Norton 360 v5.0--only £24.97 when you spend £30 or more
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System Requirements
Product Features
- Special edition including comprehensive "Starry Night Companion" book
- Discover the Universe on your desktop
- See the sky from any location on earth, any solar system body or up to 20,000 light years away
- Auto Identify automatically shows you what constellation you are viewing
- View 1,000,000 stars
- 110 deep space objects like galaxies, star clusters and nebulae
- Learn popular names of star patterns
- Click on "Go There" and travel to the planet, moon or star of your choice
Product details
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Few things are more frustrating for amateur astronomers than a cloudy sky. Starry Night Backyard is a CD-ROM package that will allow enthusiasts of the night sky to explore it whenever they want to, and whatever the overhead conditions.
The package has some superb visuals, and is remarkably wide-ranging. The moving graphics, as you travel through the solar system and past the edges of planets and moons, are quite otherworldly. Complete beginners should note, though, that it's designed for those who have already gained a little knowledge of the stars--a sister package, Starry Night Beginner, is designed for novices.
The first step is to select a home location, whereupon you will be shown a snapshot view from that spot on earth at the time you are using the package. Of course, if it happens to be daytime where you live, you can select another point anywhere on the globe and view the stars from there--if you have never seen the Southern Cross (or the Pole Star), now there is nothing to stop you.
But what really distinguishes this CD-ROM is that, not only does it allow you to explore the constellations which you see from home, but it enables you to voyage into the solar system. With the range of viewing locations on offer, you can experience the utter darkness of Pluto and the searing heat of a sunny day on Mercury. You can also view interesting events in the past, including many solar and lunar eclipses, and get an impression of the passage of comets and asteroids.
The range of this package is what will really attract those with an interest in the stars. It gives a real sense of the unity of this planet, and the possibility of viewing the sky from anywhere on earth is a real enhancement. --Toby Green
Manufacturer's Description
Starry Night Backyard Special Edition is identical to Starry Night Backyard, except for the inclusion of Starry Night Companion, a 240-page guide to understanding the night sky. Starry Night Companion was written by John Mosley, the director of Griffith Observatory Planetarium.
The software makes learning about the night sky accessible to your entire family. With a few simple steps, you can watch a sunset from the surface of Mars, hitch a ride on a comet and learn about the stars and planets shining over your house. Or travel through time to marvel at night skies as seen from anywhere on Earth, from the distant past to the far future. It is suitable for both those who own a telescope and those who don't.
View 1,000,000 stars along with 110 deep-space objects such as galaxies, star clusters and nebulae, and navigate through space for otherworldly views of eclipses and other rare cosmic events. The Auto Identify feature instantly shows you what constellation you're viewing. There are also QuickTime movies viewable on Web browsers.
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Customer Reviews
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Star Gazers Delight,
By A Customer
This review is from: Starry Night Backyard Special Edition with Book (CD-ROM)
If you are just getting into Astronomy or are an experienced stargazer, the this is the ideal companion. It makes looking into the night sky a pleasure. Everything is professionally done and it is very easy to use. I know people will think it is pricey but it takes the pain out trying to find specific astronomical features. If you are serious about outer space, then this the software for you.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews) 88 of 90 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Primary Tool for Amateur Astronomy,
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Starry Night Backyard Special Edition with Book (CD-ROM)
If you are interested in astronomy in any form, be it naked eye viewing, with binoculars, or telescope, or just interested in the subject, you will want this product...If you have no idea about celestial motion, constellations, planets, or Messier objects, this program will teach you these and more. This is a very professional product with excellent documentation, simple installation and an update capability that leads you by the hand to ensure you always have the latest version. It's your very own planetarium in your computer and under your own almost infinite control to travel around the universe. Great Fun!
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great program for beginners & casual users,
By Bob from the Midwest - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Starry Night Backyard Special Edition with Book (CD-ROM)
Starry Night offers an easy to use interface that can be used 'out of the box.' It looks great and runs great on a Radeon video card giving smooth realtime animation. The star and constellations are labeled, plus there are other navigation features that can be switched on/off. Different points of view show the movement of planets relative to each other and the star background, making it easy to find the planets and know what their position will be in the future. Also I recommend spending the extra $10 to get the book, it explains many of the basic concepts in an easy to read and understand format. Now if only it could just do something about those cloudy nights.
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Starry Night,
By J. Lindner - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Starry Night Backyard Special Edition with Book (CD-ROM)
This is an excellent way to learn astronomy and stargzing. I purchased the "Starter" edition then upgraded to "Backyard" though this is not really necessary to get value out of the purchase. Both editions come with a book that is so similar it is redundant, but there was no choice when upgrading online at the manufacturer's site.Starry Night has many features that will help any level of astronomy student. Backyard allows one to travel further back and forward in time to understand the motion of the Universe. It also has more stars (supposedly one million, but who's counting). The book(s) is(are) well written and reference the software so one can actually see what is being described. I hope other scientific books follow a similar path. The software is easy to use and lots of fun. My kids and I have spent much time looking at the features and will likely do so for years to come. |
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