NOAO Abstracts for SPIE Meeting in March

Observing proposals on the Web at the National Optical Astronomy Observatories

Authors:

C. A. Pilachowski, J. Barnes, and D. J. Bell

Abstract:

Proposals for telescope time at facilities available through the National Optical Astronomy Observatories can now be prepared and submitted via the World Wide Web. Investigators submit proposal information through a series of HTML forms to the NOAO server, where the information is processed by Perl CGI scripts. PostScript figures and ASCII files may be attached by investigators for inclusion in their proposals using their browser's upload feature.

Proposal information is saved on the server so that investigators can return in later sessions to continue work on a proposal and so that collaborators can participate in writing the proposal if they have access to the proposal account name and password. The system provides online verification of LaTeX syntax and a spellchecker, and confirms that all sections of the proposal are filled out. Users can request a LaTeX or PostScript copy of their proposal by email, or view the proposal on line. The advantages of the Web-based process for our users are convenience, access to online documentation, and the simple interface which avoids direct confrontation with LaTeX. From the NOAO point of view, the advantage is the use of standardized formats and syntax, particularly as we begin to receive proposals for the Gemini telescopes and some independent observatories. The NOAO WWW observing proposal pages can be found at http://www.noao.edu/noaoprop.

[NOAO at the SPIE Meeting in March]
National Optical Astronomy Observatories, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726 Phone: (520) 318-8000

Posted: 02Mar1998