Asteroidal Occultation Maps for North America: Change Log

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Occultation Maps for North America

Change Log

Map Index

Compatibility Issues Time Conversions

How It's Done Change Log

This log will list changes that are made to the code that makes the maps or the index page work. I will not make an entry here each time a new event is added or an existing map is updated with a new path.

Date Description

1Mar06 I have just taken a lot of the verbiage off of the index page so it will load a little faster and mean less scrolling to get to where you want to go. The menu at the top of the page has been changed to reflect these changes and has been added to various break points in the page. All of the information that was there before is still there; it has just been moved to new inside pages. If I have broken anything in doing this please fill out the contact form at the bottom of this page and let me know about it.

8Feb06 If you are a Firefox user and are annoyed that this site opens links in new tabs or windows there is an extension you might be interested in. I haven't tried it so can't say how well it works, but look into TargetKiller 0.3 from the Mozilla Update: Extensions web site: https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/.

1Feb06 My ISP's database got trashed and they think I am on a free account. This is keeping parts of this site from functioning properly. If you find something that is not working please fill out the contact form at the bottom of this page and let me know about it so I can get it corrected.
Known issues:
Offset Lines don't draw on map -- CORRECTED

Site logo does not display -- CORRECTED

22Dec05 I had been having a problem with the lines not drawing in Firefox but it appears it was probably a low bandwidth problem on my end of the wire.
I have created a Frappr map at http://www.frappr.com/occultationmapsfornorthamerica where users of these pages can put a dot on the map where they are so others know who is using this site. (If you put your location on the map you might want to generalize it a bit so the dot isn't right over the house where your expensive optics are.) In the US the dot goes over the location of the post office servicing your ZIP Code but you can move it if you'd like. Frappr is a beta service that also uses the Google Maps API.

14Nov05 AvantGo can now read RSS feeds so if you use AvangGo you can subscribe to the Occultation Maps for North America feed and see when now or updated maps have been uploaded right on your mobile device. I have added a subscribe icon to the top of the landing page next to the RSS button. It looks like you need to create a channel of about 100K to read the 5K XML file. Set link depth to 1 unless you want to read the web page online. Unless your mobile browser can deal with pop up windows you won't beable to see the maps so there is no reason to set the link depth any deeper than 2.
To learn more about this AvantGo beta service go here.

6Nov05 At least one user has experienced a shift in the displayed lines for the Hamburga event on 8Nov05. This occurred while the user was looking at the map with IE6. I have not been able to reproduce the effect with my copy of IE6. If the lines don't agree with Dave Dunham's description of the event in your area please let me know. Verify my map by comparing it with the one on Steve Preston's page (http://www.asteroidoccultation.com/2005_11/1108_449_3623_MapNA.gif) or the one on Derek Breit's page (http://www.poyntsource.com/BREIT_IDEAS/Hamburga.htm).

21Oct05 Tonight I accidentally inserted the code for dynamic resizing of map windows into my track intersection maps and it is mysteriously working again in Internet Explorer based browsers. I don't know if it will continue to work though. I am going to leave it there as a test since these maps are not as important as the full track maps. If it is still working after a month I may switch back to dynamic resizing for all maps.

7Oct05 The October and November maps have all been fixed and are now working in IE again, at least until next Wednesday when Microsoft will release their newest patches.

5Oct05 Internet Explorer browsers are suddenly not showing the polylines that have been there previously. I am looking at the code to see what I can do to fix this but don't expect the problem to be easy to locate or quickly fixed.
UPDATE I have identified the problem. It appears that there has been a change in IE that is preventing the track lines from drawing when the maps are dynamically sized to fill your browser width. Since the maps aren't much good without the track lines I am going to have to revise all of the October and November maps to make them display at a fixed size no matter what size your browser window is. This will take a while since the code in each map file has to be changed manually. I will work from today forward and try to get at least a week worth of maps done a day until I have finished them all. Firefox users will see smaller maps also although the problem is not with their browser.
I test these maps on numerous Mozilla and IE based browsers to insure cross-platform compatability. But I only view them on a regular bases with Firefox. So if Microsoft patches another IE vulnerability and breaks them I don't know about it until someone reports the problem. If you find something that isn't working please send me a message about it using the email form at the botton of the Change Log page.

