Notes from Mark Philips' presentation to SAC April 2005

- observers need better documentation and operations staff need more training in IFU and Nod & Shuffle modes
- need to design and fabricate masks with standard slits for N&S observations of single slits
- still need a safe way to change gratings
- it is currently difficult and unsafe to mount a filter in front of one of the grating positions
- connections on grating mounts are degreading
- all connectors (including coolant lines and piezo electric cable) for dewar changes are degrading
- need accurate lables for all gratings and mounts
- require regular documenting of all hardware and software changes
- noise in limit switches often requires these to be manually reset
- need better documentation or recovery procedures for hardware/software failures
- an exposure time calculator for spectroscopy would be useful
- need six more mask holders so that masks can be changed during the night
- a better way (that doesn't involve back breaking) needs to be found to transport masks from laser room to telescope and back
- IMACS optics need to be realigned to remove focus tilt and coma
- telescope optics need to be better collimated to remove tilt in field focal plane
- need to make cosmos software always available to observers
- spare parts need to be better organized