Re: Hand Controller (HC) Won't Respond to Touch
It¡¯ll be 1st version that needs soldering down. ? Maybe try use a small plastic ¡°spludger¡± (use to take iPhones start)
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But sounds as if touch screen overlay is dead and you have to replace the screen as it¡¯s glued together. ?
cheers
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Brendan
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Re: Hand Controller (HC) Won't Respond to Touch
Ken ? Where on the planet are you??? I have some of the touch screens but I probably isn¡¯t economic for you unless you¡¯re in the UK ? David ?
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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Kenneth Boquist via groups.io
Sent: 24 February 2025 14:58
To: [email protected]
Subject: [Gemini-II_io] Hand Controller (HC) Won't Respond to Touch? I have a G-11/Gemini II that has not been used for a number of years. I recently decided to return it to active service given some new observing interests, and I found out that the HC won't respond to my touch. It wouldn't even respond when the calibration screen came up. I'm aware I only have about a second or so to touch it, so I touched right away, but the calibration routine didn't start. When the screen finally reached the menus, even those wouldn't respond. I tried this a number of times with the same result, even when using a ballpoint pen with the tip retracted (my favorite way of using it when it was really cold). I tried the procedure for releasing the top of the HC case from the bottom to see if maybe the gasket was pressing down too tight, but I was unable to complete it. I had no problems getting the sides to release from the glass, but the bottom won't release. So, I can't completely release the top of the HC case. I've tried this several times, and decided to stop to avoid breaking the glass. Does anyone have any suggestions on this? While trying to fix this, I found out that the membrane buttons on the back worked since the mount started turning when I pushed them. So, I'm hoping that this HC can be fixed even though it is about 14 years old.
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Hand Controller (HC) Won't Respond to Touch
I have a G-11/Gemini II that has not been used for a number of years. I recently decided to return it to active service given some new observing interests, and I found out that the HC won't respond to my touch. It wouldn't even respond when the calibration screen came up. I'm aware I only have about a second or so to touch it, so I touched right away, but the calibration routine didn't start. When the screen finally reached the menus, even those wouldn't respond. I tried this a number of times with the same result, even when using a ballpoint pen with the tip retracted (my favorite way of using it when it was really cold).
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I tried the procedure for releasing the top of the HC case from the bottom to see if maybe the gasket was pressing down too tight, but I was unable to complete it. I had no problems getting the sides to release from the glass, but the bottom won't release. So, I can't completely release the top of the HC case. I've tried this several times, and decided to stop to avoid breaking the glass.
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Does anyone have any suggestions on this? While trying to fix this, I found out that the membrane buttons on the back worked since the mount started turning when I pushed them. So, I'm hoping that this HC can be fixed even though it is about 14 years old.
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Thanks,
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Ken
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
You may find it helpful to add an entry for gemini in your hosts table. ?Location in windows is \Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts file. ?If you have a static address for the gemini you should add it here so for example ASCOM and other drivers can do the name to address conversion via this table
In my case the added last line looks like this where the address is specific to my setup and gemini setting ? ? 192.168.1.110 gemini
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On Feb 22, 2025, at 14:40, Don Bottaro via groups.io <dpbottaro@...> wrote:
? Hi All,
?
I was able to reach the Gemini 2 through my PC by directly connecting the Gemini to my router using an ordinary ethernet patch cable, so everything is now up to date. Switching to terrestrial mode stopped the ticking as advised. Thanks to all for the help.
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Don
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Hi All,
?
I was able to reach the Gemini 2 through my PC by directly connecting the Gemini to my router using an ordinary ethernet patch cable, so everything is now up to date. Switching to terrestrial mode stopped the ticking as advised. Thanks to all for the help.
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Don
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Thanks for elucidating that. I stand corrected. Obviously I meant a switch. And he actually has one already he can use if he decided to pursue this path.
[Edited Message Follows]
On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 01:56 PM, F. X. Flinn wrote:
ethernet switch = ethernet switching hub
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may depend on when you started doing local area networks ... for me it was 1989
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Hmm, actually no.? As you must know the topography of a hub is quite different from a switch.? Hubs have been obsolete for decades, packet collisions made them very inefficient and slow on active networks.?
