Image capture window is white.

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Neaptide
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2017 8:12 pm

Image capture window is white.

#1

Post by Neaptide »

Hey Robin

I have been having this issue with the last few updates to 3.1. The image window is either white or partially white. When there is an image in the window when I slew the scope using the scope control the object will move but in the window where it used to be is white. I know i'm not explaining it well. The white of the window follows the object when I slew. I have a few screen shots and I copy and pasted the last log.

Sharpcap 3.0 is working flawlessly. Thank you for providing such a great piece of software.

Screenshot (2).png
Screenshot (2).png (435.63 KiB) Viewed 5359 times
Screenshot (1).png
Screenshot (1).png (117.99 KiB) Viewed 5359 times









Info: 12:00:29.9634215 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: SharpCap Version 3.1.4852.0
Info: 12:00:29.9634215 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: GC Memory 83Mb
Info: 12:00:29.9790443 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: Process Memory 115Mb
Info: 12:00:29.9790443 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: Total Physical Memory 8060Mb
Info: 12:00:29.9790443 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: Available Physical Memory 4887Mb
Info: 12:00:29.9790443 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: Operating System : Microsoft Windows NT 6.2.9200.0
Debug: 12:00:30.0744388 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm..ctor() :: Started
Info: 12:00:30.2721742 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type BaslerLXDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.2721742 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type OldBaslerEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.2721742 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type BaslerDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.2721742 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type QHYDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.2721742 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type ASIDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.2721742 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type AltairDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.3721793 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type PointGreyDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.3721793 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type SxDeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.4503452 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type DS3DeviceEnumerator
Info: 12:00:30.4503452 Thread:#1 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider.AddProvider() :: Added device enumerator of type AscomDeviceEnumerator

Debug: 12:00:31.0517734 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm..ctor() :: Ended
Debug: 12:00:31.2163942 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCapForm_Load(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Started
Debug: 12:00:31.2173967 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCapForm_Load(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Ended
Info: 12:00:31.2220051 Thread:LogInfo Thread#8 SharpCap.LogSystemInfo.ThreadProc() :: CPU : Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-7200U CPU @ 2.50GHz with 4 cores.
Debug: 12:00:31.2395965 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Started
Debug: 12:00:33.1681833 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Timebomb checked
Debug: 12:00:33.1948216 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Cameras.Basler.OldBaslerEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Started
Debug: 12:00:33.2740345 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Cameras.Basler.OldBaslerEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Ended
Debug: 12:00:33.2745382 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Cameras.Basler.OldBaslerEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Started
Debug: 12:00:33.2750385 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Cameras.Basler.OldBaslerEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Ended
Debug: 12:00:33.2750385 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Cameras.Basler.BaslerDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Started
Debug: 12:00:33.2760406 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Cameras.Basler.BaslerDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Ended
Info: 12:00:33.3011070 Thread:#1 SharpCap.Base.SimpleDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices(Func`1 deviceNameFinder, String infoText, Func`2 fullNameToDispayName, Func`3 tagCreatorFunc) :: FindCameras - found 0 cameras
Info: 12:00:33.4206727 Thread:#7 SharpCap.Base.SimpleDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices(Func`1 deviceNameFinder, String infoText, Func`2 fullNameToDispayName, Func`3 tagCreatorFunc) :: QHYCameraFinder - found 0 cameras
Debug: 12:00:33.4587762 Thread:#7 SharpCap.Cameras.Ximea.XimeaDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Started
Info: 12:00:33.5215587 Thread:#7 SharpCap.Cameras.Ximea.XimeaDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: XiCam.GetNumberDevices return 0
Debug: 12:00:33.5220586 Thread:#7 SharpCap.Cameras.Ximea.XimeaDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Ended
Info: 12:00:33.5863213 Thread:#9 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider+<GetDevicesFromEnumerator>d__20.MoveNext() :: Detected Camera: HD WebCam (DirectShow Cameras via SharpCap Pipeline)
Info: 12:00:33.5903319 Thread:#9 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider+<GetDevicesFromEnumerator>d__20.MoveNext() :: Detected Camera: Camera V2 simulator (ASCOM Cameras)
Debug: 12:00:33.5908322 Thread:#9 SharpCap.Cameras.Fake.FakeDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Started
Debug: 12:00:33.5908322 Thread:#9 SharpCap.Cameras.Fake.FakeDeviceEnumerator.GetDevices() :: Ended
Info: 12:00:33.5908322 Thread:#9 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider+<GetDevicesFromEnumerator>d__20.MoveNext() :: Detected Camera: Test Camera 1 (Deep Sky) (Test Cameras)
Info: 12:00:33.5908322 Thread:#9 SharpCap.MultiCaptureProvider+<GetDevicesFromEnumerator>d__20.MoveNext() :: Detected Camera: Test Camera 2 (High Speed) (Test Cameras)
Debug: 12:00:33.7734107 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Docking setup
Debug: 12:00:33.7739046 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Startup scripts (if any) run
Debug: 12:00:33.7744060 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Menu updated
Debug: 12:00:33.7994789 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Splash and tips done
Debug: 12:00:33.8279786 Thread:#1 SharpCap.UI.SharpCapForm.SharpCap_Shown(Object sender, EventArgs e) :: Ended
Debug: 12:01:41.7050468 Thread:#1 SharpCap.PythonScripting.BrowseAndRunScript() :: Started
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admin
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Re: Image capture window is white.

