Scott Broscious

This would be a very good place to start.

I had not heard of active webcam until just now so forgive my ignorance of the software. File compression/size will vary from format to format (like you've already learned). It will also vary based on the resolution your using. If your using a high reslution you may be limited as to how small you can compress that file. but it looks like its only capable of 640*480, which is considered a high resolution when dealing with surveillance equipment, though when dealing with todays computer hardware really isn't all that high at all. It also allows you to change the quality of that image, which would make me think that even though the frame size ranges from 320*240 to 640*480 that there are other ranges available as well. Length of recordings is another limiting factor. Try setting the max file size lower so when that limit is reached it will either stop recording or start a new file (dependant on active webcam functionality). You can also have it record via motion as well which will also help when dealing with file size. Number of frames recorded would also change that file size so see if you're happy with 15fps, or lower, instead of 30fps. I was unable to find anything about the type compression used with that software other than its capable of broadcasting MPEG-4 which would make me assume thats what they use, so there would be another limiting factor. So I'd suggest setting everything to the lowest possible setting that would still get you the functionality you want and see if you're happy with that file size. Also remember that you may be able to compress it even further by zipping (or another method of compression) the file after its compressed by the software...though youd have to unzipp the file in order to view it.

I'd have to say funcionality would be a big factor in my eyes. I already do something similar to what your doing (but I only offer hosted storage for prerecorded video like what soundy is refering to as "back up"), and I always get asked..well what else can I do with this? So I'd suggest taking a poll from your market (ppl that already use a dvr) and find out the features they like about their dvr and find a hosting solution/software that would best be able to handle these features. Depending on your own abilities, OS of your server, the software you choose and the bandwidth you're capable of delivering on a continuous basis, the sky is the limit as far as functionality goes. I'd also think about price. When you're talking about uploading/downloading information your actually talking about badwitdth requirements. Example: If i have system that is only capable of a low resolution it will require MUCH less bandwidth to upload/download that video than a if I do the same with a system thats capable of higher resolutions. So different prices dependant on the needs of your users is also an important factor. Why would I be willing to pay 100 a month for your service (just an example) when I know walmart (again an example) is apying the same and they have a more robust system than my single camera setup? Especially when I can purchase any hosting solution, some for as low as 5 bucks a month, that will allow me to back up all of my video for far less than you charge...again price vs functionality. As far as the market goes....the only people I've been able to even sit down and have them listen long enough to this (as I guess it seems like to much work for everyone) are people that I know personally who know I'd be able to make it work for them and know that when I say its easy....its easy. Then again I haven't really tried marketing it to anyone else , but thats more because I haven't been able to get more than an"well thats cool" from those that have listened long enough to come to some form of understanding about it....so I do wish you the best of luck in this endeavor, and be sure to let me know how it pans out for you ! NOTE-These are just my ideas. -soundy...sooner or later im going to copy that bunny from your sig lol

NOTE THIS SUGGESTION MAY OR MAY NOT WORK AND WILL VOID ANY REMAINING WARRENTY AS YOU WILL HAVE TO OPEN THE DVR: If you open the DVR there should be a battery. This battery is used to ensure that, at times when no power is present, the device still retains info in its memory (like your pin). Remove that battery (probably looks like an oversied watch battery). Leave this out of the circuit board for about 30sec-1min which should cause the pin to default back to the manufacturers "hard coded" default pin. This may work, but it also may not...just a suggestion. This is one method of resetting a computers bios which is why it "should" work...but it all depends on how the dvr stores the pin. If any of the suggestions work please respond letting us know which worked so that others with your same issue can find an answer to thier problems without having to go thru all of the suggestions that didnt work for you.

