[neotheMit]

What you have quoted refers to months and times. You won't find many people here who would disagree with that. Most of us think it necessary to visibly sight the moon and not rely on calculations for months. Jews and Christians have been using calculations for a very long time, but only recently have Muslims started to resort to calculations for determining the beginning and ending of months.

We cannot expand this to everything, though. For example, do you or do any of the Habashis always go out and look at the sky to determine the time of prayer? The time of prayer in most areas has been calculated. So, we know at what time 'Asr will be and what time Fajr starts from calculations and you won't find many, if any, detractors.

As for the qiblah, in the Shafi'i madhhab, it is obligatory to pray in the most accurate direction. In fact, if someone who is able to calculate the most accurate direction were to tell a Shafi'i that his direction in his salah was deviated, that person would have to repeat his salah.