rory

Isnt XP and 2000 still essentially NT? Is it because of all the XP frequent security fixes?

He's old school CCTV, has not probably got too involved in the PC side of it, including remote video. Even alot of the Casino Gaming boards still use matrix and VCRs.

also, he claims to get 30 days you need 2TB, but it depends on how you record, number of cameras, etc. Im getting almost 3 months from 3 cameras on a 4 channel 40Gb DVR, with motion only recording. I get 28 days on a time lapse always recording mode, seperate mux and DVR, 320GB, with 8 cameras, 5pps. Im getting 9 days with the same set up (seperate units) with 20pps, 13 cameras. all in highest quality mode. Concidering the quality of a VCR tape, unless you are recording near real time, when multiplexed, it makes more sense to 'take the chance' and go with a DVR recording at higher quality. In one of my jobs, we had 2 VCRs linked together, 2 hour mode with 8 hour tapes, when one stopped the other stared recording, so we got 16 hours of 'near' real time, as it was still multiplexed. It meant changing tapes every day. But we were getting the best quality we could get with 10 cameras using a VCR. Searching through those tapes were like pulling teeth! The Time lapse Digital Tape Recorders were out at that time, and we looked at that as an option, but for nearly the price of the current DVR systems, was not worth it. They were still limited in number of features, especially remote video over the internet. Eg. $1500 for the Digital VCR plus $1500 for a 10 channel multiplexer, not worth it. Same price for a 320GB single channel DVR with a 16 channel Mux. So we went that route and it was well worth it. 2 1/2 years later, still going, no maintenance required, no going back. Only 1 firmware update to the DVR which was done remotely over the internet. Another thing to consider when using time lapse recorders, is maintenance, cleaning. VCRs still have their place. I have had to on numerous occasions had to save video evidence for police and the owner, and I used both CD (could have been a DVD but they didnt have it) and a simple Home VCR using the CCTV monitor output. Now we have even more options, simple ones like Compac Flash, ofcourse DVD, and many firewire units with multiple types of back up hardware. Then there are the many forms of archiving which can take you 10 years or more depending on how much $$ you have or how large your survillence room is. With DVRs you are not stuck with what you originally bought, with most of them at least, you can easily add on SCSI archiving devices, or others. In all, the quality you get from a DVR, is much greater than a time lapse VCR, and requires less or no maintenance and is just as secure, depending on which type you use. Some DVRs are the same price as a time lapse VCR, for example GE has a VDR, which is essectially a Digital VCR but no tapes, and it has Compac Flash backup, and is the same price of a time lapse VCR. For a couple hundred $$ more you can get a multiplexed DVR for multiple inputs, all in one unit, or build your own PC based using your PC.

The DVR section seems to be out of date though, like mentioning not to buy combined mux/dvrs in one, which from using both, the all in one records much better & faster than the seperate mux and seperate DVR. Not to mention that the all in one has more features than using 2 seperate units.

or you can just buy a touch screen PC.

looks like the same thing on their web site, except the 16port chip is located elsewhere.

i didnt go that deep, just the history part. One thing though, he or someone promoting him is spamming the news forums with the same thing over and over and over! Doesnt really make someone want to go to his site.

good tips DVR The VCR is a common one used around here.

interesting.. http://www.fifo-optics.com/New%20Products/New%20Camera.htm

this is a long range one used in the US http://www.trangosys.com/home/index.cfm not cheap though. Real Time Video up to 12+ miles. Also used for wireless internet and networking, PTZ, etc.

I was talking about me personally. For my clients I supply a seperate UPS and Industrial Voltage Regulator with each one. Trust me, we have worst power down here than you guys do in the first world! When I was in the alarm industry doing daily service, I cant count how many times a week we had to switch out alarm panels for low voltage spikes, dips, power outages, etc. Ive even seen UPS's burned up, ofcourse along with everything else the the clients home. You can only suggest to them, but when they are buying a $100 alarm they just dont care. With the DVRs, so far, going on 2 years for several, havent lost any, and most are in extreme hot and dusty conditions. Though I recommend the coolest possible enviroment to the client always. Where I live its not that bad, but most areas are, my parents, when Im there, its clicking up and down every few minutes. Ofcourse electrical codes here are almost non existant, or not enforced properly at least, and the government run electrical company's equipment is from the stone ages. The wiring in my appartment is the same wiring from the 1950's when it was built. last summer we had power outages on a daily bases, sometimes lasting several days, they just dont have the proper equipment here. Touch wood it hasnt started yet this summer, but its still just turned July.

