Distant Suns Astronomy App Celebrates 25th Anniversary With ...

[prMac.com] San Jose, California - First Light Design is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its award-winning Distant Suns astronomy software and apps with a sweepstakes for everyone who enjoys stargazing, or knows someone that does. Originally released for the Commodore Amiga in 1987, Distant Suns has been available on almost every computer platform and operating system. It is one of the longest-lived, continually published, consumer software titles still on the market, bested only by products like Windows, Microsoft Word, and Broderbund's Print Shop.

The Distant Suns 25th Anniversary Sweepstakes offers nearly $1,000 in astronomy related prizes, including a SkyQuest Orion Telescope, a pair of Celelstron Binoculars, three Mars Meteorites, and ten copies of Distant Suns (max) Astronomy App. The contest ends November 4, 2012. To learn more about the sweepstakes, go to the Distant Suns Facebook page.

"I got the idea to create an astronomy program for computer users while working at the NASA Ames Research Center. It started out as a 17 line BASIC program and I've been polishing it up ever since," said Mike Smithwick, Founder and President of First Light Design. "I've enjoyed creating all the various versions of Distant Suns and helping thousands of people enjoy the wonders of the cosmos. I want to celebrate Distant Suns 25th Anniversary with the public by giving away prizes that help people of all ages appreciate the night sky."

A Brief History of Distant Suns Software and Apps:
* 1987 - released for Commodore Amiga under the name "Galileo," soon changed to Distant Suns
* 1990 - Windows 3
* 1995 - Macintosh
* 2008 - iPhone
* 2010 - iPad
* 2012 - Kindle, NOOK, Google Nexus, Samsung Galaxy Tab

Features include:
* View the stars from the Earth or out in the solar system
* Augmented Reality Viewing overlays the sky with the local landscape
* Current stars and solar systems being monitored by the SETI Institute's Allan Telescope Array, as it listens for possible extraterrestrial civilizations (iOS only)
* What's Up? Offers an overview of the evening's sky
* GPS and Compass aware
* NASA's Night Sky Network of local astronomical events (US iOS only)
* Over 300,000 planets, stars, galaxies, nebula and star clusters
* Interactive tour of the solar system
* And much more

For more information on the current product line and supported systems, visit Distant Suns online.

First Light Design, LLC, is a privately owned company. It first released Distant Suns for the Commodore Amiga in 1987, followed by versions for Macintosh and Windows. Recently, Distant Suns has partnered with NASA's Night Sky Network and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific to include local, United States listings of astronomical events and activities in the App. It has also partnered with the SETI Institute to provide real-time monitoring of Allen Telescope Array extraterrestrial targets. First Light Design is a proud member of Moms With Apps, a collaborative group of family-friendly developers with family-friendly apps. Copyright (C) 2012 First Light Design, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Distant Suns is a trademark of First Light Design, Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

###

Source: http://prmac.com/release-id-49736.htm

Duck Dynasty sf giants hayden panettiere mila kunis stacey dash christopher columbus columbus day