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.
Just installed beta32 on a Win11 box. Loaded some images from itelescope, the latest monthly one. IC434. Get this when loading images (see image, can't copy the text from the box)
I haven't a clue where to look for this. I do have APP working in a smaller box but this one is a 8 core 48GB Dell I wanted to use.
When I setup the automated installation of WIN11 I did select this: Install Oracle VirtualBox Guest Additions
But the other win11 box has that as well.
Stumped
George Csahanin
Dear George @w2db,
Thank you very much for posting your issue.
I understand that you are running in a virtual machine on some host. Is there any reason why you are running in a virtual machine? APP can be run on Linux, macOS and Windows directly and is not developed with virtualization in mind. What operating system has the host and why not run directly on the host? Performance will be better for sure. Or is the host in some cloud and is it not physically at your place?
That said, this error should not occur anyway I think, but the virtualization and how things are setup in that regard might influence things somehow.
The error seems to indicate that there is a problem with 1 or more of the FITS files that you are trying to load. Did you need to upload them to the virtual machine? Maybe the file or files are corrupt on the virtual machine after your upload?
Can you test the data from iTelescope on a host and not a virtual machine?
Mabula
@mabula-admin you misunderstand. I am not running it in a virtual machine. I have installed Vbox on the machine and looking at the error message there is mention of the virtual machine which should have nothing to do with APP. I will say that processing other images from itelescope did work well. There may, as you state, be a problem in one or more of the fit files I'm trying to process. I cannot re-try right now since I am re-installing windows 11 on that computer right at the moment, then will need to re-install everything.
GeorgeC
Hi George @w2db,
Okay, the error message from APP is not related at all to Oracle Virtual Box. Astro Pixel Processor runs on java which actually is a virtual machine on top of your operating system 😉 in that way, our code works the same on Windows, Linux and macOS.
So installing Oracle VirtualBox or using it should have no effect at all on APP.
If that error message appears again, please let me know and I will provide upload instructions so I can test those files 😉
Mabula
@mabula-admin I'll try it again. Anything else runs perfectly. I have just re-installed windows 11 on the two PCs I use and now need to re-establish files, etc. But when I get a moment I'll re-download the files from iTelescope and try it again. It is over 1GB of data.
-GeorgeC
Okay George, @w2db
No problem, let me know if the issue re-occurs, then we need to have a look at those files and fix a possible bug perhaps.
Mabula