When I was doing it, we paid $125 for a certain amount of machines. The more you paid the more machines you could make CDs for. It had only one file, everything was in a single EXE file. We had looked around and at the time the one we were using was considered one of the best, and easiest. Just cant remeber the name for anything, but there appears to be much more out there now, as this WAS a few years back. And yes, mboards changing (or totally different mboards) and the distributors (or the owners purchasing different network cards, etc, required a new setup, which occurred alot at that time and was one of the reasons I left them. Then again no computer companies down here adhere to licencing laws! The one i was with at the time was the first (and only one since then)

yeah Radio Shack is going to be double anyway, he should check a local distributor or another electronics store. Otherwise, anything in the US that is say $2 is abour $6 here. I have to shop our local radio shack all the time as they are the only ones that tend to have the hard to find things over here, things that are so common in the first world, but things we only dream of here or see on the internet! Radio Shack here is sooo expensive. Sometimes I cant even find a certain screw I need, as all the hardware stores are out.

i see $10,000 reward, im going to start scanning Ebay, i need some extra cash right now!! Actually the bahamas is on the US's hot list for copyright infringements right now, with stealing satelite, pirated DVDs, and the local Cable TV company steals all its signals from US networks without paying! Apparently they are saying they will start to enforce the laws, but nothing yet. Thats why our only 1 local video store chain has all pirate videos terrible quality, and we cant order satelite TV, as no real companies will take the chance to open up shop here until these laws are enforced. The local Movie Theatress are legit though.

yeah that is a cool feature, seems all the above mentioned have the onscreen set up, Ill have to get hold of one of those one of these days to play with

I think he may be talking about a line conditioner or voltage regulator, cant live without them down here as our power is terrible, low voltage hits every hour or more. Ive never used a UPS and never had a problem, because i always use a line conditioner, in fact, this is the same one I have had since 1996 and it hasnt failed yet!

Miami, just throw it out and buy something from a legit US source. If you are in Miami, A-1 security is a good choice, Ive used them for the past couple years and they are great. www.a1alarm.com Contact info is on the main page. I dont know what PC cards they have, but they have a good selection of stand alone DVRs from various manufacturers, which are just as good and in alot of cases, better.

"The source must send a pirated unit with invoice, indicating date, company name, address, and price of the purchased to GeoVision for inspection." like someone who bought it would actually go through all that trouble over a couple hundred dollars!?? Talking of which, they are located in the piracy capital of the world, ASIA!

$2.59, we pay $6 just for a twist on BNC connector here in the Bahamas Just add the cost into the price of the camera, I add any accessories like connectors etc in my quotes. Rory

Wide Dynamic Mini Fixed Dome: http://www.silentwitness.com/products/wide_dynamic.php The wide dynamic range is not as high as the other cameras listed above though, but seems it will still work? Also sais it is a true day/night, will have to try it out. Though you generally get a better image from a traditional (box) camera.

they dont tell you what the dynamic range is though, any ideas? I read the brochure but its not in there. Ganz also has a very good one, been out a while now. DVR ausitralia has used them.

here is a new one from GE, havent used it yet but the specs are impressive: [link removed by rory, reason dead link] Check the data sheet, it claimes 250 times better dynamic range than a average ccd camera, where the panasoni claims 64 times. However the panasonic is also a day night so it switches to high res BW at night, which is nice, just the camera looks really ugly ignore price, thats local bahamian pricing. Rory

you could sign up a free account at yahoo or msn and post them their.

i have noticed alot of installations in Nassau, all old ones with real old cameras, used the braided type, i wouldnt touch them unless they rewire, I guess the electricians didnt know better and used the cheapest they could find!

You would be better off getting something with a company name on it, that is a no name DVR, no idea where you would get support from, especially if buying off Ebay. If you take a look through here you should find some links to sites that sell other stand alones, that are named and you can find the source manufacturer for it if you needed, say the company you buy from goes bankrupt. Yes you would have to buy either more channels upfront for future expansion, or go PC based if thats an issue.