Hip2u77

Thanks, that's good to know! I have no idea why looking at the minimum requirements didn't occur to me. I guess spending 20 hours reading forums in the last few days is turning my brain to mush. I think I have a slight change of plans also. I originally bought the the Dahua bullet for the porch, but now I think that's a bad idea. A dome would definitely look better and be harder to vandalize. So, for now I may just mount it in the "A" location or use it in the back to watch the dogs and buy a dome for the porch. I think I'm done camera shopping for a day. . . now I need to grab a POE switch.

Thanks for the tips on the software. I'll definitely be using a PC setup. I'm going to try to use my AMD A8 laptop but would an old P4 2.8 with 1 Gb of ram run a single camera until I can build a new computer? If not, my backup work computer is a Core2 Duo E6750 with 2 Gb. I could use it and leave the p4 for backup. (I do audio work for radio stations and the p4 is fine for that, just slower.) My newest work computer is a i5-2500k with 8Gb of ram that I built last summer. It will probably be the dedicated system and I'll build an i7 system for my main work computer.

Thanks for all the tips. The more I read the forums the more I am interested in getting something decent that will record at night. I have thought about the game cams but I think I want a more permanent solution. But, even though I doubt the person that targeted me will come back back so quick I want to be ready, so I may have to go that route for now. I even thought about going to Harbor Freight and getting a cheap cam just to start recording, but I don't know what software to use and don't want waste money. Also, if it wasn't the UPS guy then it was an unknown neighbor that learned from other neighbors what our schedule was that week as I work nights out of the house and only leave on Friday's. The packages were stolen on a Tuesday night, when I'm normally working, but happened to be gone that night. Also, when someone walks down the street my dogs go nuts and I look out the window or go open the front door. Everyone of our neighbors knows we have multiple dogs. It was either UPS or somebody was watching us. For now, if you had around $300, what would you buy to cover the porch / driveway without being totally worthless at night? I read the description about those Costco Q-See High Def 720P IP cameras that they have 100ft night vision and that makes me wonder if they would be too much range for my purpose and maybe I need a something with a tighter range? (I know nothing about lens so reading camera specs does little good with me.) I've also read about those B/W Sony cams with the .0003 lux night vision and thought about putting one of those in the "A" location and something color for the "B" location. I really need more responses like. . . "Buy 'this' as it comes with 'this' software and you're good to go for now When you can afford it buy 'this' better camera or 'this' DVR / Hybrid / NVR or whatever. I just don't have weeks to spend looking at all this stuff. I about when nuts looking at the thousands of choices on B&H last night. Though I think I like the Aver Hybrid 4-channel DVR I saw on there. And obviously the $300 is just a starting point. I will spend more, if I have to, but just don't have it this second. Think of it like a car payment. I can swing a few hundred a month if I can build a system up over time. Thanks again. Edit: Just bought one of the popular HFW-2100n Dahua cams with a 3.6 lens. It's a start.

Hi, I think my UPS guy stole a couple packages that were delivered last week so in case it happens again I need a camera to record my front entry. I've been reading the forums for a few days now, but it seems like every time I figure out a camera I read another few posts that point me in another direction. I was just going to go to Costco and buy that 2 pack of Q-See IP cameras but I'm still unsure if that's the right thing to do. I have tools / ends for running Cat 5/6 but nothing for cable / BNC. Here's some pictures of what I need to cover. The house faces west and I was thinking of putting the camera on the south wall (B) by the door, facing north towards the garage. I will be running the wires to the room with the window a/c unit in it. (I figure "A" is facing two lights and will be only getting them if they turn around on the porch.) I'm more interested in daytime video but would like the night vision to at least be good enough to see if someone is stealing packages. I can change out the porch light to anything that would work better. The yard light is an old gas light that's been converted to 12v and has two LED bulbs in it now. We have dogs so I'm not concerned about inside security. I would like access by phone / computer so I can check it while I'm gone. So, I'm wondering if I went to Costco and bought that 2 pack is that good for what I need? Or overkill as I don't need to watch my whole yard, neighborhood. I think something that records the porch and the car is all I need. For storage, for now, I was thinking I could use a newer Win7 AMD A8 laptop that I bought last Christmas that just collects dust now that I've got a tablet. I plan to get a dedicated DVR (NVR?) in the future and more cameras as I might as well do the back and sides of the house. So, this is just a start of a system. But, I've been here 34 years and haven't had any other problems so I'm not in a huge hurry for the rest of the system. Can you guys help point me in the right direction? What I need right now is something I can get quick, get it working quick and get to recording so everything I order isn't stolen. I have $300 or so right now and will have more once the holidays are over. Thanks for any help and sorry for the long-winded post. I'm a little stressed and just don't know what to do.