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, just downloaded the software and I'm trying to upload about 100 images but I can't click and hold the mouse button and drag to highlight all of my files --it only allows me to click on 1 at a time. Why is this happening???? That feature works everywhere else on my computer but not in your program
Check the dialog menubar and make sure it's not at the point where it's asking for a working directory.
Thank you, I am so new at this that I'm not sure - where is the dialog menu bar? update ---When I start the program it asks for the working directory --which I immediately put in -- still unable to upload more than 1 image at a time
Thank you, I am so new at this that I'm not sure - where is the dialog menu bar?
When you first launch APP it will prompt for a working directory. It’ll be a Java style dialog so it’s a bit different than the standard ones for your computer’s system. At the top of the dialog where it shows the files/folders will be a title. I’m not at the computer to give a screen shot unfortunately. But if you get to an open files dialog in any other way that clicking on the Lights button in 1) Files tab then it’s looking for something else.
Yes, right when I start APP it asks for a working directory. I immediately chose the file all my images are in. Then In the "work directory" area I can see the file I chose as my work directory (E:\ astro 12--08--21). And, the load button is now automatically highlighted. So now I clicked on "Light" and my directory pops up --with all my files and images in there but when I go to highlight all of the "Lights" (by clicking and holding the mouse button and dragging it through all the images) --- it won't let me. But it will let me choose 1 image and then I have to click the "Light" button again and again until all 100 images are finally uploaded. Same thing happen for the flats, darks, bias --only allows me to click one image at a time instead of highlighting all
Yeah, this is a typical Java thing I’ve found. Try clicking once on the first file, then scroll to the last file and press the shift key and click on the last file. All the files should end up selected then.
@hometuff Another possibility is to click on one file and type CTRL-a. Since APP is written in Java, you also need to use CTRL-a if you're working on macOS.