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I'm sure there are a few people here that were around even earlier than me but I was designing and building IBM Token ring networks even though the writing was on the wall that IEE 802.3 was coming and it was faster, simpler and had fewer limitations.? The old IBM Token Ring network topography required hubs and basically I designed and installed these walking dead networks shortly before the IEEE 802.3 was accepted and developed commercially.?
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Once the IEEE accepted 802.3 all we did was 10BASE5 fat coax until maybe 2 years later when the much better 10BASE2 skinny coax AKA cheapnet was accepted by the IEEE and became commercially available and the first really widely used office network.?
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We did use hubs with Ethernet for a short time window in the very early days of twisted pair under StarLAN but it was a pig and once the switches showed up in the marketplace nobody used them and StarLAN died of natural causes.??
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--
Chip Louie Chief Daydreamer Imagination Hardware?
Astrospheric - South Pasadena, CA?
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 01:56 PM, F. X. Flinn wrote:
ethernet switch = ethernet switching hub
?
may depend on when you started doing local area networks ... for me it was 1989
?
Hmm, actually no.? As you must know the topography of a hub is quite different from a switch.? Hubs have been obsolete for decades, packet collisions made them very inefficient and slow on active networks.?
?
I'm sure there are a few people here that were around even earlier than me but I was designing and building IBM Token ring networks even though the writing was on the wall that IEE 802.3 was coming and it was faster, simpler and had fewer limitations.? The old IBM Token Ring network topography required hubs and basically I designed and installed these walking dead networks shortly before the IEEE 802.3 was accepted and developed commercially.?
?
Once the IEEE accepted 802.3 all we did was 10BASE5 fat coax until maybe 2 years later when the much better 10BASE2 skinny coax AKA cheapnet was accepted by the IEEE and became commercially available and the first really widely used office network.?
?
We did use hubs with Ethernet for a short time window in the very early days of twisted pair under StarLAN but it was a pig and once the switches showed up in the marketplace nobody used them and StarLAN died of natural causes.??
?
--
Chip Louie Chief Daydreamer Imagination Hardware?
Astrospheric - South Pasadena, CA?
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
You will probably get ticking in terrestrial mode as the system has no encoder signals. ?But it won¡¯t be trying to move the Ra etc.?
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the ticking is warning of motor stall (Aka no encoder signal seen) but the Gemini system will work fine without motors ¡.that is connect etc. ?but no drive obviously?
cheers
--
Brendan
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
I connect both of my HGM Titan and G-11 with Gemini 2 directly to my PC using a standard Ethernet cable. You just need to make sure that the IP address is set up correctly. I've done it with the motors disconnected and it works.
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
ethernet switch = ethernet switching hub
may depend on when you started doing local area networks ... for me it was 1989
On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 11:07 AM, Don Bottaro wrote:
Chip Louie, Thanks - I think the cross-over cable adapter is a good way to go. I probably was not completely understanding the role of the cross-over cable described in the direct method instructions. If I manage to get the Gemini connected tot he network, then I may try some other steps mentioned here by others, including the network hub. I will give this more effort this weekend and let everyone know how it goes. Again, thanks to all, Don?
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Hi Don,
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You do not want to use any kind of hub, you want to use an Ethernet switch.? The 10/100/1000 Ethernet switches are cheap as peas, just buy one with as few ports as possible, you only need 2 or 3 even if you use it with an ASIAIR and a local laptop connection or other copper connection at the mount.? ?
?
--
Chip Louie Chief Daydreamer Imagination Hardware?
Astrospheric - South Pasadena, CA?
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 11:07 AM, Don Bottaro wrote:
Chip Louie, Thanks - I think the cross-over cable adapter is a good way to go. I probably was not completely understanding the role of the cross-over cable described in the direct method instructions. If I manage to get the Gemini connected tot he network, then I may try some other steps mentioned here by others, including the network hub. I will give this more effort this weekend and let everyone know how it goes. Again, thanks to all, Don?
?
Hi Don,
?
You do not want to use any kind of hub, you want to use an Ethernet switch.? The 10/100/1000 Ethernet switches are cheap as peas, just buy one with as few ports as possible, you only need 2 or 3 even if you use it with an ASIAIR and a local laptop connection or other copper connection at the mount.? ?
