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Dear all, > What is important (common to visual and CCD monitoring) is to quickly > inform detected outbursts; this has been well understood by visual observers, > but the slight lack of this sense seems to have reduced the historical > significance of CCD monitoring. Visual monitoring have had advantage > specifically for this reason. A visual observer don't need to make any previous analysis or reduction to get to know what is happening. Once you see that a star looks different the only thing that is left is that you go and report it. This is faster than any automated survey can do. For instance, the other night I caught the sixth brightening of V4745 Sgr and although ASAS-3 -of course- detected it, it took another day for this to get to the web and be public. So visual outburst detections are always important. > Disregarding personal preference, first consult public automated light > curves (such as ASAS-3). If the object is included in such automated > observation program, and presently well sampled, there may be no immediate > need for specifically adding the object in visual program. Many southern > or equatorial "NMO objects" possibly meet this criterion. One needs to search for targets that need observations. Here I support Tom's suggestions about focusing on short period stars, specially eclipsers. I am researching eclipsing binaries with no period. I visually detected several eclipses. Some of these findings are made with other colleagues like Chris Stephan and Sergio Dallaporta and others by myself alone. Most of them combine visual observations with PEP data or with CCD survey data (ASAS-3 or TASS). Surveys have the same chances that any of us has to catch an eclipse. The more eclipses there are, the easier it will be to find a period. We also can help analysing the public data. I have found 55 new eclipsers or new periods this way in less than 2 months. But this is another story. But keep in mind also that big surveys saturate with bright stars, so most o f the binocular and naked eye targets are there to be observed. Bright Be stars are included in this category. So detecting outbursts and sending alerts quickly and catching eclipses to derive periods for eclipses are very important tasks that remain in the visual observer field. As Arne said, there's room for everyone. Cheers, Sebastian.
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