Many astrologers and students of astrology write to me, asking me questions. Some of these questions are repeated often enough that I decided to prepare this F.A.Q. page.
Using Your Software
A. How can I tell if my software is calculating charts accurately?
B. How can I learn the "ins and outs" -- strengths and weaknesses and potential pitfalls -- of my astrology software.
C. What do the best programs offer?
D. Do all of the major programs work with Windows 7? How about 64 bit Windows 7?
E. Can I run Windows programs on my new Mac?
Adding Astrology to Your Website
A. How can I offer people free charts on my website?
B. How can I offer my website visitors daily horoscopes?
C. How can I set up my website to provide many astrological functions?
About Interpretations in Astrology Software
A. Why shouldn't I look for interpretations and predictions from Vedic software?
B. What should I look for in Western Interpretation software?
For Astrologers on a Tight Budget
A. Why does astrology software cost so much?
B. What is the least expensive astrology program that has accurate calculations and a full atlas?
Purchasing Software Through Me
A. Are Astrology Programs Purchased though you Registered and with Customer Support?
B. How Do Your Prices and Selection Compare with other Websites?
C. How have you developed so much expertise about astrology software?
D. Do I need to have the earlier version of an astrology program on my computer to install an update?
E. If I don't like a program I have purchased, can I return it or sell it to someone else?
F. Why do you sell astrology programs at a discount (and have the lowest prices)?
How do I learn to use my software?
A. What are the best tools for learning to use my astrology programs
Feel free to ask me other questions you have about astrology software. You can send me an email by clicking here.
A. To evaluate the accuracy of the planetary calculations or the atlas in your software, go to the tests in my article "The Optimal Use of Astrology Software" by clicking here. This article will help you evaluate the accuracy of your software very effectively.
B. "The Optimal Use of Astrology Software" article mentioned above explores how to use your programs effectively. You can read it by clicking here.
C. The best astrology programs offer:
A. Great customer service. When you get one of the best programs, the company will provide wonderful customer service to help you install the software, use the program and resolve problems that arise, and they also offer prompt bug fixes. (When you purchase programs through me, you get each company's full customer support as well as mine.)
B. Continuing development. Good companies continue to develop their software and offer major updates every few years. You can count on new techniques, new astronomical bodies, and new capabilities to be added to your program.
C. Accuracy and Quality. The best programs are very accurate, function smoothly, rarely if ever crash, and are largely bug-free. You can count on the charts, tables, graphs, and reports they produce.
Note: I recently wrote an article comparing the features of the best astrology programs. You can read it by clicking here.
D. The new Windows 7 operating system is much like Vista, just a bit more polished. As such, virtually every major company is completely committed to having their software work perfectly with Windows 7. The only exceptions are 1. the Electronic Astrologer series, which didn't work with Vista, 2. AstroDatabank, which is no longer being sold and had problems with Vista, and 3. programs that are written strictly for Macintosh computers. I just (early November 2009) talked to the folks at Astrolabe, and they added: if you are trying to install Solar Fire Gold on a new Windows 7 PC using an Solar Fire Installation CD you purchased before November 2009, during the installation process, when it asks "Do you want to check for updates?", click on No, and the installation will work perfectly.
Recently, an astrologer asked me to check whether the major Windows programs would run under 64 bit Windows 7, so I wrote to all of the companies, and they all said, "yes".
E. Since the Spring of 2006, Apple has been selling Mac computers with Intel processors -- the same processors used by Windows PCs. This has made it significantly easier to run Windows programs on Macs. In most cases, it requires that you purchase both an emulation program and a copy of Windows, and if you decide to do so, you will also need anti-spyware and anti-virus software to protect your Windows on the Mac. Additionally, there can still be a few compatibility issues (e.g. especially with certain printers) and other problems, and most astrology software companies cannot help you with such issues.
So be sure and get a demo of the software to test before you spend a lot of money on software (up to $300) that will allow you to run Windows astrology programs on your Mac.