I'd like to see a couple of examples of this computer equipment that relies on something other than 1's and 0's. Computers dont care about input resolution, they dont care about output resolution, they dont care about format....they care about 1's and 0's. This is the same reason you can have both a PAL and NTSC camera hooked up to the same computer and watch both video feeds by doing nothing more than hooking the cameras up. Now software...thats a completely different story, unless you can read higher lvl comp languages you need this software to translate those 1's and 0's into a format you can read/understand, and it almost always does change the output into a format that the developers thought was better for whatever purpose/reason and, thank god, is also almost always configurable! A computer only changes the input signal when YOU make it (you make it do something, even if you dont know you're doing it, by your choice of software and in some cases hardware as well), otherwise it takes those 1's and 0's and pops them out the same as they come in. Unless VLC has changed its code it's not a software that automatically changes the input resolution so my rethought suggestion should still work HOWEVER I STILL STATE THAT AN OSCILLISCOPE IS THE ONLY WAY TO ACCURATELY TEST THIS (the link provided by soundy has a table for the converting the bandwidth read by the oscilliscope into the resolution produced by the equipment) -soundy the two links you've provided are to the same paper. they are still helpful to me because its been awhile since i've had a legible table showing bandwidth::resolution (mines been around the block more times than it should have) so thanks for giving me a replacement! Though I believe its inaccurate in regards to the bandwidth for SVHS...ill have to check on it to be sure. The rest of the paper looks very accurate (and they even use my oscilliscope method...well not "MY" method becuase thats what my electronics teach taught me and its what his taught him and so on lol) so I think this might just be my mistake.

I know what he's talking about which is why I provided him the info to find that answer. What I think the problem may be is that you skipped my actual answer and read only the part that clearly says a "less technical less accurate way". Possibly thinking my entire answer had anything at all to do with VLC. Or maybe I misscommunicated my edited after thought to be something other than the inaccurate not in any way tchnical suggestion I thought I had made it out to be. Again, I suggested an oscilliscope as the only means I knew of to accurately measure what he wants to test, which doesnt rely on anything other than the bandwidth used to come up with the accurate resolution. Even if it was recorded at a higher resolution that what the camera was capable of, with an oscilliscope youd be able to spot the difference with the "empty" bandwidth. An oscilliscope is the end all be all of finding out what is actually happening when your talking about any type of signal. But vlc (and other similar programs) is a less technical, less accurate, means of verifying that your image is as you were told it would be. You were told the camera is capable of 720*480? Well vlc, and programs like it, will verify this....is it accurate? No! But is it better than guessing and hoping that your system is pushing out what you think it is? Yes! Thats not even considering the fact that you can hook your camera directly up to your computer, even if its not an ip camera (in most cases only needing an adapter), and view the image generated directly thru vlc or a program like it....thus completely ignoring any type of image that may have been recorded at a higher resolution than was necessary. (thanks for giving me a reason to reword/rethink my previous edited after thought to be a more accurate representation of a "less accurate less technical" solution as doing it this way would be even easier)

i've emailed you my first recommendation. look for an email from myname@kpbtech (sorry i wrote the email like this to "fool" bots searching for email addresses) as said in the email, im not affiliated with that seller so i know nothing of them other than whats shown via the specs provided, which meet/exceed your needs and for more than 400 less than the system you've shown here.

the only accurate way to measure this (that i know of) would be with an oscilliscope sometimes called a spectrum analyzer, a signal generator (or a test pattern generator or a video camera you've already measured the output signal of) and the system you plan to test. This actually would be used to measure bandwidth (which would give you the TVL). The bandwidth should be measured at the point in the output wave where the frequency of the output signal no longer matches what you known to be going in (by the signal/test pattern generator/signal coming from camera...which you've already measured) or the amplitude of the output signal is half that of the input. Basically you'd first generate a signal and measure the input signal with the oscilliscope. Then you'd measure the output signal of the receiver. As an example, if you have a system that should be getting you 540 tvl you should be seeing a bandwidth of about 5.2Mhz (my math be a bit off here). If at any point during your tests you measure something less than 5Mhz you know that you're not getting 540 tvl from your system. This is the only way that I, personally, know how to test accurately. It does require some understanding of, not only the equipment, but how bandwidth can affect resolution. There are probably other, easier less technical ways...but again this is the only way I know. edit after some thought- A less technical, less accurate way, would be to take the recording from your video cameras, get it onto your computer and use a program like vlc (or maybe windows media player...i dont really use it though so im not sure) to view the video. VLC will ensure the video is played at the resolution it was recorded and you can either pull the resolution directly from that or you can take a screen shot and paste it into your favorite image editing program which will give you the resolution of the image, after you resize the screenshot to only include the video and not your whole desktop that is.