3Oct05 Last week I added a counter to the bottom of the index page. This isn't a traditional counter. Instead of showing the number of hits since it was installed this shows graphically where the hits have come from over the past week. It is a service provided by ClustrMaps Ltd.

5Sep05 I have created an RSS feed that I will try to update each time I add or update maps on this site. It isn't pretty right now but I will try to make it a little bit more readable as I learn more about RSS. To subscribe to the feed drop the XML/RSS icon on your news reader or add http://digitalmagic.i8.com/Astronomy/Occultations/RSSfeed.xml to your subscription list.

1Sep05 I got lost in the code today while updating tracks and have broken the offset feature in those tracks. Unfortunately I don't have time to debug it right now so that feature will not work on the following maps until tomorrow (hopefully).
3Sep05 Danubia
5Sep05 Praxedis
6Sep05 Genoveva
11Sep05 Happelia
13Sep05 Katja
14Sep05 Ludmilla

29Aug05 I implemented another conservation measure today. This one will be transparent to you though. I have tested it on both Mozilla and IE family browsers and it works here. If you come across a map that does not draw please fill out the form at the bottom of the page and let me know about it.

25Aug05 I have just made a coding breakthrough. On all future maps and updated maps the map size will automatically scale to 95% of your browser's width when the page loads. That is for IE based browsers (IE, AOL Explorer, Avant Browser and Deepnet Explorer). The news is even better if you use a Mozilla based browser (Mozilla, Firefox, Deer Park, Netscape, Opera). In those browsers the map also scales to 95% of the height of the screen. If you resize your browser window you will need to refresh the page to get the map to rescale until I figure out how to make that happen automatically.
In an effort to conserve my dwindling server space I have instituted the first change to cut down on saving the same information in every map page. Future pages will use an inline frame (IFRAME) to display the instructional information below each map. Different browsers are dealing with this information differently. You may need to scroll the frame down to see all of the information it contains. If your browser doesn't support IFRAME (Netscape 4.0) you should see a message telling you to click a hyperlink to see the information in a new browser window.

19Aug05 Today I updated three files (21Aug05 Velleda, 22Aug05 Philosophia & 24Aug05 Doris) and used a new color scheme which should make the maps more accessible to people who are red/green colorblind (about 10% of the male population). The centerline on these maps is yellow, the limit lines blue and the 1 σ lines magenta. By tweaking the transparency a bit I think the lines are still visible over the map and are more visible over a greater percentage of the aerial/satellite imagery.

15Aug05 I added a feedback form at the bottom of this page.

9Aug05 Beneath each map you will find a new link that reads "Download a ready-to-use Google Earth points (track.kml) file for this event."
That's right, you can now get ready-made tracks for all North American asteroidal occultations to use with Google Earth. All you have to do is download the file, unzip it, and double-click on it. I can't run Google Earth on my machine (the minimum requirement is Win 2000 or Win XP), so haven't see what these maps look like, but I have it on good authority that they look great and that Google Earth is much better behaved than Google Maps. This additional service is provided free of charge.

8Aug05
The most substantive change today was the addition of a new feature: JavaScript functions were added to the map page template that will allow the user to define and plot centerline offset lines. The functions to perform this were written by "Kiwi Geoff" with a few tweaks minor by myself. This change will only appear on new maps or on revised maps.

I added some code to the landing page and to the map template to display a warning if the user's browser does not support JavaScript. This code will also only appear on new maps or revised maps but is active on the landing page now.

I also added the How It's done and Change Log pages to the site.

I changed the document rights from copyright to Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial - Share Alike and added a footer containing the relevant information.

