-- GillesDuvert - 13 May 2010

• ASPRO now in version 64 bits on the server. Due to a bug in the old version of the G95 compiler used on jmmc.fr, aspro is compiled in debug mode (slower, sorry). hopefully this will change when we upgrade the server.
• As for now, aspro uses a patched (by gd) version of gildas and cannot be aligned on mainstream gildas anymore, the compatibility of gildas with the web interface has been broken since 2009, and other issues are pending as well.
• Some widgets (especially the name of the FITS files for the user model!) were not appearing in the Web interface. Corrected.
• Still a problem with the web interface: menu entries of rank > 4 are not active (? we inverstigate.).
• The conversion from user model (fits) to uv visibilities was wrong since I made the changes that lead to the "NEWASPRO" interface.
• A new, java only, version of aspro will be soon released.

-- GillesDuvert - 30 Mar 2009

• corrected a bug (wrong reference point for azimuth of horizon maps of stations) preventing observations of very southern stars (dec<-70°) with baselines containing station A0.

-- GillesDuvert - 09 Mar 2009

• version for AMBER and MIDI Period 84.
• For the AMBER and MIDI versions (simplified interface), the ESO instrument modes (4 for MIDI, 16 for AMBER), and the Finito modes, are available in the OBSERVATIONAL SETUP panel. The corresponding spectral coverage and resolution is now plotted with the uv tracks (if the button "Keep spectral information in plots" is set to "yes").
• The spectral dependence of parametric models has yet to be introduced. However, user-provided models (spectrally dependent datacubes, see the associated help in the popup about "Your Model Data" for the FITS keywords to use for this 3rd dimension) will be processed correctly.
• For AMBER, the different limiting magnitudes (depending on integration time, spectral resolution, finito use and telescope type) have been updated to the P84 values.
• Nothing changes for MIDI wrt. Period 83 in term of limiting magnitudes, apart that FINITO can be used now both for ATs and UTs: Aspro will "force" the use of FINITO if the H band magnitude of the object is sufficient.
• The documentation does not yet reflect these changes.

-- GillesDuvert - 20 Feb 2009

• corrected bug that prevented to use aspro for CHARA and COAST. Note that CHARA Delay Lines computation are approximative, especially since the POPs are not taken into account by Aspro!

-- GuillaumeMella - 07 Oct 2008

• Java GUI has been updated to fix layout problem on Mac OS X
• SearchCal search Box unit are now consistent with ASPRO ones

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GillesDuvert - 16 Sep 2008

• version for AMBER and MIDI Period 83. Following the instructions of period 83's CFP, the limiting magnitude on UT for AMBER has been pushed to 7.5. There are subtetlies in the CFP between the limiting magnitude whether FINITO is coherencing or cophasing. In view of the other intervening factors (weather, airmass, source resolved at some wavelength or projected baseline), ASPRO is told to use FINITO whenever possible (as you should do) and be optimistic without going over ESO's instructions. For objects low on the sky, faint and resolved, be cautious.
• The maximum throw of delay lines used in ASPRO has been reduced to 90m (ESO staff, private comm).
• This version has a lot of improvements : now ASPRO works with the OIFITS format. The OIFITS is simulated and the "visibility panel" is just a (simple) OIFITS explorer based on the more general OIFITS viewer developed for amber data reduction. One can switch back to the 'old' panel with the "switch to Visibility Explorer" button.
• You can ask to "Keep spectral information" in the "obs setup" panel. This will make the observations wavelength dependent , the wavelength coverage and sampling will be defined by the instrument setup, and all the plots will have this spectral information in one way or another . Just try.
• The spectral dependence is "flat" until we introduce "chromatic" models for the sources in the list of parametric functions (soon). It is, on the contrary, fully supported in spectrally-dependent data cube given as "User-Provided Model". See the associated help in the popup about "Your Model Data" for the FITS keywords to use for this 3rd dimension (right-click on "Your Model Data (FITS file)" in the corresponding panel).

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GuillaumeMella - 27 Aug 2008

• By now Aspro is only launched using the JavaWebStart protocol. Users should contact the User support to get alternative usage if this method does not work properly on its machine.

