cglaeser

OK, so adding 8 I/O ports is $500. Best, Christopher

Yes, the P8221 is a nice looking device, but it's $350. A bit steep if all you want is a bank of I/O triggers. Just curious, how does Exacq handle the licensing? Given that the P8221 uses an IP address, do they require another license? Best, Christopher

Is that a no? C'mon, even eBay DVRs have I/O ports. Why do Exacq NVRs include I/O ports if they are not useful? One of the excellent benefits of PoE IP cameras is the ability to run one CAT5 cable out to each camera. If I cover an area with Crow PIR devices or add some magnetic sensors to doors and windows, using the camera I/O ports requires running extra wires out to each camera. There are instances when it would be much easier to run I/O signals back to the NVR. Best, Christopher

A couple advantages of separate IR source is a) you can often select higher power from a separate source, and b) some regions have many insects and spiders that are attracted to the IR source, and this problem can be mitigated by moving the IR source a short distance away from the camera. Best, Christopher

One feature that is missing from Exacq is support for an affordable alarm solution such as an I/O USB device or I/O card. Does Avigilon support such a device? Best, Christopher

Thanks for posting the images. I was expecting you to show similar scenes with two or more encodings, but I know that can be a lot of work. The time I typically need the best forensic detail is at night with movement. In my experience with the Panasonic 502 and the Axis Q7404 encoder, that's when JPEG really starts to pull away from H.264. Here is a simple example. It was not yet dark, so the H.264 artifacts are not as severe as the middle of the night, but you can already see the differences in the late afternoon. The vehicle was moving at a relatively slow speed of 10 mph in both images. Recently I needed the best possible detail on a vehicle image taken at night. Adobe Photoshop can sometimes provide additional detail by pushing the sharpen filter. Here are examples of this technique applied to the two images above. (Be sure and look at the expanded images). Can you guess which image used MJPEG versus H.264. I'm sure you can. Take a close look at the tires in both images. In the JPEG sharpened image, you can definitely see the shape of the tires. In the H.264 sharpened image, the detail is lost due to the motion smearing of H.264. There are other differences in detail if you take the time to compare the two images, particularly where a high contrast region is moving. This H.264 smearing gets worse at night. Now, let's review one of your images that has been sharpened. Which compression do you think was used to record this image? Best, Christopher

If I understand your post, you added a second router to expand the number of ports on your first router, is that correct? Is so, you should not use two routers to do this. Instead, you should use a router and a switch. Some routers can be configured to act like a switch. Or, you can purchase a new switch (they are relatively cheap). Let me know if I'm even on the right track. Best, Christopher

There are many free services on the web for uploading images (e.g. Google, Flikr, etc). Create an account if you don't already have one, upload your images, and then post links to those images here. Best, Christopher

Be sure and post image samples. Images with low light and movement are especially welcome here. Best, Christopher

Thanks for the follow up. Yes, it's quite apparent from the video that you are using the panoramic cameras for tracking. My apologies if that was not clear in my post. As I mentioned, I think this is a good approach. A single-view PTZ must zoom out periodically to reassess the larger scene, whereas a panorama/PTZ combo can simultaneously view the entire scene and track an object with full zoom. However, it should be possible to track an object using this approach, whereas the demo video has very little tracking, but rather jumps from region to region to take snapshots of regions with movement. I understand this was a demo, and the software and hardware are still being refined. We look forward to additional follow ups as you make improvements. IMO, we are going to see some extremely capable auto PTZ systems over the next decade (e.g scene understanding, threat identification, and higher-level decisions about potential threats, etc), and we look forward to your continued improvements and more demos. Best, Christopher

I can narrow it down a bit for you. You don't want/need PTZ. A DIY should not need to put a box camera in an enclosure unless you really need the features of that box camera (e.g. 750 ultra low light). With that out of the way, if you have eves that are suitable for mini domes, that would be my preference. I prefer not to see bullets pointed in random directions on a home, but that's just me. I think well-installed mini domes tend to be less obvious, IMO. Hope that helps. Best, Christopher

Excellent! Lookin' forward to your assessment. I'm especially interested in this camera if it will work with Exacq. If not, I'm leaning towards IQEye. Best, Christopher

Hey partner, can you test an Avigilon with Exacq and let us know the results? Best, Christopher

Got it to work. FWIW, after installation and configuration, had to restart the computer. Restarting apcupsd daemon did not seem to be sufficient. The manual is posted at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/apcupsd Best, Christopher

Anyone have any success getting Ubuntu 10.x to recognize an APC UPS battery backup connected via USB? The install manager seems to have completed successfully, but perhaps there is some additional configuration that must be done to get the daemon to run correctly. Best, Christopher

There are two benefits to owning your own business. First, you only have to work half days. Second, you get to choose which twelve hours the half day is. Best, Christopher

Point well taken. I guess it was my throbbing head that was taking the beating. Best, Christopher

You doubt what? Best, Christopher

Yeah, I wondered that too, but it appears as though the registration is already off a bit. Too bad it can't "learn" to improve registration. Over the next decade, I expect we will see some very impressive auto tracking. Best, Christopher

The demos for IOImage are posted at http://www.ioimage.com/?t=Template2&ClusterID=1705&ItemID=3107 One of the benefits of the IOImage video analytics solution is it will work with a variety of PTZ cameras, including thermals and other special purpose PTZ cameras. However, these toys are usually for the big boys, and you have to really need it, want it, and pay for it, to make it a better solution that some well-placed high resolution cameras, IMO. Best, Christopher Note: The IOImage web pages load very slowly.

I was not particularly impressed with the demo. I do think that using wide angle camera to aim a PTZ camera is a very good approach, but I think this implementation needs improvement. The PTZ moved around rapidly and took high res snap shots at any region that had movement, but there was no attempt to seriously try and track the movement. If you want an auto PTZ camera, offerings from companies like IOImage are probably more mature. Best, Christopher

OK, post your challenge photos. The scene must including some moving detail such as a vehicle from a megapixel camera. The MJPEG image must be full resolution. I'll send you a Starbucks card if I can't tell the difference. Best, Christopher

Are you serious? For which camera? Does the scene include low-light moving detail or a well-lit stationary wall with drying paint? I'm not sure which is which here. Can you say this again and include Manufacturers and/or Models. Thanks in advance. Best, Christopher

Whether a company chooses to produce a certain product is not the basis for who owns the IP (patents, etc) for a product. Best, Christopher

I've got about 10 TB I need to put out on the curb for recycling. I'm constantly replacing smaller drives with larger drives. At .33 cents a kWh, I can't afford the electricity for smaller drives. Best, Christopher