • CAMERA: To update the camera type, use the new + Camera Type setting in the WebUI. + This is an advanced setting so you need to click the "Show Advanced Options" button to + view it. +
    • POST_END_OF_NIGHT_DATA is no longer needed since + Allsky automatically determines if you have a local Allsky Website, a remote one, or + both. +
    +
  • New ftp-settings.sh variables: +
      +
    • REMOTE_PORT specifies a non-default FTP port. +
    • SSH_KEY_FILE is the path to an SSH private key. + When scp is used for uploads, + this identify file will be used to establish the secure connection. +
    • The Secure CP (scp) and Google Cloud Service + (gcs) protocols are now supported for file uploads. +
    +
  • The Wiki now points to files in the GitHub documentation + directory. + A copy of that directory is also on the Pi and accessible via the Documentation link in the + WebUI. +
  • The Allsky Documentation has been significantly enhanced and expanded. + Its goal is to be a single source for everything you need to know about Allsky. + If you don't know how to do something, look it up. + If it's not in the documentation, let us know. +
  • AUTO_STRETCH now works, and is documented with sample images. +
  • Images can now be uploaded using the full image-YYYYMMDDHHMMSS.jpg + name instead of the shorter image.jpg name. + See the IMG_UPLOAD_ORIGINAL_NAME Allsky setting in the + documentation. +
  • Many minor enhancements and bug fixes were made. +
+ + +

WebUI

+
    +
  • The WebUI is now installed as part of the Allsky installation and must be + used to make all settings changes. +
    + The allsky-portal + repository will be removed as it is no longer needed. +
    +
  • New links on the left side of the WebUI: +
      +
    • Overlay Editor allows you to drag and drop the text + and images you want overlayed on the images. + This is a significant improvement over the old mechanism and lets you + vary the font size, color, rotation, etc. for everything you add. + You can use variables in the text which get replaced at run-time, e.g., the time the + image was taken. +
    • Module Manager allows you to specify what actions should + take place after an image has been saved. + For example you can add an overlay or count the number of stars or periodically control + a dew heater. + Users can develop (and hopefully share) their own modules. + Full notes on how to develop modules + is included in the documentation. +
    • The Allsky Documentation + link accesses the documentation on your Pi. +
    +
  • Minimum, maximum, and default values are now correct for all camera models. +
  • Required fields with missing data are shown in red with a message saying the data is missing. + For example, Latitude is a required field. +
  • New settings on the Allsky Settings page: +
      +
    • Camera Type is either ZWO or RPi. + This replaces the CAMERA variable in the + config.sh + file and also allows you to switch between cameras connected to the Pi. + For example, if you have both an RPi and ZWO camera attached, you can switch between + them using this setting. +
    • Max Auto-Exposure for day and night. + When using auto-exposure, exposure times will not exceed this value. +
    • Max Auto-Gain for day and night. + When using auto-gain, gain values will not exceed this value. +
    • Auto White Balance, Red + Balance, + and Blue Balance are now available for day and night. +
    • Frames to Skip for day and night determine how many + initial + auto-exposure frames to ignore when starting Allsky, while the auto-exposure + algorithm homes in on the correct exposure. + These frames are often over or under exposed so not worth saving anyhow. +
    • Consistent Delays determines whether or not the time + between the start of + exposures will be consistent (current behavior) or not. + When enabled, the time between images is the maximum exposure time plus the delay you + set. +
    • Overlay Method determines if the text overlay + (exposure, time, etc.) + should be done by the legacy program or by the new "module" system (see above). +
      The default method will change to the module method in the next release of + Allsky, + and after that the legacy overlay method will be removed. +
      +
    • Require WebUI Login specifies whether + or not the WebUI should require you to login. + Only set this to No + if your Pi is on a local network and you trust everyone on the network. + Do NOT disable it if your Pi is accessible via the Internet! +
    • Cooling and Target + Temp. + (ZWO only) now have separate settings for day and night. +
    • Aggression (ZWO only) + determines how much of a calculated exposure change should be applied. + This helps smooth out brightness changes, for example, when a car's headlights appear in + one frame. +
    • Gamma (ZWO only) changes the contrast of an image. + It is only supported by a few cameras; for those that don't, + the AUTO_STRETCH setting can produce a similar effect. +
    • Offset (ZWO only) + adds about 1/10th the specified amount to each pixel's brightness, + thereby brightening the whole image. + etting this too high causes the image to turn gray. +
    • Contrast and + Sharpness(RPi only). +
    • Extra Parameters (RPi only) replaces the + CAPTURE_EXTRA_PARAMETERS + variable in the config.sh file, + and allows you to pass parameters to the libcamera-still + image capture program that Allsky doesn't natively support, such as auto-focus options. +
    • Mean Target (RPi only) for day and night. + This specifies the mean target brightness (0.0 (pure black) to + 1.0 (pure white)) when in auto-exposure mode. +
    • Mean Threshold (RPi only). + This specifies how close the actual mean brightness must be to the + Mean Target. + For example, if Mean Target is 0.5 and + Mean Threshold is 0.1, + the actual mean can vary between 0.4 and 0.6 (0.5 +/- 0.1). +
    • The Focus Metric setting is now available for ZWO + cameras. + Higher numbers indicate better focus. + Use only when sky conditions are NOT changing. +
    +
  • NOTE: the following settings moved from + config.sh to the WebUI, + and are "advanced" options so you'll need to click the "Show Advanced Options" button to see + them: +
      +
    • DAYTIME_CAPTURE is now + Take Daytime Images in the WebUI. +
    • DAYTIME_SAVE is + Save Daytime Images. +
    • DARK_CAPTURE is + Take Dark Frames. +
    • DARK_FRAME_SUBTRACTION is + Use Dark Frames. +
    +
  • Debug Level is more consistent: +
      +
    • 0: errors only. +
    • 1: level 0 plus warnings and messages about taking and saving pictures. This is the + default. +
    • 2: level 1 plus details on images captured, sleep messages and the like. +
    • 3: level 2 plus time to save image, details on exposure settings and capture retries, + and module execution. +
    • 4: lots of gory details for developers only. +
    +
  • System messages appear at the top of the WebUI whenever you need to take an action. +
  • Many minor enhancements were made. +
+ + +