#2

Post by admin »

Hi,

my initial suspicion is that this is an issue with the camera and/or the ZWO SDK. The latest 3.1 builds have a newer version of the SDK than the 3.0 builds and I'm wondering if this newer version is having issues with your camera.

My reasoning here is that I can also see white horizontal lines to the left of the moon - these are abnormal too and I think they must be related to the white areas as it would be a massive coincidence to have two separate issues that were unrelated both showing up at once. I can be fairly sure that those lines must be coming from the camera SDK as SharpCap does not manipulate the image in any way likely to cause this sort of pattern.

It would probably be worth checking that you have the very latest ZWO driver installed (maybe the new SDK talking to a slightly out-of-date driver could be a cause). You could also try copying the 'ASICamera2.dll' file from the SharpCap3.0 install folder into the SharpCap3.1 install folder (overwriting the one already there) - if that fixes the problem then the SDK is definitely the issue.

cheers,

Robin
frankieusn
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2017 9:30 pm

Re: Image capture window is white.

#3

Post by frankieusn »

Robin,

Can I ask for a little more insight into that driver library that you're talking about (ASICamera2.dll)? I have three copies of it on my computer and they all look like different sizes:

C:\Program Files (x86)\SharpCap 2.9\ASICamera2.dll (543 KB)
C:\Program Files (x86)\SharpCap 3.0\ASICamera2.dll (761 KB)
C:\Program Files (x86)\PHDGuiding\ASICamera2.dll (621 KB)

I have ZWO's V3.0.0.2 native driver, DS 3.0.0.6, and ASCOM driver 1.0.3.12 installed. I guess that file comes with the programs and not with the driver package? Is it specifically written for each program by the developers? What does manually overwriting it with a newer version do? Why does each program have a different copy instead of calling it from some common location?

Thanks,
Frankie
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Re: Image capture window is white.

#4

Post by admin »

Hi Frankie,

that library is written by ZWO and provides access for programs (like SharpCap or PHD2) to the camera functionality - SharpCap talks to the ASICamera2.dll library, which in turn talks to the driver that you have installed.

When I ship a version of SharpCap I include a version of that file that I have tested and it doesn't get updated until I ship a later version of SharpCap with a newer ASICamera2.dll in it. This is important because if it worked any other way (like that being automatically updated by ZWO) then a version of SharpCap that worked could suddenly break if a new ASICamer2.dll got installed.

So, the experiment is to take the version in C:\Program Files (x86)\SharpCap 3.0\ASICamera2.dll and copy it over the version in C:\Program Files (x86)\SharpCap 3.1\ASICamera2.dll - I think things will work if you do that. If that makes your white go away then we have narrowed down the cause to changes in that library (and we can report the bug to ZWO). If you still see the white like that then the problem is most likely something that I have done in SharpCap and I get to do some head scratching. If it all crashes with that DLL copied then we've learnt nothing much.

cheers,

Robin
frankieusn
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2017 9:30 pm

Re: Image capture window is white.

#5

Post by frankieusn »

In my case the whole screen was white and not just sides. This may have been an over exposure of the inital frame. After that the whole capture area was black and all I got was an increasing number of dropped frames. After a minute or so the captured frame count was 0 and dropped frames was a few hundred. Recycling the program did not help. I switched to the DS driver and everything worked as expected. I then uninstalled all flavors of driver and SharpCap. Reinstalled with most recent versions of all and the native driver worked again SC 3.1.4884.0 beta. Is it possible for SharpCap to write to the dll or corrupt it in any way or to the driver it's self?
Neaptide
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2017 8:12 pm

Re: Image capture window is white.

#6

Post by Neaptide »

Hey Robin

I went to the ZWO site to download the latest driver. I already had the latest version but I reloaded it anyway. It is still acting a little wonky but when I hit the livestack button it seems to clear up. It also did not like when I tried to use the brain function to set exposure and gain. Anyway it is working OK, but not perfectly. 3.0 is still rock solid for me.
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admin
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Re: Image capture window is white.

#7

Post by admin »

Good to hear that you are making some progress. Please do the dll replacement test if you can - as far as I can see your logs look normal (no errors), so there is not much else I can suggest.

cheers,

Robin
Tom3
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2023 5:20 am

Re: Image capture window is white.

#8

Post by Tom3 »

I use SharpCap 4.0 and have this problem with a ZWO ASI 2600 MC Pro. SharpCap is taking images, but I can't see them because of the white image area. What should I do?
Tom
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Re: Image capture window is white.

#9

Post by admin »

Hi Tom,

close the camera, and then re-select it from the menu while holding down the <CTRL> key - that stops SharpCap from re-loading previous settings for the camera which may help (you may have adjusted something and forgotten to change it back, then SharpCap may be re-loading that setting every time).

A good test is to cover the camera so no light can get in and check that the image goes black, then allow some light onto the camera and check that it brightens.

cheers,

Robin
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