- Known Bugs
- Workarounds
- If you experience ANY problems with the program, please take the following
steps:
- Open TLE Retriever (Version 1.3.5 or higher).
- Check Enable debug logging and save your settings.
- Close TLE Retriever.
- Reopen TLE Retriever and run through whatever steps lead up to the
problem.
- Close (or abort) the program.
- Send the TLERetriever.log file to me for resolution. Thanks!
- Future Features
- While most users of CelesTrak seem to use Microsoft Windows, not all do.
I expect that once we have rung out the problems with the Windows version of
this program that I will begin developing a Java-based application which
will also run on Macintosh, Unix, and Linux platforms. For those wishing to
try a Perl implementation, please see Tom Wyant's contribution at
http://search.cpan.org/~wyant/Astro-SpaceTrack/.
- Version 1.5.8 (2007 Oct 15)
- Added a key in the .ini file to allow users to bypass checking CelesTrak
for critical updates. This will at least allow downloading data from Space
Track if Internet connectivity issues are preventing a connection to
CelesTrak. While there haven't been any changes to Space Track requiring
a critical update for some time, users are cautioned to disable this check
only as a last resort.
- Version 1.5.7 (2006 Mar 28)
- Added an option to disable the error message produced when Internet
connectivity is unavailable. This option will allow uninterrupted unattended
operation in the event of a temporary loss of Internet connectivity.
- Added list of WAAS, EGNOS, and MSAS satellites (the Satellite-Based
Augmentation System) under Navigation Satellites.
- Version 1.5.6 (2006 Jan 24)
- Added list of Galileo satellites under Navigation Satellites.
- Version 1.5.5 (2005 Jun 03)
- Added error check to prevent seek past end of file if objects are added
on CelesTrak or in user-defined data sets before they appear in the Space
Track data. This change supports enhanced automated processing on CelesTrak
to speed the addition of newly launched objects.
- Version 1.5.0 (2005 Mar 23)
- Changed the proxy configuration interface to simplify it and make it
more reliable.
- Version 1.4.2 (2005 Mar 17)
- Changed default Internet timeout value from 15 seconds to 60 seconds to
help some users avoid getting the Socket capture aborted error
message. This value is also stored in the .ini file, if you feel the need to
change it further.
- Added the ability to turn off automatic checking for a proxy server.
Some users appear to be having a problem because their Windows registry is
set to require a proxy server but is not configured properly. Now, you can
either manually turn off proxy checking or manually configure the program to
use settings other than those listed in the Windows registry (see
Workarounds above).
- Version 1.4.1 (2005 Mar 11)
- Fixed problem with generating Palm .pdb files with more than 255 TLEs.
- Version 1.4.0 (2005 Mar 10)
- Added a feature to check CelesTrak for critical updates before
attempting to perform any operations. If a critical update is required, the
program will notify you and then open the TLE Retriever web page in
your browser. This capability should prevent users from wasting time
unnecessarily trouble-shooting problems, such as the one caused by Space
Track that led to the release of Version 1.3.11.
- Improved timeout checking when attempting to log into Space Track or
download files. Some users were reporting that certain conditions caused
their program to hang when performing web access.
- Added ability to redownload corrupted files. This problem typically
occurs when attempting to access a corrupted catalog_*.gz file. While the
program reports that the file is unpacked correctly, the catalog_*.txt file
is not generated and a File not found error message is produced. If
this happens now, the user will be given the option to delete the corrupted
file and attempt to re-download it.
- Added the capability to generate Palm .pdb format TLE files. These files
(both CelesTrak and user-defined data sets) are automatically loaded in the
Palm Install Tool to be installed during the next hot sync.
- Version 1.3.11 (2005 Mar 08)
- Corrected problem caused when Space Track made an unannounced change to
the HTTP header that is returned when a user successfully logs into the
site. The header change caused the program to think that the login had
failed.
- Version 1.3.10 (2005 Mar 08)
- Added additional option for determining HTTP proxy server.
- Added Exit option to File menu.
- Fixed problem with not detecting changes made to Space Track and
CelesTrak data sets.
- Added capability to save form size on exit. This will mean that users
who need to resize the form only have to do so once.
- Version 1.3.9 (2005 Mar 03)
- Added additional flexibility in determining HTTP proxy server.
- Version 1.3.8 (2005 Mar 02)
- Added proxy handling features to the program.
- Fixed bug which seemed to result from the Abbrevia gzip software
when handling certain path names.
- Added some additional debug logging to aid in problem resolution.
- Version 1.3.6 (2005 Mar 02)
- Added checking to ensure TLE data is available for each object in a
user-defined data set. If no data is found, no data will be output to the
data set. If debug logging is turned on, an entry for each object not found
will be entered into the log.
- Added timestamps for each item in the debug log.
- Fixed bug in calling post.vbs. While the program was looking for
post.vbs, it was trying to execute postprocess.vbs. I had
shortened the name to support systems which don't use long filenames and
missed this change.
- Included sample VBScript (sample.vbs) to demonstrate post
processing. When run, the script will pop up a box telling the user if a new
catalog or alldata file has been downloaded and then open up
newdata.log in Notepad (you should run Download Data first to
create newdata.log). Users should be able to run the script to see
how it behaves by simply double-clicking on it. Please be aware that your
system will probably ask you to approve running the script for security
reasons. To use the script with TLE Retriever, simply rename it to
post.vbs and place it in the directory with the program. When you run
Process Data, the program will execute post.vbs (if it exists)
at the end of that process. Hopefully, this will help users and software
developers get started developing their own scripts. For help with developing
VBScripts, I highly recommend
DevGuru.