?
--
Chip Louie Chief Daydreamer Imagination Hardware?
Astrospheric - South Pasadena, CA?
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Chip Louie, Thanks - I think the cross-over cable adapter is a good way to go. I probably was not completely understanding the role of the cross-over cable described in the direct method instructions. If I manage to get the Gemini connected tot he network, then I may try some other steps mentioned here by others, including the network hub. I will give this more effort this weekend and let everyone know how it goes. Again, thanks to all, Don?
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
The only caveat I have for you is about the 2.5 GB business. If your subscription is for gigabit speed and your router has a 2.5 port and that port is the one with the patch cord to your computer's 2.5 gb card, then to maintain access to the service above 1000mbps, you will need to upgrade to a switch that has two 2.5 Gb ports.* If your subscription is for 500mbps, it doesn't matter which ports you use -- they are all going to support 1000mbps. F. X. Flinn*I had a comcast gig account and would see 1200 to 1400mbps download this way on my 10Gb network card. Now I'm testing ECFiber's multigig service and see 3000/3000 and would see more if I had a better motherboard and card!
On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 11:03?AM Don Bottaro via <dpbottaro= [email protected]> wrote: F.X. - Thanks for outlining this possibility. I can see that it could improve immediately and allow more connections down the road. I have a not-so-old Netgear 5-port switching hub so I can try this. I was interested in doing a minimum setup initially, but this is not so complex. Thanks, Don.
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
F.X. - Thanks for outlining this possibility. I can see that it could improve immediately and allow more connections down the road. I have a not-so-old Netgear 5-port switching hub so I can try this. I was interested in doing a minimum setup initially, but this is not so complex. Thanks, Don.
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 06:48 AM, Don Bottaro wrote:
Hi Paul, Thanks for confirming that the ticking sound is no concern. I think you are right about connection configuration, so I am focusing on that now. The PC has 2 ethernet ports, one 1Gb (10/100/1000) and the other 2.5Gb (10/100/1000/2500), so, not being limited to 10/100, I am using a standard (cat 5e) patch cable per the Direct Method instructions. I am connecting directly to the PC through either of these ports, not through a switch. Also, the PC's capacity to act as a router is not enabled, I am attempting to reach our home router (Verizon CR1000A), which I know is reachable through the NUC PC via 192.168.1.1.?
I must be duplicating something else's IP address, so I am going through the device list on the router now - there are many devices, phones, tablets, computers and IoT devices (on their own subnet).?
thanks again,
Don
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Hi Don,
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As others have mentioned the ticking sound is just the sound of a Gemini 2 that is powered up and tracking but not connected to the servo motors.? This doesn't have any impact on the Gemini-2 ability to connect using USB or Ethernet so for our purposes you can ignore it or switch to terrestrial tacking mode which turns off the servo motors.?
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If you have the NUC connected to the house network router via Ethernet it is unlikely that you will be able to use the NUC's other Ethernet to connect to the Gemini-2 with out splitting your networks.? This requires setting up the NUC to behave as a router or turning off all of the other networking comm channels except for the one in use.?
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So if you normally access your home network via Wi-Fi then it is unlikely You will be able to simultaneously access the ASIAIR via Ethernet as the NUC is not a router.? You will need to turn off the Wi-Fi or the Ethernet port unless the NUC has the right chipset and software configuration to do both at the same time.? I have a multi-port Ethernet motherboard with Wi-Fi which does this but I doubt the NUC has jas the ability to mix networks or bridge them without a lot of monkey motion.?
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Some people have managed to connect directly between? PC Ethernet port to Gemini-2 Ethernet port successfully but if the posts here are any indication most people have not been successful without doing one of two things.?
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The first easy way is to plug the Gemini-2 into a port on your router and let the router handle the crossover and route as usual.? The second easy way is to simply buy an inexpensive CAT5e crossover cable or inline crossover adapter.? Using the crossover adapter has the advantage of being very portable and can enable any Ethernet cable to be used as a crossover.??
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In either case you still need to configure the Gemini-2 to work on your existing network.? The easiest configuration long term is to use a fixed IP address also called static IP addressing on your Gemini-2 that matches your existing home network.? This will be handy down the line if you decide to try to access the Gemini-2 over Wi-Fi.?
