Fokuspokus
Fokuspokus
Control window and camera preview
Fokuspokus is a telescope control program with integrated camara control for DSLR and webcam.  It combines focuser, mount and camera to an astrocamera.

Before that time, I used separate programs:
  • one program for the mount (MCU-Control) 
  • another program for my webcam: Qcfocus
  • Astrosnap for autoguiding
  • Cartes du Ciel
  • Pentax Remote Assistant

 

Fokuspokus - ONE control program for all: mount, focuser, webcam (supports AVI and long exposures) and DSLR:

 

Focuser

  • Focus control by pulses from 64ms to 8 seconds
  • Save focus positions for multiple eyepieces
  • Focus assistant

 

Mount

  • Mount control by mouse or keyboard (arrow-keys)

  • Turn the mount by a defined angle

  • Move mount according to a mouse click on the camera window

  • Compensate backlash in RA and DEC

  • Undo last movement
  • Normal guiding and guiding between the images of long exposures
  • Integration of a planetarium program for Goto 

View
  • Two windows, e.g. for preview of guiding camera and DSLR image
  • Reticle
  • Zoom 25% to 400%
  • Live dark subtraction for Webcam images, useful for autoguiding

Image Aquisition
  • Capture from Webcam
  • Capture RAW-Images from Webcam or DSLR with immediate display in 100% size
  • Sequence of images
  • Long exposure
  • Video
  • Capture images from DSL with integrated interval timer with long exposure
  • Update of Exif data of DSLR images with Title and Coordinates

 

This is Fokuspokus !

 

Fokuspokus controls mount with LX200-Protocol, like MCU-Update and Littlefoot von Rajiva for HEQ-5 and EQ6. I tested it with the following hardware:

  • HEQ-5 with MCU-Update 3.59,
  • Phillips Toucam Pro, Phillips Toucam Pro II, Phillips Vesta Pro,
  • Pentax *ist DS, Canon EOS 20D.

 

Similar webcams, other cameras from Canon or Pentax and other mounts with LX200 should not be a problem. You can find informations about the connection cable for the DSLR camera on the DSLR Timer page.

Please tell me if you are successfull with other hardware or contact me in case of problems.

 

Detailed information about Fokuspokus can be downloaded here as PDF.

 

If this is too detailed for you, please have a look at the QuickGuide.

 

Fokuspokus is Freeware. It can be used for free without restricions. But you use it on your own risk.

 

Download Fokuspokus here

 
Fokuspokus capturing a series of images with Canon EOS 20D

Versions:

 

2.2.5 - 29.10.2011:

  • Improved integration with Canon EOS Utility

 

2.2.3 - 22.5.2011:

  • Correction for GOTO control with Google-Sky oder Sky-Map.org
  • Improved guidescope drift compensation

 

2.2.2 - 26.3.2011:

  • GOTO control with Google-Sky oder Sky-Map.org if connected to network. To use it, press the SkyBowser button
  • Integration with Cartes du Ciel V3.0 (Skychart V3.0) for GOTO etc.
  • The focus width shown in the drop-down-list can be free defined

    •  

2.2 - 21.2.2010:

  • Automatic compensation of guidescope drift
  • Optimize your Autoguiding settings using a trace which logs the exact deviations and correction signals
  • Translation to Portuguese. Many thanks to Manuel Fernandes
  • On Screen Keyboard for notebooks without keyboard light

 

2.1 - 16.8.2009:

  • Support for the LX200 Standard Command Set beside the MCU-Update/Littlefood specific command set by Anand Rajiva
  • Pulse Guide Commands can be switched off. In this case simple control commands will be used
  • Grafical display of guiding deviations
  • DSLR control and Webcam long exposure can be controlled also via serial port (or parallel port as before)
  • Click-Navigation on both preview windows possible for easier handling of DSLR-captures on preview 2 and autoguiding on preview 1

 

2.00 - 4.4.2009:

  • Automatical logging of all captures in a "Logbook" with date, time, sky coordinates (Ra and Dec read from the mount) and filenames. With double click on the log item you can display the area of the image in Cartes du Ciel. 
  • Display the current coordinates (of the mount position) in www.Sky-Map.org You need internet connection to use this functionality..
  • Update Exif data of RAW images with focal length and sky coordinates. This function can be activated in the options. The coodinates will be displayed for example with EOSViewerUtility.  
  • Considerable improvement of the Guiding functionality: Sub-Pixel-Guiding and controllable Aggressivity. Improved Algorithm.
  • Korrektion: In the French version the Start Button was not working.
  • Programs like Cartes du Ciel which are used by Fokuspokus will be detected automatically at installation.
  • Rounding problem at negative declination solved
  • Key control of the focuser is now possible on all tabs and windows using Ctrl + Arrow keys
  • Image aquisition by "Watch Folder" is now available also for TIFF files
  • You can delete the image which is currently displayed in the preview window

1.09 - 21.5.2008:

  • Support for webcams with RAW-Format. The RAW images can be converted to RGB on-the-fly and displayed or saved. So you have a much better quality than with the conversion by the firmware of the webcam. See also program WcRmac to activate RAW mode for webcams (Google).
  • Much faster dark frame subtraction
  • French version, thanks to Denis Bailly
  • Guiding with usage of the DSLR-image during the noise reduction phase
  • Bug fixes (e.g. moon-correction was deactivated during mosaic images)  

 

1.08 - 27.4.2008:

  • support for Webcams with electronical switch to long exposure (default: Pin 5)

 

1.07 - 30.3.2008:

  • English Documentation
  • Improved usability
  • Bug fixes
 

1.00 - 25.6.2007:

Project start