Security professional is a very vague description of the expertise you require. My story in a nutshell- i've been fascinated with all electronic equipment since about 6 years of age. I studied electronics, electronic equipment service and repair and computerized electronic technology in school. I joined the marine corp as a radio operator and eventually went on to become a satallite communications specialist-which is why ill never recommend wireless unless its requested...too many factors can mess with your wireless signals. I've been out of the marine corps now for about 5 years and have been providing surveillance equipment recommendations, the equipment itself, and installations for a hobby since then. I recently got into business for myself after a couple of "clients" said that if I ever did "this" for real theyd be willing to have me as thier only source of equipment/installs/maint for their systems. As I was already having fun with it, and had the knowledge, training, experience and confidence with dealing with the equipment and its deployement, the idea of starting my own business wasn't a scary one. Sorry it took so long to get back to this forum to read this post. i'm looking for similar equipment for the specs you've listed now, in order to save you some money, and will email you a list of what I find. Jst remember that i can only show you equipment that matches the specs you've provided, nothing else unless I've used the equipment in the past. I personally cannot offer the equipment you want so it may take some time to find the right match.

If you're looking for an ip camera with motion sense built in you may be looking at a price upward of 500 per camera. That may not be much to you but consider that you can get a regular ip camera for about 200 and software to run on your comp, with motion activated recording for up to 16 cameras, for about $30. Just something to think about, if you havent already.

He stated he's downloaded the footage to a disc so Im not sure how the type of dvr used to record the footage could possible make a difference. Unless we're dealing with some black market dvd's or cd's here, or mixing up PAL standard with NTSC standard, the equipment used to record the image onto the disc is unimportant. The question, as far as I understand it, is about getting a still image off of the burnt disc. Quoted for greater agreement - some DVRs will allow you to simply connect a printer, others use common file formats that you can view and print from any basic video player/editor, still others provide a standalone player app that can print to your PC's printer, and some use highly proprietary formats that will require a lot more hacking around. Rather that go into detail on ways to hack around, it would be helpful to first know what we're dealing with, to (hopefully) come up with the simplest solution possible. ... In the interest of giving the original poster some more options can anyone else provide any other way of getting a still image off of a DISC, than has already been mentioned?

Thats a really loaded question. Well, yes it is a company's name. I'm also sure you could throw in the fact that most cameras today have some form of DSP (digital signal processing), after all the world is analog. Ok, ok....I'm done having my fun for today. We could get really technical here, but to save you from some boring tech talk, x-vision is a "cool new" way of saying a camera has infrared night vision. Just a newer version of older tech, though this idea is very simplified. Though I've seen some newer cameras with x-vision technology perform terribly compared to older cameras with the "boring old" ir technology when it came to night time viewing, however that was more the fault of the components being used more than the technology itself.

