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PLate OPtimizer
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<p>PLate OPtimizer, or PLOP is a <a href="/facts/CAD_program/5gSXrmmN">CAD program</a> used by <a href="/facts/Amateur_telescope_making/D2FPeLvd">amateur telescope makers</a> to design <a href="/facts/Primary_mirror/juxwTBYa">primary mirror</a> <a href="/facts/Mirror_support_cell/xdyPdMwH">support cells</a> for <a href="/facts/Reflecting_telescope/5Y4aXFvF">reflecting telescopes</a>. It was developed by <a href="/facts/Telescope/BDwYahhR">telescope</a> maker David Lewis, first described in 1999, and used to simplify calculations needed in the design of mirror support cells. It was based on Toshimi Taki's 1993 program PLATE, with a simplified user interface, thus giving it wide acceptance among makers of large <a href="/facts/Dobsonian/KBQS77Xl">Dobsonian</a> style amateur telescopes, with good support of mirrors as thin as two inches for a diameter of thirty inches. </p>