Allsky Website

+
    +
  • The Allsky Website is now installed in ~/allsky/html/allsky. +
  • If an older version of the Website is found during Website installation you'll be prompted + to have its images and settings moved to the new location. +
  • The home page can be customized: +
      +
    • You can specify the order, contents, look, and style of the icons on the left side. + You can also hide an icon or display a new one. +
    • You can specify the order, contents, and style of the popout that appears on the right + side. + For example, you can add a link to pictures of your allsky camera. +
    • You can set a background image. +
    • You can easily change the maximum width of the image. +
    • You can add a link to a personal website. + This link appears at the top of the page. +
    • You can add a border around the image to have it stand out on the page. +
    • You can hide the "Make Your Own" link on the bottom right of the page. +
    • You can change the icon that appears on the browser's tab. +
    • See the Allsky Website documentation for other customizations you can make. +
    +
  • Left sidebar: +
      +
    • The constellation overlay icon (Casseopeia icon) is hidden by default and should only + be displayed + after you've set the overlay to match your stars. +
    • If you are creating mini-timelapse videos, when you install the Website an icon for the + current video will appear on the left side. + You can also manually show/hide the icon. +
    • There's a new icon to display the image full-size. +
    • The startrails and information icons were updated. +
    +
  • Popout on right side: +
      +
    • A link to your Image Settings can optionally be displayed via the + Display Settings option in the WebUI. +
    • The version of Allsky and the Allsky Website are displayed. +
    +
  • Timelapse video thumbnails are now created by default on the Pi and uploaded to a remote + server. + This resolves issues with remote servers that don't support creating thumbnails. + See the TIMELAPSE_UPLOAD_THUMBNAIL setting. +
  • Configuration file changes: +
      +
    • The two prior configuration files (config.js and + virtualsky.json) are replaced by configuration.json. +
    • There are several new settings, including the ability to specify the opacity of the + overlay. +
    • The overlaySize setting, + which defined both the width and the height of the constellation overlay, was split into + overlayWidth and overlayHeight. + Having separate values can be helpful when trying to get the overlay to line up with the + actual stars. +
    • The WebUI Editor page must be used to edit the Allsky + Website's + configuration file since it performs various checks before updating the configuration. +
    • The Editor page should also be used to edit a REMOTE + Allsky Website's configuration file for the same reason.s + A master copy of the remote server's configuration.json + is kept on the Pi and automatically re-uploaded to the server after every change. + After you do this, the drop-down list on the Editor page + will now have + configuration.json (remote Allsky Website) to distinguish + it from a local Website's file. + See the Allsky Website Installation documentation for details. +
    +
+ +
+
+ +

