A new version of OpenAstronomyLog, also known as OAL, was released on 1 October 2009. This release is the first for the project under its new moniker, OpenAstronomyLog. OpenAstronomyLog is an effort to define astronomical observations in an open and platform-independent manner so that observing logs can be exchanged among observers. It is released under the Apache License Version 2.0.

The project began several years ago and was released with the name COMAST. That effort was developed by team members from Germany and Belgium, preceding participation by Knightware.

This version has taken many months of effort to develop, with cooperation being the key. Several applications will support observation import and export using OAL 2.0 soon. These include:

• a free web application (DeepSkyLog.org) that currently houses thousands of observations in several languages
• a free cross-platform application (Observation Manager) written in Java
  
• commercial applications Eye&Telescope and Deep-Sky Planner
• other application developers have indicated interest but release plans are not yet available
  

Knightware's role has been to develop support for importing and exporting data using OAL while enhancing the logging capabilities in Deep-Sky Planner. Months of research into many facets of observation logging have culminated in extensive enhancements to Deep-Sky Planner's logging capability, but have also benefited the OAL project.

While several technical debates arose during the process, the team worked with the guiding principle of cooperation to deliver the result. Some concerns were recognized and addressed, others accepted as compromise.

In the end, it has been a very rewarding experience and a pleasure to work with an international team dedicated to solving the longstanding problem of observation preservation and exchange.

Learn more about the project at:
http://groups.google.com/group/openastronomylog