- Version 1.3.5 (2005 Mar 01)
- Added an easier way to turn on debug logging.
- Added additional checks for other versions of Windows (e.g., Windows 98).
- Fixed problem with determining a satellite's common name for objects not
yet listed in the SSR. Earlier versions of the program may not be able to
properly generate the Last 30 Day's Launches CelesTrak data set.
- Improved positioning of the form on the screen to avoid having the form
off the screen when switching from dual-display to single-display systems.
- Added an ability to post-process data by executing a VBScript at the end
of the Process Data routine. This feature should provide users enhanced
flexibility to manipulate the data in support of other applications.
- Version 1.3.0 (2005 Feb 26)
- Added option to generate Complete Catalog as a standard CelesTrak
data set.
- Added option to generate CelesTrak data sets with either .txt or .tle
file extensions.
- Cleaned up logic to determine whether program was ready to generate
CelesTrak data sets. Previously, it was possible to activate the Process
Data button without having the required data by changing the Space Track
Data Format choice.
- Added TLE Retriever version and configuration information into
the debug log.
- Version 1.2.5 (2005 Feb 25)
- Removed the code supporting the temporary gzip workaround.
- Version 1.2.4 (2005 Feb 25)
- Further tightened up operation of -update command-line option to
ensure it does not conflict with Auto Download.
- Fixed minor bug when asking whether to create shortcut in Startup
folder.
- Added preliminary code to determine specific Windows version and
hardware for troubleshooting purposes. Information is written into .log file
when Debug On=1. Also shows in About box.
- Version 1.2.3 (2005 Feb 24)
- Modified the logic for running the program with the -update
command-line option so that it won't complain if Auto Download is
set.
- Version 1.2.2 (2005 Feb 24)
- The problem causing the error message "Catalog file is empty. Input file
was corrupt." has now been eliminated! This problem was only occurring for
users on the European continent. After extensive testing, I finally narrowed
down the problem to one call. As it turns out, users having the problem use
the convention of having a comma as the decimal separator for real numbers
rather than the period (as used in the US, UK, and Canada). Historically,
CelesTrak has performed very rigorous testing of all TLEs before releasing
them. This testing included not only validating checksums but ensuring every
character on each line was a valid choice AND performing range checking for
all numbers. The problem resulted when the code attempted to validate a
number from a TLE, such as 123.4567, when the decimal separator was a comma.
In those cases, the range checking failed on all real data and the program
aborted. This code has been extensively tested for use in the US and has
been used billions of times to check CelesTrak's historical archives of over
76 million TLEs. The Real_Value function now checks for decimal separators
other than a period and adapts accordingly.
- Version 1.2.1 (2005 Feb 22)
- Eliminated I/O Error 103 when using three-line data (trying to close a
file not already open).
- Added full process logging when Debug On=1. All output is saved in
TLE Retriever.log. This should help users resolve problems more
quickly.
- Added an option to allow users to decide whether they want to save their
Space Track account information in the .ini file. Requested for security
purposes.
- Fixed login checking to trap failed logins.
- Version 1.2.0 (2005 Feb 21)
- The problem with unpacking GZIP files has finally been eliminated!
Thanks go to Sebastian Stoff for helping me work through the solution. Now,
we have a single integrated solution. Hopefully this will resolve the issues
users in Europe have been reporting.
- Version 1.1.0 (2005 Feb 21)
- Reduced desktop size of application to permit operation on smaller
desktops.
- Added capability to build user-defined data sets. Users may create as
many data sets as desired by creating files of the form [fname].query and
placing them in the My TLEs\User folder. Each .query file should
contain a line for each object which consists of the NORAD Catalog Number
followed immediately by the common name. If only the NORAD Catalog Number is
provided, the program will use the common name found in the Space Track SSR
file. Each [fname].query file will produce an [fname].txt file in the
User folder.
- Version 1.0.5 (2005 Feb 20)
- Added version information and feedback link to main page.
- Fixed bug which was not deleting leftover files in My TLEs
folder.
- Version 1.0.4 (2005 Feb 20)
- Space Track has finally removed the #Start Epoch and #End Epoch lines
from the beginning of all files. TLE Retriever now checks to see if
these lines exist before discarding the data.
- Workarounds have now been added to address the two known unresolved
bugs.
- A newer version of gzip.exe has been added to the distribution. It is
not known whether this will help with the existing problem.
- Version 1.0.3 (2005 Feb 18)
- Added ability to schedule program to run once and close using -update
flag on command line.
- Added prompt before creating shortcut in Startup folder.
- Added checking for unsuccessful directory creation.
- Added checking to delete old data left in My TLEs folder.
- Added check for corrupt or incomplete input catalog file.
- Version 1.0.2 (2005 Feb 17)
- Added query to save settings on exit if any changes were made to the
form.
- Added user feedback link under Help|About menu item.
- Added error checking for unsuccessful data transfers and increased
status reporting on the status bar.
- Version 1.0.1 (2005 Feb 16)
- Changed Auto Download to check for existing shortcut in
Startup folder before attempting to create it.
- Version 1.0.0 (2005 Feb 15)
- Space Track TLE Retriever released.
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