Welcome to the RSpec spectroscopy forum, hosted by Tom Field, the author of the RSpec astronomical spectroscopy program: link ( https://www.rspec-astro.com ). All of us here are big fans of astronomical spectroscopy. It's fun, exciting, inexpensive, and not hard. And best of all, it's hands-on science! This is a friendly, online community. Whether you're a beginner in the field or expert, your questions are welcome. Need to contact Tom? Contact form: link ( http://www.rspec-astro.com/contact ). Regards, Tom Field, Author of RSpec Field Tested Systems, President Contributing Editor, Sky & Telescope Magazine

For those of you who didn't see it, I've attached a recent Sky & Telescope Magazine article entitled "Decoding Light. Ready to start splitting starlight? Take a dive into spectroscopy." I am no longer a Contributing Editor at the magazine, so the column came as a complete surprise to me. It was written by the magazine's observing editor Diana Hannikainen. In the current (September) issue, there is an enthusiastic response (also in the attachment) from RSpec/Star Analyser user Rick Hiestand. He points out that one need not spend years perfecting technique before having fun and capturing interesting scientific results. Everyone starts out as a novice. And I've always been super impressed by high level of the scientific rigor that many of our community have risen to over the years. There's room for both! Tom