[SJAAboard] SJAA Loaner Telescope Program.

[Rob Hawley (SJAA)]

The board voted on some draft goals in the May 2007 meeting. My reading of
the minutes (and memory) is that the board just agreed to keep talking. I
still like the May 07 goals. A pithier version of the May 07 goals would
read 


	"The purpose of the loaner program is to encourage members to
observe the sky themselves by providing scopes suitable for beginners and
supporting them with more advanced scopes as they want more challenges."




Non- Goals:

	1. The board already discussed in April 07 that providing airline
transportable scopes was a non-goal. We did not vote on that, but we should.

	2. Astrophotography.  This requires much more advanced and expensive
equipment than is reasonable for the program to provide.

	3. Electronics.  The program currently has two scopes with
electronics assistance; the IntelliScope and the Ultima.  The latter is also
a GO TO.  Beginners ask for GO TO without recognizing the complexities
introduced by using it.  I do not want to set the club up for an
ever-increasing escalation of electronic capabilities.
	
	4. It is not a welfare program to provide permanent loans to
members. Having said that we are like a library that counts on all of its
books being overdue.

	5. Try before Buy.  The goal of the program is not to recommend
specific equipment to purchase.  I can provide alternative brands for every
current loaner scope except the StarBlast. That one is truly unique.


Other Considerations:

	1. Storage Impact

	2. AC Power Requirement - small batteries are fine, but we should
generally avoid scopes that require AC.  At present all of the C8s( except
the Ultima), a Newtonian, and the new C-5 require AC.  Do we eliminate or
replace them?  Supply batteries and invertors?



Missing from Program

	1. Akkana is correct about the refractors.  We only have a very high
end.  Would some thing like my ED-100 fill that niche?  What about the lower
cost ED 80?  There are also more low end scopes, but we would want to make
sure we were not introducing yet another poor quality scope.

	2. Working Solar Scope.  It is time to give up on the 60mm.




I do not think that Mark's and Rich's position is that far apart from mine.
They want to reduce the number of large scopes.  He have (or I have
proposed) to reduce from them 6 (pre Mar 07) to 2.  Those remaining two I
care about very deeply. One that I donated in good faith under the belief
the club would use it in the loaner program.  The 17" affected the course of
my own observing and has been exchanged twice in the 9 months I have run the
program. 

Rob Hawley