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GillesDuvert - 17 Mar 2008

• version for AMBER and MIDI Call For Proposal (CFP) for Period 82. Minor changes: Use of FINITO is now made implicit for AMBER and MIDI when the H magnitude of the object permit it, sensitivity has been put in acordance with the published documents, and interval between observations is now 70 minutes for AMBER. (which, based on recent experience, is too conservative).

- GillesDuvert - 17 Sep 2007

• version for AMBER and MIDI Call For Proposal (CFP) for Period 81 (and period 80 as well).Basically limiting magnitudes for AMBER do not change much wrt. the period 80, but according to the instrument page, the slight improvement in the FINITO limiting magnitudes should permit to go to mag K=5.5 in some case with good weather. This version assumes average weather, and knows when FINITO can be used with the ATs. If you assume really good weather, lower by one the K magnitude of your object. Beware that close to the limiting magnitude 5.5, as soon as the source is slightly resolved, the correlated flux drops below the detectability level (using CfPs values) and errorbars on V2 become HUGE, so mag 5.5 is not really feasible with ATs.
  
• There was an error in version 80 for MIDI where the errorbars on V2 where using the old (p79) values. This is corrected now in the current version.
  

-- GillesDuvert - 10 Mar 2007

• version for AMBER and MIDI Call For Proposal (CFP) for Period 80. Period 79 is still present, but 78 has been removed. No changes for MIDI. For AMBER, the additional possibility to use FINITO with ATs results only in the opening of High-Resolution observations with the ATs and a limiting magnitude for the object to 3 (that is, less than 4) in K, provided that the H band magnitude of the object is also less than 4. ASPRO will implicitely select the use of FINITO when needed, issuing an info message visible in the log file. In all cases the errorBars on the visibility plots will be those implied by the CFP.

-- GillesDuvert - 26 Sep 2006

• Corrected a bug introduced in a recent version of the aspro scripts which prevented to add different telescope configurations in the uv positions list file (oipt_psf.uvt).

-- GillesDuvert - 25 Sep 2006

• Introduced a new task in the ASPRO suite to handle the user-providen models, instead of the inaccurate procedure used before. Thus, the Fourier transform of the user model will be better sampled (giving better "background images" in the u,v coverage plots), and its values will match the visibilities stored in the u,v tables by the uv_model task (used in "interferometric observables explorer" panel).
• Caution: in authenticated mode, some ASPRO-produced files may have been written on your personal directory during a previous session and cannot be overwritten directly by ASPRO who fails silently and may produce false results . We are currently looking into that. In the meantime, it is prudent to delete with the file exchange applet all files that are not directly useful for your current project previous to the use of ASPRO.

-- GillesDuvert - 15 Sep 2006

• Java Gui Server/client has been updated on 13-sep-2006, introducing a better handling of long XML command sequences. This improved by a very large factor (up to 100!) the rendering speed of complicated graphics. ( You can make complicated graphics only with the full aspro interface, so the gain for AMBER and MIDI users is marginal). The version of the Java Applet called by your browser is now a property of the "config pane" of the "start" panel.

-- GillesDuvert - 11 Sep 2006

• release for support of period 79. Large changes have been entered both in the script and in the the program aspro working behind the scenes:
  • new scheme for telescope selection: now by configuration. Uses a simpler choice: MIDI or AMBER, that's all.
  • updated checks for object magnitude vs. sensitivity of telescope+instrumental setup
  • images in plots are now embedded in the svg file sent to the client: faster, surer.
  • uv model (background image in uv plots) is now plotted by aspro_the_program, not by aspro_the_script: for internal reasons, improves speed.
  • help on instruments is provided as a web link to the original CallForPorposals.
• PTI, BURE and GI2T have been removed from the list of known interferometers.
• ASPRO now produces OI_FITS files (task uvttooifits and "MISC.">"Export UV Table as OI_FITS" menu).

-- GillesDuvert - 17 Dec 2005

• new oipt version correcting SPRs 9, 10 and 11. Additionally, a bug was found where partial derivatives of the binary model were computed, and the help on models is more acurate.

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