Fei Cochrane of Cosmic Patterns has written a very fine article on this topic, which you can read by clicking here.
The GIZMODO website just wrote an excellent article comparing methods of running Windows on Macs which you can read by clicking here.
A. There are three different ways that you can provide free charts for visitors to your website:
A. Purchase a program that will do this for any website. This costs a minimum of $386 and includes the (optional) ability for visitors to also purchase a natal report at the same time.
B. If your ISP is running a Windows server, there is a $1000 option which requires additional programming that can provide several astrological functions directly within your website.
C. A third solution is to hire a programming team to create a custom-designed set of astrology functions for your website. This usually costs $20,000 or more.
If you want more details on any of these options, please send me an email by clicking here
B. I have been asked this question many times. Unfortunately, to have value daily horoscopes need to be written for each sign one at a time every day. There are presently no astrology programs for sale -- to my knowledge -- that perform this function. One of the reasons why professional-level programs don't offer daily horoscopes is because daily horoscopes are very poor at prediction compared to actual transit interpretations to a person's natal chart.
C. To have your website perform many astrological functions is a major undertaking and costs upwards of $20,000 - $40,000. Essentially, you will need to hire astrological programmers to design and implement the functions you wish your website to have. You can contact me by clicking here if you want me to recommend a programmer who can do this for you.
A. The analysis of a Vedic chart requires the synthesis of many factors, which is beyond the ability of any software program. That's why one should never rely on Vedic software for prediction.
Interpretations included in Vedic software are either written by its author in modern language or taken from Classical Vedic Texts.
Interpretations written by the author of the software can be accurate or not, but are still quite limited since they cannot take enough chart factors into account.
If the interpretations are quoted from Classical Vedic Texts, then the information given is taken completely out of context (of every other factor in the chart) and is therefore usually inaccurate, and is also much too extreme and frightening in its language to be distributed to people as printed reports. Additionally, some programs actually miscalculate many yogas in a chart, i.e. determine that yogas exist in a chart when they do not.
For these reasons, I advise people to never distribute Vedic reports generated by Vedic programs, and to learn Vedic astrology primarily from a living teacher and secondarily from books, and not rely on software for interpretation.
B. One should not distribute interpretive reports that will scare or discourage people needlessly. Reports that give dire predictions for the mildest and shortest of transits are irresponsible -- and inaccurate too! Therefore, I champion report programs that "do no harm", i.e. programs that give accurate and in-depth natal and predictive delineations without an alarmist or depressing tone; in other words, programs that give sound advice.
A. Astrology software is actually an incredible bargain. Good programs have exceptional accuracy, include a full atlas that enter coordinates and correct time zones for over 250,000 cities throughout the World, and offer an incredible number of features. It can take an astrologer two years to create a single astrological report program -- e.g. one that prints out reports interpreting birth charts or transits. And creating astrology calculation programs entails an incredible amount of debugging and polishing of new features. Additionally, while most software companies charge hefty fees for customer support, astrology software companies provide free support for as long as you own the software. We are very lucky to have such a great selection of astrology programs.
B. For those just starting out in astrology who are on a very limited budget, TimePassages Basic program may meet their needs. There are versions both for the PC and the Mac, and the program includes the full ACS atlas (automatic entry of coordinates and time zones for over 250,000 cities), and the accuracy of the Swiss Ephemeris (the most accurate planetary calculations available). It can calculate natal charts, show an aspect grid, delineate charts patterns (like grand trines), and include the major asteroids, the black moon, and the comet Chiron. You can also view a chart of the transits (i.e. the planet positions for a specific date) around a birth chart. Point-and-click interpretations appear when you click on any planet in either the natal chart or biwheel, and charts can be printed out in black-and-white. You can purchase the program at a discounted price by clicking here.
A. When you purchase software through me, the programs are sent to you straight from the manufacturer, exactly as if you ordered by calling them yourself. You get the company's full support, and get the latest version fully registered to you. The only difference is that you get a great discount on the software and, if you want it, my expert guidance in helping you choose the best program(s) for your needs.
