Author Archives: Julien Lecomte

From Dream To Reality

Posted on November 21, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

I have always been a pragmatic person. While designing my telescope using computer assisted design software was a very rewarding experience, I have felt a much greater sense of accomplishment making it happen. This is why I am very proud … Continue reading →

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OR: Dinosaur Point, 11/14/09

Posted on November 15, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

After a short (55 minutes) and pleasant drive, I arrived at Dinosaur Point early (around 4pm) because of the new access rules, and to have plenty of time to setup my equipment. Albert Highe, George Feliz and Peter Natscher arrived … Continue reading →

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Entering the World of Amateur Telescope Making

Posted on November 7, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

For the past few weeks, I’ve been designing my next telescope, an Albert Highe inspired 16″ dobsonian. The decision to build my own telescope stemmed from the fact that I knew exactly what I wanted, and I could not get … Continue reading →

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OR: Deep Sky Ranch, 10/16/09: Tarentulas and Galaxy Clusters

Posted on October 17, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

I had originally planned to go to the DARC observatory on Saturday night. However, due to a dismal weather forecast, I was forced to rethink my plans. The forecast for Friday night was actually looking pretty good, and an opportunity … Continue reading →

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OR: Henry Coe State Park, 10/10/09

Posted on October 11, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

Mark Johnston, Peter Krottje and I met at the overflow parking lot at Henry Coe state park last night. I brought my Meade Lightbridge 12″ (after flocking the inside of the UTA with black velvet ordered from Edmund Optics), while … Continue reading →

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CalStar 2009

Posted on September 25, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

I was only able to attend the first two nights of CalStar, an annual Star Party that takes place at Lake San Antonio in California. The first night (Thu, Sep 17), the transparency was mediocre (when I called it a … Continue reading →

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A Better Implementation Of The Input Prompt Pattern

Posted on September 14, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

The Input Prompt pattern consists in prefilling a text field with a prompt as a way of supplying help information for controls whose purpose or format may not be immediately clear. In the browser, this pattern is most often implemented … Continue reading →

Posted in Web Development | 8 Comments

OR: Henry Coe State Park, 8/15/09

Posted on August 17, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

A lot of people showed up for some stargazing at the overflow parking lot at Henry Coe state park. The conditions were pretty good overall: Light winds coming from the north west Temperature in the high to mid 60s Good … Continue reading →

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OR: D.A.R.C. Observatory, 7/25/2009

Posted on July 27, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

I went to the D.A.R.C. observatory last Saturday to observe or re-observe a few Herschel 400 summer objects, as well as enjoy some eye candy under a dark sky. I was setup right next to Dennis Beckley and his classic … Continue reading →

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OR: Henry Coe State Park, 7/20/09

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Julien Lecomte

Jim Harper, Stephen Migol and I met up around sunset at the overflow parking lot at Henry Coe state park. I had a pretty bad experience last time I went to Coe, back in January. However, this time around, the … Continue reading →

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