Feedback

Corrections, Suggestions, Comments and Criticism

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Map Index
Compatibility Issues	Time Conversions
How It's Done	Change Log

Date	Description
1Mar06	I have just taken a lot of the verbiage off of the index page so it will load a little faster and mean less scrolling to get to where you want to go. The menu at the top of the page has been changed to reflect these changes and has been added to various break points in the page. All of the information that was there before is still there; it has just been moved to new inside pages. If I have broken anything in doing this please fill out the contact form at the bottom of this page and let me know about it.
8Feb06	If you are a Firefox user and are annoyed that this site opens links in new tabs or windows there is an extension you might be interested in. I haven't tried it so can't say how well it works, but look into TargetKiller 0.3 from the Mozilla Update: Extensions web site: https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/.
1Feb06	My ISP's database got trashed and they think I am on a free account. This is keeping parts of this site from functioning properly. If you find something that is not working please fill out the contact form at the bottom of this page and let me know about it so I can get it corrected. Known issues: Offset Lines don't draw on map -- CORRECTED Site logo does not display -- CORRECTED
22Dec05	I had been having a problem with the lines not drawing in Firefox but it appears it was probably a low bandwidth problem on my end of the wire. I have created a Frappr map at http://www.frappr.com/occultationmapsfornorthamerica where users of these pages can put a dot on the map where they are so others know who is using this site. (If you put your location on the map you might want to generalize it a bit so the dot isn't right over the house where your expensive optics are.) In the US the dot goes over the location of the post office servicing your ZIP Code but you can move it if you'd like. Frappr is a beta service that also uses the Google Maps API.
14Nov05	AvantGo can now read RSS feeds so if you use AvangGo you can subscribe to the Occultation Maps for North America feed and see when now or updated maps have been uploaded right on your mobile device. I have added a subscribe icon to the top of the landing page next to the RSS button. It looks like you need to create a channel of about 100K to read the 5K XML file. Set link depth to 1 unless you want to read the web page online. Unless your mobile browser can deal with pop up windows you won't beable to see the maps so there is no reason to set the link depth any deeper than 2. To learn more about this AvantGo beta service go here.
6Nov05	At least one user has experienced a shift in the displayed lines for the Hamburga event on 8Nov05. This occurred while the user was looking at the map with IE6. I have not been able to reproduce the effect with my copy of IE6. If the lines don't agree with Dave Dunham's description of the event in your area please let me know. Verify my map by comparing it with the one on Steve Preston's page (http://www.asteroidoccultation.com/2005_11/1108_449_3623_MapNA.gif) or the one on Derek Breit's page (http://www.poyntsource.com/BREIT_IDEAS/Hamburga.htm).
21Oct05	Tonight I accidentally inserted the code for dynamic resizing of map windows into my track intersection maps and it is mysteriously working again in Internet Explorer based browsers. I don't know if it will continue to work though. I am going to leave it there as a test since these maps are not as important as the full track maps. If it is still working after a month I may switch back to dynamic resizing for all maps.
7Oct05	The October and November maps have all been fixed and are now working in IE again, at least until next Wednesday when Microsoft will release their newest patches.
5Oct05	Internet Explorer browsers are suddenly not showing the polylines that have been there previously. I am looking at the code to see what I can do to fix this but don't expect the problem to be easy to locate or quickly fixed. UPDATE I have identified the problem. It appears that there has been a change in IE that is preventing the track lines from drawing when the maps are dynamically sized to fill your browser width. Since the maps aren't much good without the track lines I am going to have to revise all of the October and November maps to make them display at a fixed size no matter what size your browser window is. This will take a while since the code in each map file has to be changed manually. I will work from today forward and try to get at least a week worth of maps done a day until I have finished them all. Firefox users will see smaller maps also although the problem is not with their browser. I test these maps on numerous Mozilla and IE based browsers to insure cross-platform compatability. But I only view them on a regular bases with Firefox. So if Microsoft patches another IE vulnerability and breaks them I don't know about it until someone reports the problem. If you find something that isn't working please send me a message about it using the email form at the botton of the Change Log page.
