2026-10-09 APP 2.0.0-beta48 has been released !
This is mainly a bug fix release for the reported bugs in beta47. In addition it has a significant User Interface performance improvement noticable when you need to process 1000s of images in APP.
2026-10-03 APP 2.0.0-beta47 has been released !
This is a very big release... many code optimizations/rewrites, many parts of APP are much faster and more precise, especially star analysis and registration are much faster ! Big mosaics will go much faster 🙂
And we introduce a new preview filter, which includes the new Adaptive Deep Sky Stretch and a General Levels Stretch, this has been long over due. The old preview filter (the panel on the right side to stretch and preview your data) has not been updated for a couple of years and it is a critical part of any APP session.
Adaptive Deep Sky Stretch or ADSS is a much more intuitive stretch algorithm. It is also color preserving (which is a great new addition in itself ! ) which means that the highlights are no longer bleached, color is maintained from the linear data while stretching. You can simply stretch your data using the sky background level and signal width sliders which work much easier and more intuitive. You no longer need to fiddle with the old complicated sliders with zoom buttons. All the zoom buttons for the sliders are made redundant. And you can enter slider values in the slider value fields yourself. I will make a youtube video in the coming days to explain and fully introduce ADSS. Once the video is ready, it will be highlighted on the forum.
RGB Combine upgrade !. The RGB Combine Tool has been rewritten mostly. The tool is faster and easier to use and most importantly, the Luminance slider to inject a luminance channel or channels into the RGB composite is now working correctly. It no longer bleaches the RGB colors. Combined with the new ADSS preview, you will get much better and easier great composites with great color! I will also explain this in a new youtube video.
Hi guys,
thank you for the update! Â Great performance improvement. Â I see that there are many changes. Â I now also can see that the FITS files are only 72 dpi. Â Where can I change this? Â
I use both RAW Nikon Z6 - Olympus EM1 MkII (Camera) and FITS (ASI294MM). Â All produce more than 72dpi.
Any help appreciated.
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HendrukÂ
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@nordiclightphoto DPI is a measure for how many dots per inch will be used when printing an image. It has no effect on the actual file that is produced when saved. If you intend to print the images then you can convert them to TIFF and modify the DPI value with an external tool.Â
So Wouter, does that mean that I can leave it at 72 DPI in APP and not lose any data, then increase it before I save a final version if I will print it? I tested at both 72 & 300 DPI and saw that the file size seems identical. Or even leave it at 72 DPI and increase it in e.g. PS, if I am going to do some final touchups there?
Thanks. And I forgot to add that my first impression of the new features is fantastic - I just have to learn how to use them. I can already see that much more of my processing both should and is going to be done in APP than I have been! A great release...
@wvreeven Thanks Wouter. Â So what you are saying is that when I use a FITS file in PS / Affinity Photo (it can read FITS files) the resolution is not comprised? Â Or do I need to bump up the DPI in APP when exporting it as a tiff? Â I have seen that by the export you can increase the DPI.
In other words FITS is resolution independent? Â Â
@nordiclightphoto As a matter of fact, ALL image dimensions are DPI independent. DPI only defines how the image will be printed. Not how many pixels there are in the image. A higher DPI only means that the printed image will be smaller on paper. If the DPI is too low then you'll see the individual pixels on paper.
When processing astronomical images, the only thing that matters is the spatial resolution of the telescope/camera combination, how well guiding has been performed, seeing etc. But a camera always produces the same number of pixels and that number only changes if the camera is binned or if the image is scaled. DPI is completely independent of this.
