

                  - Coeli Stella 2000 - DESCRIBE.TXT -


                              C O E L I (TM)
                             ---------------

                               Stella 2000
                           --------------------   

                      D E S C R I P T I O N    A N D
                     --------------------------------

                  C O M P A N Y    I N F O R M A T I O N
                 ----------------------------------------

                      Last updated:  April 1998



OFFICIAL PRODUCT DEFINITION:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fully and continuously functioning evaluation software package distributed 
via shareware channels, hereafter to be designated as Shareware, Shareware 
package, or Stella 2000 software package.
 
For definitions and explanations pertaining to matters of copyright and
shareware distribution, we would direct you to the files Shr-ware.txt and
ShareW.txt included as part of the Stella 2000 software package.
  
 
Employment of any description, including adaptation or paraphrase of
such, not to be found either in this document, VENDINFO.DIZ, 
or FILE_ID.DIZ, if deemed inappropriate by Swimming Elk Software, may 
result in the invalidation of license permissions previously granted.

Distributors are especially asked to avoid the following terms when 
describing the Stella 2000 software package:

free, freeware, free software, public domain, nag, nagware, demo,
demonstration software, or any other term or phrase which admits of an 
interpretation not in keeping with the official product definition given..

Non-compliance with this request may invalidate previous license 
permissions granted by Swimming Elk Software to the distributor.

Distributors may not attribute authorship of the Stella 2000 software 
package to any name but Swimming Elk Software.



----------------------------------------------------------------------
                         Program Information:
----------------------------------------------------------------------


File Name(s) for BBSs and Internet ftp Sites:
---------------------------------------------

   The Stella 2000 program package and documentation must reside within 
   a single archive file. Please use the following name:

      STELLA**.ZIP   Coeli - Stella 2000


   If the program is compressed using some other file compression
   method, then please use the name STELLA** with the appropriate
   extension (PAK, ARC, LZH, ZOO, etc.).


   NOTE: ** denotes current 2-digit version number, ie 10                                 


   The Stella 2000 software package may also be distributed without the
   2-digit version suffix as 

                       STELLA.ZIP

   all other filenames within the archive remaining unchanged.




Keywords:
~~~~~~~~~
   astronomy, Windows, Windows 95, planetarium, star chart, star map, ephemeris

Category:
~~~~~~~~~
   Educational / Science / Astronomy
   Recreational / Home & Hobby / Fun 


Program Name, Category, Keywords:
---------------------------------

   STELLA 2000 / Coeli - Stella 2000 // 
   Educational/Science/Astronomy//
   Recreational/Home & Hobby //
   astronomy / planetarium / star chart / star map / ephemeris / observing log  
   



Short Description:
------------------

Interactive astronomy, a virtual observatory
in which to explore realistic skies in real
time, with observing log, list, ephemerides,
location browser, and sophisticated searches
embracing the solar system, DSOs, and over
15500 stars. Effects include scintillation,
extinction, refraction, and precession in
point-source, photoplate, and spotlight
display modes, with the complete Messier
catalog in ImageIcons featured as standard.



Long Description:
-----------------


        CAN YOU READ THE SKY AS EFFORTLESSLY AS YOU CAN READ?

            Your Virtual Observatory for the Millennium


Stella 2000 is new astronomical software for the PC which runs in all 
32-bit flavours of Windows. Stella generates highly realistic views of 
the heavens in real time as observed from anywhere in the world. 

Think of it as your virtual observatory. Stella is nothing less than a 
simulation of the stars in their courses as seen from Earth, and has the 
capacity to transform you into an expert on the skies.

Explore realistic skies in real time, complete with observing log, list, 
live ephemeris, location browser, and a sophisticated search embracing 
planets, comets, DSOs, and over 15500 stars. 

Choose between 4 different celestial projections and observe from between 
0-90 degrees of elevation and 0-360 degrees of the compass in either 
resizeable windows or in a faithful full-screen mode. 

