Usage on Astro Live Stacker

A successful session

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:39 +0000

📘 Introduction

This chapter is your roadmap for running a successful ALS session and monitoring its progress.

It wraps up the presentation of ALS main concepts before you dive into the user interface guide.

⚙️ Setup

Whether you’re shooting DSO live, preparing data for detailed post-processing, or diving into something more artistic, these steps will help you get the best out of ALS every time.

✔️ Choose Your Profile

EAA: For live imaging

Interface

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:53:59 +0000

Introduction

In this chapter you will get deeper knowledge about ALS use through its interface.

The ALS User Interface is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, allowing you to focus on your work without unnecessary distractions.

Main elements

ALS interface is composed of six major elements, each playing a key role in the software’s usability.

ALS Interface Layout

Below is an overview of these components:

1: Main Menu
Provides access to every ALS feature and setting.

main controls

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:39 +0000

Introduction

During this chapter, you will:

get familiar with ALS main controls
Deepen your knowledge on key features

Overview

The ALS control station is the Main Controls interface panel

Located on the left side of the ALS interface, it organizes the most used controls and displays into sections:

Session

Session controls and status
Stack

Stack controls and stack information
Image Server

Image server controls and status
Image Saver

Image saving tools

Processing

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:39 +0000

Introduction

In this chapter, you will learn how to improve your images using the Processing panel.

Overview

The Processing panel is the control room for the Process module in ALS.

Located on the right side of the interface, this panel organizes image processing controls into several sections:

Histogram
A graphical representation of pixel intensity distribution.
Auto Stretch
Adjust the strength of the automatic stretch.
Levels
Fine-tune overall exposure and adjust black and white clipping.

Session Log

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:46:48 +0000

Introduction

By the end of this chapter, you’ll know everything about ALS’s message management system.

Overview

The Session Log consolidates the management of messages generated by ALS and is divided into two main parts:

Log View: Displays messages in real time.
Control Buttons: Allow you to follow, filter, and manage log entries.

The Session Log Panel

The Session Log not only lets you monitor your session’s progress but also facilitates troubleshooting and performance analysis.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:46:48 +0000

ALS

Ctrl + P Preferences

Ctrl + Q Quit

ALS

⌘ + , Preferences

⌘ + Q Quit

Window

D toggles full screen mode

N toggles night mode

Livestacking

R starts / pauses / resumes the session

X stops the session

A ON/OFF subs alignment

K acknowledges issues

Panels

C ON/OFF toggle Main Controls

L ON/OFF toggle Session Log

P ON/OFF toggle Processing

I ON/OFF image-only mode

Image

Y zoom in

main menu

Fri, 07 Nov 2025 14:54:31 +0000

File

The File menu

Quit

Ctrl + Q on Windows and Linux
⌘ + Q on macOS

Quits ALS

Session

The Session menu

Ack. issues

K is used to indicate that you have acknowledged the latest reported issues

The issue indicator turns off until a new issue is reported

This option is only available if the issue indicator is on

Edit

The Edit menu

Preferences…

Ctrl + P on Windows and Linux
⌘ + , on macOS

Opens preferences

A successful session

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:38 +0000

📘 Introduction

This chapter is your roadmap for running a successful ALS session and monitoring its progress.

It wraps up the presentation of ALS main concepts before you dive into the user interface guide.

⚙️ Setup

Whether you’re shooting DSO live, preparing data for detailed post-processing, or diving into something more artistic, these steps will help you get the best out of ALS every time.

✔️ Choose Your Profile

EAA: For live imaging

Interface

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:53:59 +0000

Introduction

In this chapter you will get deeper knowledge about ALS use through its interface.

The ALS User Interface is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, allowing you to focus on your work without unnecessary distractions.

Main elements

ALS interface is composed of six major elements, each playing a key role in the software’s usability.

ALS Interface Layout

Below is an overview of these components:

1: Main Menu
Provides access to every ALS feature and setting.

main controls

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:38 +0000

Introduction

During this chapter, you will:

get familiar with ALS main controls
Deepen your knowledge on key features

Overview

The ALS control station is the Main Controls interface panel

Located on the left side of the ALS interface, it organizes the most used controls and displays into sections:

Session

Session controls and status
Stack

Stack controls and stack information
Image Server

Image server controls and status
Image Saver

Image saving tools

Processing

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:38 +0000

Introduction

In this chapter, you will learn how to improve your images using the Processing panel.

Overview

The Processing panel is the control room for the Process module in ALS.

Located on the right side of the interface, this panel organizes image processing controls into several sections:

Histogram
A graphical representation of pixel intensity distribution.
Auto Stretch
Adjust the strength of the automatic stretch.
Levels
Fine-tune overall exposure and adjust black and white clipping.

