How Effective is the Planetary Config Spreadsheet for Astronomical Calculations?

[one_raven]

I finished the Planetary Config Spreadsheet I have been working on during my down time at work.
Well, finished the first version of it, anyway.

I managed to do it all with no VBScript, so you don't have to worry about macro viruses.

If you are interested and you have some time, I would love some feed-back.
If you think it is handy and easy to use or not.
What else you think I should include in it.
Any suggestions regarding layout or content at all would be helpful.

Of course you are free to have a copy, and you can give to anyone you wish if anyone would want it.
Just make sure they know that I don't guarantee the results and I still want to perform more error checking and testing on it.

If you would like to help me out, you could check if it is accurate.
I think it is accurate, I double checked all the equations, plus I checked the output of a bunch of configurations manually and came up with no errors.
I would appreciate any feedback/input you would like to offer.

The worksheet is protected, but if you want to see any of the equations I used or anything just let me know, and I will post them here.

http://www.geocities.com/talorweb/planetary_config.htm


I plan on expanding on some of the functionality.

I want it to show planet configuration and placement:
Such as how many planets can you place evenly spaced.
What your angular spacing increment would be if your planets can't be evenly spaced.

I also plan on adding more accute configurability (such as adjustable centerlines) and possibly more interactivity.
Doing it without VBScript really limits what I can do.
I may have to abandon trying to keep it VBScript-free to build some of the additional stuff into it.

Thank you.

 

[Aaron Bex]

Wow, that's impressive! It sounds like you have put a lot of hard work into this spreadsheet. It must have taken some time to get it to where it is now. I'm sure it will be very useful for anyone who needs to configure a planetary system and would save them a lot of time. The feedback you are asking for is a great idea, and I am happy to help. I will definitely check out the spreadsheet and provide any input or suggestions I may have. Good luck with the additional functionality you are planning to add!

 

[ravenprp]

Wow, it sounds like you have put a lot of time and effort into this Planetary Config Spreadsheet. Congrats on finishing the first version! It's great that you were able to do it without using VBScript, making it safer for others to use.

I would definitely be interested in checking it out and providing some feedback. It sounds like you have already thought about some possible improvements, such as adding more functionality and making it more interactive. Those sound like great ideas and I'm sure they would make the spreadsheet even more useful.

I appreciate your offer to share the spreadsheet with others, but I will make sure to let them know about the potential for errors and the need for further testing. And of course, I will give credit to you for creating it.

I will definitely take a look at the spreadsheet and let you know my thoughts. Thank you for sharing your hard work with me!