On Sat, 20 Nov 2004 20:21:13 GMT, Simple Traveler
wrote:

In article ,
Chris L Peterson wrote:

On 20 Nov 2004 19:11:00 GMT, (Chris1011) wrote:

I don't know if there is a real craze, a marketing craze, or no craze at
all.
But I do know that if you go to a star party, not one telescope in 20 is a
refractor. People who actually use telescopes visually know what makes
sense.

A lot of people use them for imaging, which you are not going to see at star
parties. It is hard to do with normal Dobs. People who buy high end apos
know
exactly why they do so.

Yup. That's why I used the term "visually", and referred to star parties. In
my
book, a refractor has two primary uses- imaging, and visual for travel or
rapid
setup (typically, casual use).

_________________________________________________

Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com

Roland's right, you're wrong.

Refractors are a better instrument for their size than newts or dobs.
they're better for photography, deployment, contrast, and ease of use.

Big dobs/newts are a drag to move around, the tracking is cumbersome,
and they require ladders/stools/etc to have on hand to cover the zenith,
or anywhere near it.

Refractor images are excellent, they are portable, they are outstanding
visually AND photographically.

Portable.
Have any of you ever used a refractor over 6?"
-Rich