v2022.03.01

+
+ +
    +
  • Switched to date-based release names. +
  • Added ability to have your allsky camera added to the + Allsky Map by configuring + these + settings. + Added Allsky Map Setup section to the WebUI to configure the map settings. + The Lens field now shows in the popout on the Allsky Website + (if installed). +
  • Significantly enhanced Wiki - more pages and more information on existing pages. + All known issues are described there as well as fixes / workarounds. +
  • Added an option to keograms to make them full width, even if few images were used in creating + the keogram. + In config.sh, set KEOGRAM_EXTRA_PARAMETERS="--image-expand". +
  • Added/changed/deleted settings (in config.sh unless otherwise + noted): +
      +
    • Added WEBUI_DATA_FILES - contains the name of one or more + files that contain information to + be added to the WebUI's System page. + See this Wiki + page for more information. +
    • Renamed NIGHTS_TO_KEEP to DAYS_TO_KEEP since it determines + how many days of data to keep, not just nighttime data. + If blank (""), ALL days' data are kept. +
    • Deleted AUTO_DELETE - its functionality is now in DAYS_TO_KEEP. + DAYS_TO_KEEP="" is similar to the old AUTO_DELETE=false. +
    • Added WEB_DAYS_TO_KEEP - specifies how many days of + Allsky Website images and + videos to keep, if the website is installed on your Pi. +
    • Added WEB_IMAGE_DIR in ftp-settings.sh to allow the + images to be copied to a location on your Pi (usually the Allsky Website) as well as + being copied to a remote machine. + This functionality already existed with timelapse, startrails, and keogram files. +
    +
  • The RPi camera now supports all the text overlay features as the ZWO camera, + including the Extra Text file. +
  • Removed the harmless "deprecated pixel format used" message from the timelapse log file. + That message only confused people. +
  • Improved the auto-exposure for RPi cameras. +
  • Made numerous changes to the ZWO and RPi camera's code that will make it easier to maintain and + add new features in the future. +
  • If Allsky is stopped or restarted while a file is being uploaded to a remote server, + the upload continues, eliminating cases where a temporary file would be left on the server. +
  • Decreased other cases where temporary files would be left on remote servers during uploads. + Also, uploads now perform additional error checking to help in debugging. +
  • Only one upload can now be done at a time. + Any additional uploads display a message in the log file and then exit. + This should eliminate (or signifiantly decrease) cases where a file is overwritten or not found, + resulting in an error message or a temporary file left on the server. +
  • Added a --debug option to allsky/scripts/upload.sh to aid in debugging + uploads. +
  • Upload log files are only created if there was an error; this saves writes to SD cards. +
  • The removeBadImages.sh script also only creates a log file if there was an error, + which saves one write to the SD card for every image. +
  • Allsky now stops with an error message on unrecoverable errors (e.g., no camera found). + It used to keep restarting and failing forever. +
  • More meaningful messages are displayed as images. + For example, in most cases "ERROR. See /var/log/allsky.log" messages have been + replaced + with messages containing additional information, for example, + "*** ERROR *** Allsky Stopped! ZWO camera not found!". +
  • If Allsky is restarted, a new "Allsky software is restarting" message is displayed, + instead of a "stopping" followed by "starting" message. +
  • The timelapse debug output no longer includes one line for each of several thousand images + proced. + This make it easier to see any actual errors. +
  • The Camera Settings page of the WebUI now displays the minimum, + maximum, + and default values in a popup for numerical fields. +
  • Startrails and Keogram creation no longer crash if invalid files are found. +
  • Removed the allsky/scripts/filename.sh file. +
  • The RPi Gamma value in the WebUI was renamed to Saturation, + which is what it always adjusted; Gamma was incorrect. +
  • Known issues: +
      +
    • The startrails and keogram programs don't work well if you bin differently during the + day and night. + If you don't save daytime images this won't be a problem. +
    • The minimum, maximum, and default values in the Camera + Settings page of the WebUI, + especially for the RPi camera, aren't always correct. + This is especially try if running on the Bullseye operating system, where many of the + settings changed. +
    +
+
+ + +

