Power Downloader explores the galaxy

After taking Candace Clicks to a nice dinner for Valentine's Day, Power Downloader thought it would be a good idea to go look at the night sky. To get the best view, Candace and Power made their way just outside of town where the lights from the city wouldn't detract from their view. Though the view was amazing, neither Power nor Candace knew much about which stars they were looking at besides the Big Dipper, the Little Dipper, and the North Star.

Access to several informative overlays are found on the left side of WinStar's interface

(Credit: CNET Networks)

The next day at the Powerlair, Power Downloader decided to find a program he could send to Candace which would help identify the night sky as a way of remembering their night together. After some searching at Download.com, Power came across an application called WinStars. With this application, Candace could explore the galaxy in 3D, look at well-known constellations, and track any of a number of comets and satellites. Several different overlays would let Candace look at the names of stars, planets, and constellations. She could also retrieve detailed photos from the Internet if she wanted a closer look. For even more realism, WinStars would let her view the sky in Planetarium mode, which frames the stars nicely with an outdoor scene to simulate looking up at the night sky from earth. Included animation controls would put the stars in motion at the click of a button.

After sending off an e-mail to Candace with a nice note, Power Downloader delved further into Winstars' many features. He quickly realized the program was so packed full of features, Astronomy enthusiasts and students would appreciate all of the expert-level tools. Though Candace might not use Winstars more advanced features, Power hoped she would open the program and be able to relive their Valentine's trip to see the stars.