STAR*NET Getting Started
Star*Net is provided with sample data that allows you to explore its facilities. Comprehensive notes are provided with these examples. Spending some time reading through the manual will save time and throw light onto the way the package works. Once setup and understood the process of entering, processing data and reviewing the results is straight forward. But as they always say, a little knowledge can be dangerous.
The starting point is of course data, not only your survey, but system defaults.
A number of files are used by Star*Net including:
STAR6.DEF - default company and instrument library
STAR6.FMT - export coordinate file formats
STAR6.SPC - plane coordinate system constants (US)
STAR6.CUS - custom grid zone and unit definitions
Jobs are stored in project files, which are made up of:
<job>.DAT - one or more input data files
<job>.PRJ - project options including instrument library. This is created when you start a job
<job>.LST - output listing after adjustment
<job>.ERR - output listing created when errors or warning are found
<job>.SBF - internal binary file used when creating plots, reformatting points and DXF exports
As a new user, you will become familiar with DAT, LST and ERR files, which can be accessed using a text editor like Notepad.
One of the first things you must do is set Star*Net up for your own individual requirements. This involves selecting your own typical settings. Be aware that Star*Net arrives already set up with defaults which are based on US standards, including Units (feet) and Coordinates System.
The second tab of the Project Options controls the processing of your data, including items such as convergence limit, maximum number of iterations and confidence limits, as shown below.
Finally, you may be interested in seeing how Star*Net deals with weighted observations which are controlled by the standard errors of your observations. This can have a big influence on your results and it is recommended that you use realistic results. Of particular interest here, are the centering errors, which can have a massive effect on your adjustments.
As indicated earlier, Star*Net is very powerful and in the hands of an experienced user can produce excellent results, as will be shown in the next section, Processing Data.
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