If you have already started the SharpCap software before connecting the camera, in order to open the camera, click on the
“camera” in the menu bar and then select the device.
Offset adjustment. When you completely block the camera (i.e., like taking a dark frame) you may find that the image is
not really zero. Sometimes this will reduce the quality of the image contrast. You can get a better dark field by adjusting
the offset. You can confirm this by opening the histogram as indicated in the figure below.
If you want to enter the 16-bit image mode, select the “RAW16” mode.
By selecting the “LX” mode you can expand the exposure setting range and take long exposures.
After cooling devices connected to the 12V power supply, the temperature control circuit will be activated. You can control
the CMOS temperature by adjusting the settings in the figure below. Basically, you can control the temperature of CMOS
by either adjusting “Cooler Power” or clicking “Auto” and setting “Target Temperature”. You can also see the CMOS
temperature at the lower-left corner of the software window.
ASCOM supported software (e.g. MDL)
With ASCOM drivers, you can use the device with many software packages that support the ASCOM standard. We will use
Maxim DL below as an example, but a similar procedure is used for The SkyX and other software packages supporting
ASCOM.
First make sure you have not only loaded the ASCOM drivers but that you have also downloaded and installed the ASCOM
platform from ASCOM. After both the drivers and platform are installed, start MAXIMDL. Follow the instructions shown
below to finish the setup. Then Click Connect in and enter the software.