I'll take a look around for you. Shouldn't be to hard to find what you're looking for for less. You are right, though, most high quality dvr's will have advanced controls (like pzt controls for instance) that you probably wouldn't utilize. As far as the IP camera's go, to each his own, I can definitely work around you're not wanting them. However I'd feel as if I were doing you a diservice if I didn't say that they're not as complicated as you're making them out to be. With the system you want right now you're making more of a "network" then you would be with an IP camera. Most IP cameras out right now are also, very literally, plug and play. This means that, besides mounting them, all you'd have to do is plug it into your computer via a usb port (or ethernet port) and start recording. Don't worry though, I've got it....NO IP cameras lol. I'll find you a similar system to what your looking at now, and if I'm any good at my job I should be able to do it for far less than the 1200 you'd be spending on that set up. Let me get this straight though, you're only interested in the one camera? For the door? What if I can find a 4 channel system that has the same specs you want and comes with 3 more cameras? I only ask this because more often then not it's going to be cheaper buying a complete system vs trying to build your own as, with most anything you can buy, buying in bulk is always cheaper. If you want you can email me at email address in my profile here or the email address on my website and we can continue this outside of the forum, if I don't get an email from you I'll just post what I've found for you here in this thread.

Once in a great while a law will end up hurting those it's meant to protect, just remember that these laws protect alot more people than they hurt! If you're not familar with all of your "rights" to privacy, I'd suggest you research how these laws help you out! The "right" to privacy is something that's given to you by your government and knowing how you and, in this case, everyone else is protected can very well end up protecting you from that government. I'm sure the man who made the tape in my example wished he hadn't caught that audio, and I'm sure if it ever happens again he'll be sure he doesn't! I feel it also important to point out that even though its legal for something to be done in your state, it may not be in your city/town. That's really good info soundy! I've always suggest reading up on the laws but never even considered looking into past related cases. I think that's something else I'll throw in for future advice...thanks!

I'd say what you've picked out not only covers what you're looking for but is like killing a fly with rocket launcher. I'm not saying don't get it! Whatever makes you happy and comfortable with your choice is the most important thing, however I'm sure if you did a bit more searching you could easily find what your looking for 1/2 the price you're going to pay for that system. I'll take a look around for you if you want, even though I can't offer what you want, I'd have no problem helping you pick out a system that will cover what you want and not empty your wallet. I do have to ask though, how stuck are you on the worldeyecams? It's also a shame that you don't want to consider IP cameras because with the right software you could literally set up an 4 camera system that does everything you want it to for less than $1200....depending on the cameras you pick. Right now you're looking at spending 1200+ and, from what I've seen and priced out, you'll only be getting the dvr and 1 WG4-HPV540 for that price. The DVR you picked tops out at over 1000. It does look like a good DVR, judging by the specs, and I know its what you WANT but is it what you NEED? You have to realize the difference or you're going to get strung out to dry on the price. For instance, if you have no need for a system that can pan, tilt or zoom you need to stear clear of systems that offer this function. Why spend 1000 on a dvr that has pzt controls built in when you can buy a similar dvr, with no built in pzt controls, for 500 less? Also, and this isn't to discredit anyone, but more of a "heads up"....personally I'd steer clear of buying from organizations that registered at a forum in order to respond to my post with an offering from their site especially when they were refered by someone that joined just to respond to that same post. At least check out the site, though, as it may have what you need...but I wouldn't put to much stock into that referal!

When a camera is said to be vandal proof it's usually just an indication that the camera can hold up against basic tampering fairly well. I've yet to see a camera that I haven't been able to open without a screw driver and some ingenuity. If someone wants to mess with your cameras, if they've got the will to do it it can be done. Short of building your own encasement around the camera so no one can actually gain physical access to the camera, I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed in your search for the camera you're looking for unless you're willing to pay. I have seen some very nice military grade surveillance cameras (read into that military grade encasements) that can with stand small explosions and continue to operate...but again with a screw driver and some time even these can be tampered with.

