cglaeser

About forty years ago I read an interesting analysis of potentiometer failures. Long story short, the users would use a certain range of the potentiometer day in and day out. Over time, dust and grime would begin to collect at the two end points of the typical daily range. Then, at a time of crisis when they tried to use a wider range, the potentiometer would fail, just when they needed it most. Recently one of my neighbors had an attempted theft. Their video system had been working for flawlessly for many months, but when the police came to their house to get a copy of the evidence, they had no idea how to create a CD. They had never tried that before. Same thing with backups. I've known companies that had an elaborate backup scheme, but they had not tried to recover a file for a very long time. One day when an important file was actually lost and they tried to recover it, that was when they realized the backup scheme had not been working for many months. So, my suggestion regarding PM, is to add crisis drills once in a while. For example, create an evidence CD once in a while from some random date in the past, just to make sure all the critical pieces are working. Best, Christopher

This is an empty lot. What is it that you want to see? If someone enters that area at night, you want to see if they are there? Although megapixel cameras provide more detail in the day, night performance is generally not as good as CCTV. So, if you want good low-light performance, I would probably opt for CCTV. Do you own the empty lot? Or, just the property next to the empty lot? If you own the empty lot, then it would be easy to add an IR beam perimeter. If you don't own the empty lot, then it would be easy to add a long range PIR. Check out the Optex site for both. The output of IR beam and/or PIR could trigger the camera record and/or send you an email notification, etc. Best, Christopher

See http://www.cctvforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=23119&p=138143&hilit=mir+3000#p138143 Best, Christopher

Hmm, that may be a little too cheap of a unit. Someone post a good looking $100 unit recently. Was that CNB? Best, Christopher

In addition to relatively high power IR, you also want a narrow beam so that most of the light is aimed at the car and not wasted on a wide field of view. Best, Christopher

Where do you work? Best, Christopher

How far are you sitting from each monitor? Do you adjust your viewing distance based on screen size? If so, the images will appear more similar. However, if you view both monitors from the same distance, well of course, the smaller monitor will appear to have sharper image. The images on my iPhone are so tack sharp they will draw blood. Best, Christopher

I moved ExacqVision from a Windows 7 system to a Ubuntu 10 system. Everything seems to be working fine with one exception. When I use Exacq client on another system (it's a Windows 7 system) on the LAN, the real-time images stutter. The Ubuntu and Windows 7 systems both have 1Gbps Ethernet adapters connected to a full-duplex gigabit switch. The real-time images on the Ubuntu server look fine, and the streams record and play back fine. The stuttering (about 1 second start/stop interval) only occurs on the remote LAN client in real time viewing. I tried another remote LAN client, and that one stuttered too. This was not a problem when the Exacq server was installed on a Windows 7 x64 system. The Ubuntu system is a new HP Z200 with i5 and 4GB memory. Three cameras are currently installed; two are megapixel, and the frame rates and JPEG compression have been set to modest. Any ideas? Also, what is the function of the System Setup->Network->Bandwidth Settings? I did not see a description in the User Manual. I've tried various settings, and none of the settings seemed to have any affect on the client stuttering. Best, Christopher

You should be able to cover 70x20m without having to resort to ptz. A ptz will add unnecessary cost and complexity, especially given the other issues you have to solve. Just use an appropriate number of cameras. If you need to zoom into an area for a closer look, then use a higher resolution camera and use digital PTZ instead. Best, Christopher

You were close. The bottleneck was the porn uploads. Best, Christopher

With assistance from tech support (thanks Chad) the stuttering issue has been resolved by changing the upstream bandwidth setting from 10Mbps to OFF. Best, Christopher

Thanks for the review. Does it support trigger alarms (e.g. PIR NC/NO output triggers)? (apologies if this is in the report and I missed it). Best, Christopher

Yes, you should be able to view the Exacq web server on any smart phone with a browser since it does not depend on any plugins. Exacq Mobile adds speed and ease of use and is well worth the cost, IMO, for phones that support it (currently iPhone and Andriod). Best, Christopher

Do they have eye doctors in your country? Next time you get your eyes checked, grab some extra .30 cent plastic sunglasses they hand out when your eyes are dilated. Then combine as many as needed. Best, Christopher

Exacq Mobile for Andriod has been released. I expect it is similar to Exacq Mobile for the iPhone, which I have, use, and like. The search feature needs improvement, but otherwise the functionality and ease of use are very good. Best, Christopher

BTW, the more sophisticated license plate systems are starting to use IR flash. Using a very short bright flash can essentially eliminate motion blur of fast moving cars. Best, Christopher

Again, this is just my rule of thumb based on my conversations with LED engineers, but I would expect a quality IR to degrade to 50% output in 10 years of night use. A lot really depends on features like heat management, so your mileage will vary greatly. If you can build a reliable motion detection system, I think I would opt for that. Best, Christopher

Sensors that are IR sensitive are typically more sensitive at 850nm. My rule of thumb based on conversations with camera manufacturers is roughly 50% at 940nm compared to 840nm, though I have not done any testing and YMMV. Best, Christopher

Aren't there two major issues that affect night focus? IR focus correction is one, but what about lenses that have an auto iris? When an iris opens, the DOF (depth of field) decreases, and a lens that appeared to be properly focused when the iris was closed in bright light may appear fuzzy when the iris opens when there is less light. Am I missing something? Best, Christopher

Yes, I meant the dome. Thanks! Best, Christopher

I've had more drive problems in the past five years than the twenty preceding years. There have been several reports of problems with the Green drives on this forum, and perhaps they are a problem with continued use, IDK. I've had quite a few high-end Seagate drives with Reallocated Sector Counts that would increase over time, which is not a total failure, but is an indication there is a potential problem with the drive and may need replacement in the future. I've replaced more than six of these drives in the past several years when the count started increasing every few days or weeks. In addition, I've had three drive failures, including one of each Hitachi, WD,and Seagate, all high-end (not Green). FWIW. Best, Christopher

I think it was a manufacturing defect, but my copy of the Samsung SVD-4400 would not look down a wall if wall mounted (or towards the horizon if ceiling mounted). I corrected this problem with a Dremel by grinding the button stops that were stamped into the sheet metal support brackets. FWIW. Best, Christopher

According to the specs, it's also fan-less, which is high on my list of priorities. 1U fans are annoying, and I try to avoid them when possible. Best, Christopher

How much is an Avigilon license? Best, Christopher

The way to post images to a forum is to upload the images to your own personal photo account, and then post a link to the image. If you don't yet have an account to upload and share images, there are many free ones from which to choose. Best, Christopher