Advance, retard, or animate the simulation's clock by years, months, days, 
and minutes of both sidereal or solar time. 

Stella builds upon the uniqueness and verisimilitude of its precursor 
Coeli - Electric Planisphere to bring effects such as scintillation, 
refraction, extinction, and precession in point-source, spotlight, and 
the new photoplate display modes. Subtler color gradations accurately 
reflect a star's true character, and the complete Messier catalog in 
ImageIcons features as an integral part of this new package, crowned by 
the facility to record and plan your real-sky observations quickly and 
conveniently. 

The sky and the ephemerides may be printed in either mono or color, with 
both horizon and equatorial grids, aequator, ecliptic, horizon, 
constellation lines, names, boundaries and legends. 

Depend on Stella's data quality and extendability. In the final analysis, 
an astronomical application stands or falls by the quality of its data, 
and Stella 2000's sources are second to none. The starting point is the 
much relied-upon Harvard Revised Catalog (Hoffleit & Warren, 1991), an 
incomparable source of details on 10000 or so naked eye stars down to 
magnitude 6.5. A permanent level-one database, the Bright Star Catalog is 
present in both the shareware and registered versions of Stella 2000, 
supplemented by a 7000 star selection from the ultra-modern ESA Hipparcos 
satellite sky survey, bringing Stella's basic population to almost 16000 
stars. 

For telescopic and binocular observers, we begin to climb the ladder of 
Stella's Hipparcos data extensions, all the way from magnitude 7.0 
to those stars beyond magnitude 9 resolvable by more powerful amateur 
telescopes. The SAO and Hipparcos extensions are tiered in batches of 
25000 stars, and may be obtained both complete or in parts and loaded at 
your discretion. Stella's current star capacity thus reaches a 
more-than-respectable 1 million. 




Registration Information:
-------------------------

   Our newest registration service is online ordering via our WWW site 
   (all major credit cards accepted). Simply navigate to one of the 
   following:

     http://www.sci.fi/~elk/stelreg.htm
   or
     http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/coeli/stelreg.htm

   and follow the links.

   A convenient registration facility is available from within Stella
   itself. The file REGISTER.FRM (registration form) is also included 
   amongst Stella's files. If you decide to order online via credit
   card, you may also e-mail us your completed registration form. 
   (attached, for example, using MIME)

   Registration brings lifetime support by mail, time-shift animations,
   the Complete Messier Catalog in ImageIcons, automatic eligibility for 
   future upgrades, the capacity to load up to 1 million more stars, and removal of 
   registration reminder screens. Registered copies are also customised to load
   the user's preferred settings and home location at startup.

   For complete user registration information please refer to the file 
   REGISTER.TXT, or point your browser at one of the Coeli Web sites.



WHO PRODUCED STELLA?
--------------------

Swimming Elk Software - a company managed by Roger Hughes.

The company is based in Finland.

At Swimming Elk Software service and support take precedence. 
This pledge is fundamental to our approach to product development, production, 
and marketing. Although we have been a member of the Association of
Shareware Professionals, unlike the current consensus in the ASP, we DO NOT 
COUNTENANCE CRIPPLING. We intend to go on offering fully -- and continuously -- 
functioning programs for our potential customers to evaluate at their leisure. 

Swimming Elk Software swims against the current in another sense, since we are 
also committed to producing top quality software at REASONABLE PRICES.

These tenets, we believe, are and always have been fundamental to the shareware 
ideal, indeed the ONLY things setting true shareware apart from the mere commercial 
demo. 

Please feel free to get in touch whenever you have a question, a comment or a complaint. 

   Roger Hughes
   Swimming Elk Software
   Manskiventie 1031
   16790 Manskivi
   Finland


We can also be reached electronically as follows:

   
   CompuServe:   106217,2576

   Internet  :   Swimming.Elk@sci.fi     ( preferred method )


For last-minute information, feedback, and support, just point your Web 
browser at:

http://www.sci.fi/~elk
 or
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/coeli




