django-content-bbcode - advanced BBCode alike tags parser for Django
Today I've released on Github one of my applications - django-content-bbcode. The parser code is used on my sites and I've decided to refactor it (it's quite old), add some new features (like the tag loader) and release it to the public. There is also pypi package for it.
In short django-content-bbcode allows you to replace BBCode alike tags in text (like in articles, news) with whatever you code in Python. I use it to highlight code snippets (with pygments), make nice links to articles by given slug (fetches title, description from database), insert image thumbnails (integrated with frontend image lightbox) and few more. Makes plain text quite dynamic. More detailed description is on Github.
Changes in django-ckeditor repositories
I'm maintaining my django-ckeditor fork known on PyPi as django-ckeditor-updated. It works with latest Django versions, uses Django file storage, has some new features and fixes. Recently few people including me got write access to the original repository - shaunsephton/django-ckeditor and my commits were merged (not that the PyPi package is still old).
When/if the original package will get new and constant releases I'll close my fork, but until then django-ckeditor-update is alive. If you have any issues or pull requests made on the original django-ckeditor please check if they are still valid for current codebase.
Improving PostgreSQL support in Django with the help of Kickstarter crowd-funding
Some may already know about this - on Kickstarter there is a fund raising for implementing improved PostgreSQL support in Django. Marc Tamlyn is in the lead and at this very moment there are 25 days to go and the project is already reaching extended goals. It looks like we will see another crowd-funding project successful, making Django better. First one - the Django migrations is on its way for a release with Django 1.7.
There may be another Micron-Aptina sensor ready to rock and roll the planets
Cameras like ASI120MM or QHY5-IIL are equipped with AR0130CS or MT9M034 (mono) sensors. We know what those sensors can do as there is a lot of images made with those cameras. There is also a third very similar sensor that is new and not very popular - Aptina AR0134.
All of those sensors have 1280 x 960 frame and 3.75 pixels. MT9M034 is rated up to 60 FPS while the new contender AR0134 only 54 FPS. The biggest difference is that AR0134 has global shutter and thus is a different design when compared to MT9M034. Global shutter in CMOS sensors usually increased read noise, but provided shutter-artifact free frames. It's hard to tell how the new sensor would perform in planetary imaging but it could be free of vertical lines visible on MT9M034 dark frames. That depends on the design and performance of the sensor.
Jupiter processing challenge with raw AVIs for download
I've published on Dropbox Jupiter AVIs from last night. They are cut with Castrator to limit size (and to make them ready for stacking). My results can be found in the gallery and there are rooms for improvement in stacking or processing.
The best AVIs is the yellow channel. Further away from it the less clear/detailed the final image seems to be. To make RGB/XRGB images I used WinJUPOS as there is quite a big time difference between the AVIs (as I used slow PGR Chameleon to record them). Recording was made from 21:11 til 21:34 local time 24.01.2014. GMT is -1h for it.
Jump in and try to process the AVIs, share the result.
Ubuntu One alternative download (Dropbox overloaded):
Taking a quick look at Sony IMX174 CMOS sensor
Point Grey as one of first announced a new Grasshopper3 camera equipped with a new sensor - Sony IMX174. The announcement was quite hot among planetary photographers. The USB3 camera with this chip can do 162 FPS at 1920 x 1200 frame. The pixels are 5.86 µm while the diagonal is 1/1.2". There are no cameras to test yet, but we can look at some specs and dark frames.
Cameras and equipment for Solar System imaging in 2014
Year ago I wrote about cameras for 2013 and it's time to write about cameras and equipment for 2014. Things that had a successful start in 2013, or should be interesting when they show up in 2014 and so on. It's time to list and comment on some Solar System imaging hardware.
JavaScript based charts in Django made easy with Chartkick application
Chartkick is an application, a library for making JavaScript based charts. There is JavaScript library, Ruby wrapper and Python wrapper for Django and Flask. Let see what Chartkick can offer us in Django applications.
Imaging Jupiter in ammonia absorption bands
Jupiter atmosphere is composed of many gases. Some absorb visual light and give colors to Jupiter cloud bands. Some, like methane have strong absorption bands in infrared visible for cameras. Imaging Jupiter with a bandpass filter covering one of such bands can give a clear view of distribution of given gas among various atmospheric features. Bright areas will have low concentration, wile dark - high. Methane band is often used to detect methane abundance. No other band at the moment is photographed on Jupiter. One reason is that most strong bands can be found in far infrared not accessible to normal cameras. Second may be the lack of filters and validations of given absorption bands actually showing what they should on bandpass photographs.
Ammonia is one of gases found on Jupiter. It's not very common, but it's there and there are some deep infrared images showcasing its distribution. In visible light there are two weak absorption bands that in theory may be used by amateurs. In this article I'll write about my test and results of imaging Jupiter in two ammonia absorption bands.
Angry Birds Go - a race game with unexpected problems on Android
Angry Birds Go! is a new game made by Rovio with a Angry Birds theme. This time we will be racing to get to the final prize. Our team will consist of birds as well as of piggies.
On the other side the game faces some hardware/software problems. Many good-brand devices is marked as incompatible. Secondly many players are reporting problems with the game - crashes, blank screens and so on. So we have a good game and surprising problems.
