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        PREDICT QUICK START GUIDE
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SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

This program requires ncurses version 4.2 or higher. Earlier versions have been known to cause segmentation faults and/or odd display colors with this program. ncurses may be obtained via anonymous FTP at:

prep.ai.mit.edu

in the pub/gnu/ncurses subdirectory

or: http://www.gnu.org/software/ncurses/ncurses.html

The Linux pthreads library is also required. Both of these libraries are usually available in modern Linux distributions.

UNPACKING

The PREDICT archive can be unpacked in any directory for which read access is provided for all system users (such as /usr/src or /usr/local/src for Slackware Linux). As root, move the tar file to such a directory and issue the command:

tar xvfz predict-2.2.3.tar.gz

to unpack the file.

COMPILATION

PREDICT's compilation and installation procedure differs slightly from that of most software, but should easy enough to understand and follow. First, move (cd) into the predict directory and execute the included "configure" script by typing:

./configure

as root at your command prompt. This script compiles and runs the install program that configures the source code for PREDICT. It then compiles and installs PREDICT by creating symbolic links between the executables created in the installation directory and /usr/local/bin. If a destination directory other than /usr/local/bin is desired, invoke configure with the desired directory as an argument on the command line:

./configure /usr/bin

NOTE: "configure" may stall if the system soundcard is in use. Some window managers (sometimes KDE) take control of the soundcard, and prevent the configure script from opening /dev/dsp and checking its existence.

FIRST TIME USE

First time users will be asked to enter their groundstation latitude and longitude in decimal degrees or in degree, minute, second (DMS) format. Normally, PREDICT handles longitudes in decimal degrees WEST (0-360 degrees), and latitudes in decimal degrees NORTH. This behavior can be modified by passing the -east or -south command line switches to PREDICT when it is invoked. Your station's altitude in meters above mean sea level, a recent set of Keplerian orbital data for the satellites of interest, and an accurately set system clock are also required if successful real-time satellite tracking is also desired. Sources for such data include http://www.celestrak.com/, http://www.space-track.org, and http://www.amsat.org/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

Please consult the files under the "docs" subdirectory for more directions on the use and capabilities of PREDICT.

The latest news and information regarding PREDICT software is available at: http://www.qsl.net/kd2bd/predict.html.

Happy Tracking!

-- John, KD2BD [email protected] May 2006