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This means you need to match the first part of the Gemini-2 IP address to the home router and PC network address.? You posted 192.168.1.1 as your home router IP address but did not show the netmask but it is probably something like 255.255.255.0.? Try using this or similar and then assign the Gemini-2 an IP like 192.168.1.xxx that is not in the router's list of IP addresses.? Also in the Gemini-2 uncheck the box that says DHCP so your new fixed IP address is active and not overridden by the DHCP host system.??
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With the Gemini-2 plugged into the PC with all other network ports and Wi-fi turned off and using a crossover connection OR plugged into the house router this should get you talking to the Gemini-2.?
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--
Chip Louie Chief Daydreamer Imagination Hardware?
Astrospheric - South Pasadena, CA?
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
I have ethernet cabling running from the house to my SkyShed Pod observatory and a dual scope setup with one controlled by a mini PC running NINA or SharpCap and the other controlled by an ASIAir. Those two devices are each able to command the Gemini. With careful setup and plate solving both scopes easily find and guide.
If you can just put the Gemini on your home network like I do this will be much easier. Configuring the two cards to have your PC bridging between the network and the Gemini is not necessary. Just get a 5 port switch and another patch cord, take the patch cords out of your pc and put it into the switch, then connect the switch?to the PC with the 3rd patch cord. Now the network serves your PC and the Gemini.
IOW:
Now:
Router <--> PC Ethernet 2.5Gb ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?PC Ethernet 1Gb <-->? Gemini
becomes
Router <---> 5 port switching hub port 1 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?5 port switching hub port 2 <--> PC Ethernet 2.5Gb ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?5 port switching hub port 3 <--> Gemini
F. X. Flinn
Hi Paul, Thanks for confirming that the ticking sound is no concern. I think you are right about connection configuration, so I am focusing on that now. The PC has 2 ethernet ports, one 1Gb (10/100/1000) and the other 2.5Gb (10/100/1000/2500), so, not being limited to 10/100, I am using a standard (cat 5e) patch cable per the Direct Method instructions. I am connecting directly to the PC through either of these ports, not through a switch. Also, the PC's capacity to act as a router is not enabled, I am attempting to reach our home router (Verizon CR1000A), which I know is reachable through the NUC PC via 192.168.1.1.?
I must be duplicating something else's IP address, so I am going through the device list on the router now - there are many devices, phones, tablets, computers and IoT devices (on their own subnet).?
thanks again,
Don
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Hi Paul, Thanks for confirming that the ticking sound is no concern. I think you are right about connection configuration, so I am focusing on that now. The PC has 2 ethernet ports, one 1Gb (10/100/1000) and the other 2.5Gb (10/100/1000/2500), so, not being limited to 10/100, I am using a standard (cat 5e) patch cable per the Direct Method instructions. I am connecting directly to the PC through either of these ports, not through a switch. Also, the PC's capacity to act as a router is not enabled, I am attempting to reach our home router (Verizon CR1000A), which I know is reachable through the NUC PC via 192.168.1.1.?
I must be duplicating something else's IP address, so I am going through the device list on the router now - there are many devices, phones, tablets, computers and IoT devices (on their own subnet).?
thanks again,
Don
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Hi Conrad. The PC is a NUC Chimney Rock (LLN11CRv7), running Windows 11 Pro. I chose it for its size and 12-19V power accommodation (most NUCs are 19V only) so that it might reside at the mount, like other mini PCs. But my screen is large, so I was trying to get things set up by bringing the Gemini 2 box to the PC (at my desk), as opposed to vice-versa. So I have not yet connected with motors connected. I will try that too, thanks. From the looks of things I have the IP addressing set up correctly, but I will check again at the Verizon router to make sure that I am not duplicating an address being used by something else (and there are many at this point...).
Don
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Thanks Brendan - I will definitely switch to terrestrial mode. Don
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Re: Is it possible to connect the Gemini II directly to a PC if the Gemini is not connected to the DEC/RA motors?
Thanks Jonathan, I will try a USB connection. I didnt know about using terrestrial tracking to silence the clicks - will try that too. Don
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David C. Partridge
Chip Louie
Rick Scott