ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the hardware setup and looks at software, although there is some inevitable cross-over. Tripod and Mount Alignment helps the initial alignment procedure if a fork-mounted telescope is levelled and aligned with true north. Some have built-in inclinometers and compasses; others can compute any misalignment after synching on a few stars. The most reliable and accurate polar alignment method measures and eliminates the problem; the rate and drift direction of a star. It is not something that can be done quickly and for the best accuracy it may take an entire night. The right ascension axis is the easy part and in an ideal situation the DEC motors are stationary during tracking. Unfortunately life is never that simple and real-world conditions often require the DEC motor to move in either direction to facilitate dither and correct for drift and refraction effects.