Session Log

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:46:48 +0000

Introduction

By the end of this chapter, you’ll know everything about ALS’s message management system.

Overview

The Session Log consolidates the management of messages generated by ALS and is divided into two main parts:

Log View: Displays messages in real time.
Control Buttons: Allow you to follow, filter, and manage log entries.

The Session Log Panel

The Session Log not only lets you monitor your session’s progress but also facilitates troubleshooting and performance analysis.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:46:48 +0000

ALS

Ctrl + P Preferences

Ctrl + Q Quit

ALS

⌘ + , Preferences

⌘ + Q Quit

Window

D toggles full screen mode

N toggles night mode

Livestacking

R starts / pauses / resumes the session

X stops the session

A ON/OFF subs alignment

K acknowledges issues

Panels

C ON/OFF toggle Main Controls

L ON/OFF toggle Session Log

P ON/OFF toggle Processing

I ON/OFF image-only mode

Image

Y zoom in

main menu

Sun, 31 May 2026 12:11:39 +0000

File

The File menu

Quit

Ctrl + Q on Windows and Linux
⌘ + Q on macOS

Quits ALS

Session

The Session menu

Ack. issues

K is used to indicate that you have acknowledged the latest reported issues

The issue indicator turns off until a new issue is reported

This option is only available if the issue indicator is on

Edit

The Edit menu

Preferences…

Ctrl + P on Windows and Linux
⌘ + , on macOS

Opens preferences

A successful session

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:39 +0000

📘 Introduction

This chapter is your roadmap for running a successful ALS session and monitoring its progress.

It wraps up the presentation of ALS main concepts before you dive into the user interface guide.

⚡ Startup

ALS can be launched either from its graphical interface or directly from the command line, depending on your workflow or automation needs.

Graphical launch:
Simply start ALS as any other application. You’ll land in the main window, ready to configure your session.

Interface

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:53:59 +0000

Introduction

In this chapter you will get deeper knowledge about ALS use through its interface.

The ALS User Interface is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, allowing you to focus on your work without unnecessary distractions.

Main elements

ALS interface is composed of six major elements, each playing a key role in the software’s usability.

ALS Interface Layout

Below is an overview of these components:

1: Main Menu
Provides access to every ALS feature and setting.

main controls

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:33:39 +0000

Introduction

During this chapter, you will:

get familiar with ALS main controls
Deepen your knowledge on key features

Overview

The ALS control station is the Main Controls interface panel

Located on the left side of the ALS interface, it organizes the most used controls and displays into sections:

Session

Session controls and status
Stack

Stack controls and stack information
Image Server

Image server controls and status
Image Saver

Image saving tools

Processing

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 12:51:43 +0000

Introduction

In this chapter, you will learn how to improve your images using the Processing panel.

Overview

The Processing panel is the control room for the Process module in ALS.

Located on the right side of the interface, this panel organizes image processing controls into several sections:

Histogram
A graphical representation of pixel intensity distribution.
Auto Stretch
Adjust the strength of the automatic stretch.
Levels
Fine-tune overall exposure and adjust black and white clipping.

Session Log

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 13:19:03 +0000

Introduction

By the end of this chapter, you’ll know everything about ALS’s message management system.

Overview

The Session Log consolidates the management of messages generated by ALS and is divided into two main parts:

Log View: Displays messages in real time.
Control Buttons: Allow you to follow, filter, and manage log entries.

The Session Log Panel

The Session Log not only lets you monitor your session’s progress but also facilitates troubleshooting and performance analysis.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Tue, 16 Jun 2026 23:04:38 +0000

ALS

Ctrl + P Preferences

Ctrl + Q Quit

ALS

⌘ + , Preferences

⌘ + Q Quit

Window

F toggles full screen mode

Session

R starts / pauses / resumes the session

X stops the session

K acknowledges issues

Stacking

A ON/OFF subs alignment

M stacks in mean mode

S stacks in sum mode

Saving

T ON/OFF timelapse mode

D Save current result with timestamp

Panels

C ON/OFF toggle Main Controls

main menu

Tue, 16 Jun 2026 22:07:25 +0000

File

The File menu

Quit

Ctrl + Q on Windows and Linux
⌘ + Q on macOS

Quits ALS

Session

The Session menu

Ack. issues

K is used to indicate that you have acknowledged the latest reported issues

The issue indicator turns off until a new issue is reported

This option is only available if the issue indicator is on

Edit

The Edit menu

Preferences…

Ctrl + P on Windows and Linux
⌘ + , on macOS

Opens preferences