B. I am always surprised when other websites claim "the widest selection of software on the web" and "the best prices" when they offer neither. I do not advertise nor have the time to create a fancy commercial website, but because I do not rely on software sales for my income (I'm a professional astrologer, psychic, and hypnotherapist), I can offer better discounts than other websites, and much better programs, too. In fact, in some astrological arenas, I am the only person allowed by a program's creator to offer their software, which is better than any other in that genre.
Readers of this website might have noticed that lately a few products (Solar Fire Gold, Shri Jyoti Star, and Kala) are no longer discounted by as much as they used to be. And others (e.g. Kepler and Sirius) are not discounted at all. That's because the companies have decided to control how much discounting they allow distributors to offer. I am making a special effort to provide additional gifts to you, to compensate for this pattern. With Solar Fire Gold, for example, I am providing free Express shipping anywhere in the World and also over 60 additional beautiful Chart Art pages that I lovingly designed. I also designed a top-notch outer planet transit report for Kepler and Sirius. Until last week, I offered it at no charge to everyone who owned either program (whether they purchased from me or not), but Cosmic Patterns told me I could no longer give it away, and so now I charge a nominal fee for it.
C. In 1978, I gave an astrology reading to the 14-year-old daughter of a client of mine. He reported that his daughter found the experience to be life-changing, and he decided to give me the money to purchase a computer for astrology. Shortly after that, I began helping companies debug their programs, and then began helping them design and improve their software.
In 1984, I was asked to write the book, "Astrology on Your Personal Computer", which was a great success. Shortly after that, I started writing astrology software reviews for the AFA Bulletin, American Astrology, and eventually The Mountain Astrologer.
I decided early on that I wanted my reviews to be completely accurate, so I submitted them to the software companies for correction before sending them to my publisher. Therefore, every review on this website has been examined by the software creator and deemed accurate.
I continue to this day to help companies debug, design, and improve their programs (and do not charge anything for my services, and offer them to all companies). I also continue to review software for The Mountain Astrologer as well as publishing my online SoftStar News column bi-monthly.
I love both astrology and astrology software and am happy to be a part of the evolution of astrology software.
The fact that I am a practicing astrologer, as well as a computer programmer who has designed their own astrology software, helps me to know the needs of astrologers. Since I am also a hypnotherapist, I am very sensitive to the wording in interpretive reports, and can recommend programs whose delineations are constructive instead of harmful. I was recently told by one of the foremost astrology software experts, "You are the only person on Earth who knows astrology software better than I do."
D. Do I need to have the earlier version of an astrology program on my computer in order to install an update?
No. While some companies require that you provide a serial number, to prove ownership of a previous version (especially if the company cannot find your previous order on file), no company requires that the previous version be installed on your computer before you can install a newer version.
E. If I don't like a program I have purchased, can I return it or sell it to someone else?
Because it would be so easy for people to purchase a program and then return it while keeping a copy on their PC, software companies in general, and astrology software companies in particular, do not accept returns after the package is opened.
You are, however, usually allowed to sell software you are unsatisfied with, and transfer the title to another person, provided you contact the company that created the software first, and get their authorization.
F. Why do you sell astrology programs at a discount (and have the lowest prices)?
I love astrology, and love the empowerment that having astrology software gives to astrologers. It's like having more tools in your toolbox.
So I always give people the largest discount that I am allowed to.
Since I earn my living with my in-depth sessions with people, I can afford to give astrologers a break on their software.
A. What are the best tools for learning to use my astrology programs
I have many tutorials on my SoftStar Weblog page, which you can look at by clicking here, as well as a web page devoted to tutorials on Solar Fire features, click here to see it, and, of course, reading my reviews of the software you own helps you to learn more about what each program can do. You can read my software reviews here.
Feel free to ask me other questions you have about astrology software. You can send me an email by clicking here.
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