To give you an exact answer on if the equipment from worldeyecam is reliable/worth the investment I'd have to know the exact system you're looking to get. With an IP camera if you're running an unsecured network anyone can get into your system regardless of if you have your surviellance system hooked into it at all. The question is...why on gods green earth would any hacker want to watch your front door? As far as home surveillance goes, and this goes against my usual suggestions, worrying about a hacker is your last concern. With most wireless cameras you'll get all the necessary equipment needed to have it function properly including the battery packs. If a supplier wants you to buy the battery packs for it without offering them with the cameras your getting....I'd suggest looking else where. As far as setup goes you should only need a drill with the apropriate drill bit and time. Id also suggest getting a stud finder as it can save you time and ensure your cameras are secured in place by being screwed into a stud vs just the dry wall. It doesnt take me more than 10 min to throw up a 4ch wireless system, but I've been doing it for while, so your time may vary. If your comfortable with a drill then you should be fine. As far as mounting the outside camera to see the visitors face, you'll never get a perfect shot of the face without putting the camera within reaching distance of the person at the door, which I dont suggest. Have you considered looking into getting a PEEP HOLE CAMERA? The person at the door wouldnt even know the camera was there. This type of camera would give you the absolute best view of the person at your door and it would be a cheap alternative to a weatherproof/tamper proof outdoor camera. Another thing to consider with a standalone system- the best draw to most of these systems is that they can be viewed from anywhere via an internet connection if properly set up. So you'll either have to worry about hackers anyway, but again for home surveillance this threat is minimal, or you'll be spending extra money for functionality you never plan to use.

h.264 is the best your going to get as far as compression is concerned. When you're talking about high quality video and recording you'll have to look at the resolution the dvr and cameras have seperately from one another as they'd have different specs for each piece of gear. For example, you may have a camera that has 420 horizontal "scan" lines of resolution which is equal to a 420p hd tv in resolution, however if your dvr can only record at 320 it doesnt matter what that camera is...you'll only get the 320 which is like a non hd tv. You state teh camera your looking at has 530 horizontal lines of rez, what of the dvr...again don't wait until you get the equipment to verify your dvr is even capable of recording at that resolution. The thing that is on your side in this instance is that most good surveillance system dvrs are capable of recording at different frame rates which will allow for better resolutions with slower frames. Even though it sounds like it wouldn't matter, youd be better of getting a motion activated CAMERA vs a dvr whose recording is motion activated because while youd spend more on the cameras, the overall cost of the system should be nicer to your wallet. I'd also suggest a camera that has area masking since you're talking about motion detection as area masking will allow the camera to "ignore" motion in predesignated areas so you avoid hours of needless recording. I do have a question for you though, if you're only planning to use one camera....why waste the money on a complete system? I'd suggest you check into an IP camera as you could literally set it up where you want and then plug it into your pc and go about yuor business as if you'd have bought the complete system. It seems your chief concern with buying this system is ease of use and I doubt anyone here would argue that it gets any simpler than an IP camera. You might just want to check out a couple. With a good IP camera you'd get the motion activation like you want, the area masking I suggest, and the ability to view the video online from anywhere like any good stand alone dvr would allow you to do. Just something to think about! You may end up spending 400 on a good IP camera, but how much is that 4 channel system you're looking at now? From your current description of use the only added benefit to the complete system with the stand alone dvr is the ability to add 3 more cameras. IP camera software will generally allow up to 16.

I'm not going to give you a suggestion as to what to do but I will give you this word of caution: The recovery of lost, damaged, or corrupted files from a hard drive (be it the one in your dvr's or in your computer) is a touchy job at best even with the right equipment. The chance that you may make that hd inoperable simply by hooking it up to the right equipment is one that should make you proceed with caution. I'd first ensure all images that haven't been lost are backed up prior to even thinking about retreiving those that are no longer available for easy access. I'd then be sure that it'd be worth it to possibly loss the use of that hard drive for the small chance to recover the images you need. I'd suggest doing a TON of research prior to your attempting this and I'd stear clear of websites that are specifically SEO'd for this. Yes, SEO is important for a site to be found, but the site your referencing has keywords in its source that are no where on its main page at all which means SEO is more important to them than the product they are peddling. Am I saying this is bad software? No, I've never looked into them prior to coming to this thread. It's possible that the webmaster for this site just doesn't have the time to ensure their website is up to date but this does present a question as to what is important to them when the blog on that website is up to date and their main page says it was updated may 22 of this year. Is thier 6/10 page rank with google more important to them or is ensure your taken care of more important? What I'm saying is.....TONS OF RESEARCH! Not just a couple of google searches. Your information is priceless to you. I'd suggest check a site like pcworld dot com or something similar so that you can see hundreds of user reviews about a particular program and not just hand picked reviews. Ironically even pcworld dot com doesn't have as high a page rank as getdataback, they do have a 5/10 however and don't use keywords on thier main page. Those are the sites that you wanna check out, not highly optimized marketing sites.

