StarTools

I'm not sure when this changed, but you used to be able to heal with a star mask before enabling tracking and doing any processing. Now, turning off tracking "collapses" the compose and you end up with just a mono image.

Hi, what version did you used to use and what version have you found Heal is now different in?

I think when tracking became combined with the noise reduction button. Point being, any modules that you can only run with tracking off have to wait until after the channels are combined.

I'm not 100% sure I follow...
In my tests, Heal works perfectly fine on data while Tracking is off? (it's the only time you can access the Heal module and that has not changed)
Any modules that you can only run with tracking off indeed have to wait until after the channels are fully combined. This has always been the case, except you are of course free to use these modules on any data you wish before import in the Compose module (and thereby turning Tracking on).

Similarly, turning tracking off has always been combined with noise reduction, it has never been different (what is "new"/different, however, is that you cannot run noise reduction while Tracking is off any more - in that case, simply turn it on and make StarTools attempt to undo ths stretch, if you absolutely must use noise reduction on stretched/processed data).

Can you explain what is broken for you? E.g. what did you expect when performing a specific action and what is the actual broken/incorrect result?

Thank you!

I think this may be confusion/fake memory on my part. I was trying to load three channels into compose, turn tracking off, then go to heal with a star mask, then turn tracking on and finish processing. I remember being able to do this in the past?

Ah, okay. Indeed, it is still possible to composite as a basic red, green and blue image ("RGB, RGB"), and perform a Heal on that after turning off Tracking, the turn on Tracking again. Any other type of composite and you will lose any Tracking-specific functionality in the process (given luminance and chrominance are processed separately). You will only be able to save (and heal) the image-as-you-see-it, not all the other states of the image that it is in simultaneously (e.g. your dataset remains in a super-state while Tracking is on and to be able to heal the image it needs to be collapsed into one determinate state).