0.8.3

+
+ +
    +
  • Works on Bullseye operating system. +
  • RPi version: +
      +
    • Has an improved auto-exposure algorithm. + To use it, set CAPTURE_EXTRA_PARAMETERS="-daymean 0.5 -nightmean 0.2" + in config.sh. +
    • Has many new settings including support for most of the text overlay features that are + supported by the ZWO version. +
    +
  • New and changed config.sh variables, + see the Software Settings + Wiki page for more information: +
      +
    • IMG_UPLOAD_FREQUENCY specifies how often the image should + be uploaded to a website. + Useful with slow uplinks or metered Internet connections. +
    • IMG_CREATE_THUMBNAILS specifies whether or not thumbnails + should be created for each image. +
    • REMOVE_BAD_IMAGES now defaults to "true" since bad-image + detection is now done after a + picture is saved rather than once for all pictures at the end of the night. + This helps decrease problems when creating startrails, keograms, and timelapse videos. +
    • IMG_PREFIX: no longer used - the name of the image used + by the websites is now + whatever you specify in the WebUI (default: image.jpg). +
    • +
      When upgrading to 0.8.3 you MUST follow the steps listed + here. +
      +
    +
  • Replaced saveImageDay.sh and saveImageNight.sh with + saveImage.sh that has improved functionality, + including passing the sensor temperature to the dark subtraction commands, + thereby eliminating the need for the temperature.txt file. +
  • The image used by the websites (default: image.jpg) + as well as all temporary files are now written to allsky/tmp. +
    If you are using the Allsky Website you will need to change the + imageName variable in + /var/www/html/allsky/config.js to + "/current/tmp/image.jpg". +
    +
  • You can significanly reduce wear on your SD card by making allsky/tmp + a memory-based + filesystem. +
+
+ + +

0.8.1

+
+ +
    +
  • Rearranged the directory structure. +
  • Created a Wiki with additional documentation and troubleshooting tips. +
  • Renamed several variables in config.sh and ftp-settings.sh. +
  • CAMERA type of "auto" is no longer supported - you must specify + "ZWO" or "RPi". +
  • Startrails and keograms are now created using all CPUs on the Pi, drastically speeding up + creation time. +
  • Installing the WebUI now preserves any website files (keograms, startrails, etc.) you have. + This allows for non-destructive updates of the WebUI. +
  • New script called upload.sh centralizes all the upload code from other scripts, + and can be used to debug uploading issues. + See this Wiki + page for more information. +
  • The RPi camera does much better auto-exposure if you set the -mode-mean and + -autoexposure options. +
  • The WebUI will now show the Pi's throttle and low-voltage states, which is useful for debugging. +
  • Darks work better. +
  • Many bug fixes, error checks, and warnings added. +
+
+ + +

0.8

+
+ +
    +
  • Workaround for ZWO daytime autoexposure bug. +
  • Improved exposure transitions between day and night so there's not such a huge change in + brightness. +
  • Decrease in ZWO sensor temperature. +
  • Lots of new settings, including splitting some settings into day and night versions. +
  • Error checking and associated log messages added in many places to aid in debugging. +
  • Ability to have "notification" images displayed, such as "Allsky is starting up" and "Taking + dark frames". +
  • Ability to resize uploaded images. +
  • Ability to set thumbnail size. +
  • Ability to delete bad images (corrupt and too light/dark). +
  • Ability to set an image file name prefix. +
  • Ability to reset USB bus if ZWO camera isn't found (requires uhubctl command to be + installed). +
  • Ability to specify the format of the time displayed on images. +
  • Ability to have the temperature displayed in Celcius, Fahrenheit, or both. +
  • Ability to set bitrate on timelapse video. +
+
+ + +

0.7

+
+ +
    +
  • Added Raspberry Pi camera HQ support based on Rob Musquetier's fork. +
  • Added support for x86 architecture (Ubuntu, etc.). +
  • Temperature dependant dark frame library. +
  • Added browser-based script editor. +
  • Added configuration variables to crop black area around image. +
  • Added timelapse frame rate setting. +
  • Changed font size default value. +
+
+ + +

0.6

+
+ +
    +
  • Added daytime exposure and auto-exposure capability. +
  • Added -maxexposure, -autoexposure, -maxgain, + -autogain options. + Note that using autoexposure and autogain at the same time may produce unexpected results (black + frames). +
  • Autostart is now based on systemd and should work on all raspbian based systems, including + headless distributions. + Remote controlling will not start multiple instances of the software. +
  • Replaced nodisplay option with preview argument. + No preview in autostart mode. +
  • When using the WebUI, camera options can be saved without rebooting the RPi. +
  • Added a publicly accessible preview to the WebUI: public.php. +
  • Changed exposure unit to milliseconds instead of microseconds. +
+
+ + +

0.5

+
+ +
    +
  • Added Startrails (image stacking) with brightness control. +
  • Keograms and Startrails generation is now much faster thanks to a rewrite by Jarno Paananen.. +
+
+ + +

0.4

+
+ +
    +
  • Added Keograms (summary of the night in one image). +
+
+ + +

0.3

+
+ +
    +
  • Added dark frame subtraction. +
+
+ + +

0.2

+
+ +
    +
  • Separated camera settings from code logic. +
+
+ + +

0.1

+
+ +
    +
  • Initial release. +
+
+ + +
+
+ - + \ No newline at end of file