Tomislav, Ok, letting people you know it's for home use and you require 10x zoom or better is a very good start. However to get you what you need, and nothing you don't, a bit more information would be helpful. Is this going to be an outside camera or is it for indoor use? Would you like a ptz camera that can pan 360 degrees continuously (meaning it can go in circles forever), or do you only need one that will pan 45-90 degrees? Do you need on that can tilt 180 degrees or do you need less? Do you need a low light camera or do you have no thoughts of using this in anything other than normal household lighting? Do you want it tamper resistant or weatherproof(more for outdoor use)? When it comes to price, what's a good price to you? I think a camera that can pan 360 degrees continuously and can tilt 180 degrees continuously would be a good buy at around $700, however someone else may thing $1800 is a good buy while you think one for under $200 is a good price. These are all basic questions that need to be answered before someone could give you, what I'd consider, to be even close to an acceptable offer. When it comes to talking to a professional about what you want, these questions and more should be asked by that professional. If they don't, they don't care about what you need, they care about making a sale. Steer clear from dealers that just want to sell you things, often they don't know a damn thing about what they sell. If you find a dealer that would send you eslewhere to find exactly what you need.......buy from that dealer because he may not have exactly what you need but you can bet the support will be there when you need it and you already know he's not just trying to sell you something and get rid of you!

CCTVLADY, I'm always interested in meeting new surveillance manufacturers, usually for curiosity and knowledge, sometimes to sell thier equipment. If you have a site would you be so kind as to pm me a link to it?

I'm not sure how these forums work, as I'm new here myself, however most forums will not allow you to delete threads that have been posted in by other individuals at the most they allow you to delete your post in that thread if its the last post. So your posts where your counting till you can start throwing up links probably will stay around for some time.

The answers here are mostly accurate, but some are a bit confusing. This is because the law is typically unclear in these situations. Generally the law with video is that you must not tape an area where someone would expect a certain level of privacy, like a bathroom, regardless of if it is your own home or not. If your system only functions to watch your home you dont have to warn anyone that there is a camera anywhere, now if your recording OUTSIDE of your home I'd suggest all your neighbors be made aware and that you ensure that you are not recording thier property. If you own a retail store, nope, you dont have to place signs any where however your cameras must be plainly visible so that someone of reasonable intelligence would be able to know that they are being recorded. As far as hidden cameras....Id suggest a sign. The law with audio is even more dodgey. What I suggest is...don't record audio. If you absolutely must record audio research your local laws as some states out right ban it, others require the consent of one of the individuals being recorded and others require all parties consent. Again, unless absolutely necessary I do not suggest you record audio. There are plenty of cases where this happens, which is the number one reason why I don't suggest anyone record audio at all! I was a juror in a case in NJ where someone had been recording a family function and caught someone trying to get into a car that didn't belong to them. The "innocent" recorder went to get a better view so that the tape could be shown to the police. Unfortunately for him, and the owner of the car, he caught parts of the phone call the car thief was making at the time. He was fined, I'm not sure how much i wasn't part of that case, and the video was removed from court records.

Quoted for absolute agreement.

Thanks much sviviani! My only hope is the OP finds it helpful.