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.
2026-10-03- UPDATE FROM MABULA
I am glad to announce that I am finally fully healed, my energy and strength are really back now !
In the past 3 weeks while recovering, I have prioritzed the release of 2.0.0-beta47. So much work has accumulated into this release that it needed to be tested extensively, but also it needed to be available for all of you. Unless a big problem is reported for this release, I expect it will be the final release, finally !, before the official 2.0.0 release.
I'm wanting to process single image stacks and mosaic stacks but after going through the process manually (one section at a time) or hitting integrate after setting up each section I end up with a black screen. This happens whether I try 3 subs or 20 subs.
I have used APP in the past with no problems but since the latest download 1.082 on a renter licence I get blank screens.
It runs through the whole process with no error messages and appears to be working properly.
Is there a manual for this program?
Attached screen shots of an image file, Dark frame and the final mosaic (black screen)
Thanks
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@fwm891 Can you give us more information please? What OS are you on? Are your image files on the local hard disk or on an external one? If on an external one, is it an SSD? If not then that may be the problem. If they are on the local HD, does the directory path where the images are stored contain non-standard characters?
All files are on the local HD, non of the files have non standard characters in their naming,
I'm using a win 10 based desktop PC.
The light and dark frames have come from an ASi533 OSC camera and are fit files. All the files process in PI with no problem.
 Attached a sample file. This file and others shows as an image in APP when double clicked in the viewing window. See previous screen grabs.
 This is the full mosaic processed in PI & PS I wanted to do it in APP because it usually cleans up the joins better.
@fwm891 Can you upload a minimal sample of the files that display this issue so we can have a look and try to reproduce this? Please upload to
https://upload.astropixelprocessor.com/
using username and password upload1, create a directory called fwm891_black_integration and put the files in that directory.
EDIT: a though occurred to me. Can you check and verify that all files used (so light, dark, flat and darkflat or bias) have the same offset? If any of the calibration files (particularly dark and bias if you use the latter) have a too high offset then the image may turn black.
Thanks, it looks like the darks were the problem although at present I can't see why.
However I've just run the M45 mosaic again omitting the darks (so no calibration frames) and tweaked the colour saturation. I can detect the panel joins but better than my attempt PS.
Time for a new set of dark frames...
Many thanks
Did you switch on MBB and LNC? That should get rid of most of that. And a bit of Light pollution correction after that might make it look very nice.