3Oct05	Last week I added a counter to the bottom of the index page. This isn't a traditional counter. Instead of showing the number of hits since it was installed this shows graphically where the hits have come from over the past week. It is a service provided by ClustrMaps Ltd.
5Sep05	I have created an RSS feed that I will try to update each time I add or update maps on this site. It isn't pretty right now but I will try to make it a little bit more readable as I learn more about RSS. To subscribe to the feed drop the XML/RSS icon on your news reader or add http://digitalmagic.i8.com/Astronomy/Occultations/RSSfeed.xml to your subscription list.
1Sep05	I got lost in the code today while updating tracks and have broken the offset feature in those tracks. Unfortunately I don't have time to debug it right now so that feature will not work on the following maps until tomorrow (hopefully). 3Sep05 Danubia 5Sep05 Praxedis 6Sep05 Genoveva 11Sep05 Happelia 13Sep05 Katja 14Sep05 Ludmilla
29Aug05	I implemented another conservation measure today. This one will be transparent to you though. I have tested it on both Mozilla and IE family browsers and it works here. If you come across a map that does not draw please fill out the form at the bottom of the page and let me know about it.
25Aug05	I have just made a coding breakthrough. On all future maps and updated maps the map size will automatically scale to 95% of your browser's width when the page loads. That is for IE based browsers (IE, AOL Explorer, Avant Browser and Deepnet Explorer). The news is even better if you use a Mozilla based browser (Mozilla, Firefox, Deer Park, Netscape, Opera). In those browsers the map also scales to 95% of the height of the screen. If you resize your browser window you will need to refresh the page to get the map to rescale until I figure out how to make that happen automatically. In an effort to conserve my dwindling server space I have instituted the first change to cut down on saving the same information in every map page. Future pages will use an inline frame (IFRAME) to display the instructional information below each map. Different browsers are dealing with this information differently. You may need to scroll the frame down to see all of the information it contains. If your browser doesn't support IFRAME (Netscape 4.0) you should see a message telling you to click a hyperlink to see the information in a new browser window.
19Aug05	Today I updated three files (21Aug05 Velleda, 22Aug05 Philosophia & 24Aug05 Doris) and used a new color scheme which should make the maps more accessible to people who are red/green colorblind (about 10% of the male population). The centerline on these maps is yellow, the limit lines blue and the 1 σ lines magenta. By tweaking the transparency a bit I think the lines are still visible over the map and are more visible over a greater percentage of the aerial/satellite imagery.
15Aug05	I added a feedback form at the bottom of this page.
9Aug05	Beneath each map you will find a new link that reads "Download a ready-to-use Google Earth points (track.kml) file for this event." That's right, you can now get ready-made tracks for all North American asteroidal occultations to use with Google Earth. All you have to do is download the file, unzip it, and double-click on it. I can't run Google Earth on my machine (the minimum requirement is Win 2000 or Win XP), so haven't see what these maps look like, but I have it on good authority that they look great and that Google Earth is much better behaved than Google Maps. This additional service is provided free of charge.
8Aug05	The most substantive change today was the addition of a new feature: JavaScript functions were added to the map page template that will allow the user to define and plot centerline offset lines. The functions to perform this were written by "Kiwi Geoff" with a few tweaks minor by myself. This change will only appear on new maps or on revised maps. I added some code to the landing page and to the map template to display a warning if the user's browser does not support JavaScript. This code will also only appear on new maps or revised maps but is active on the landing page now. I also added the How It's done and Change Log pages to the site. I changed the document rights from copyright to Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial - Share Alike and added a footer containing the relevant information.

Name:
Message:

This form will create an eMail message to be submitted via your default eMail application and will include your email address. (It ain't pretty but it works.)