jhonovich

Thanks. That's really interesting, especially how it effects distribution of cameras to video recorders.

I found an interesting article today on using RAID: http://www.milestonesys.com/UsersGroup/Articles/tips+and+tricks/ViewTips?Id=2340 He's an integrator and the article assumes using a software only solution. One of the things I found interesting is the difference in complexity and cost of setting up RAID for a software only versus an appliance. With most DVR appliances, you simply choose the RAID model and you are all set. I have written a more in depth review on this at: http://ipvideomarket.info/review/show/18 including a discussion on relative pricing. How often do you use RAID in your systems? In my experience, most clients don't use RAID because of the increased costs but I do see that changing with the premium for RAID dropping. Best, John

Metafizz, Yes, I agree. Bandwidth and storage are huge factors in using megapixel cameras. Using this cheatsheet will only help in projecting what type of identification you might get giving your scenario and camera choice. The bandwidth and storage issues are really hard and I think it could be a number of years before these are overcome for most mainstream buyers. Best, John

When I use megapixel cameras, I am never positive which one to use. Do I use a 1, 2, 3 or 5? What do I get from using it? I recently found a cheatsheet that is helpful and wrote a review on how to use it: http://ipvideomarket.info/review/show/21 How are you deciding what resolution of megapixel camera to use?

Does the Pelco DX8100 support Arecont cameras? Does it even support IP cameras? Even if it does, I would be cautious about using megapixel cameras with a Pelco DVR. You would need a massive storage increase to handle these cameras. I think using 3 fixed analog cameras will be a fine solution, likely meeting the security objectives at a reasonable cost.

I often get asked the question of what is an api and how do i use one? I decided to write up a tutorial on some of the gotchas and key challenges in using APIs: http://ipvideomarket.info/review/show/20 My key points include: Lesson #1: No such thing as 'an' API Lesson #2: Not all Functions have an API Lesson #3: Having an API does not mean it will work with your system Lesson #4: Doing the Integration Takes Time Lesson #5: API Changes can Break You Lesson #6: Your Stuck with what the API does Any idea for other valuable lessons that should be shared? Best, John

Well, I mention physical security because APIs will be used to support physical security goals. While I agree that software developers will be the only individuals directly using the APIs, a lot of people are affected by the use of APIs. Security managers are affected by how well the integration using APIs work. Sales people are affected by what type of integrations they can sell. System engineers are affected by what type of designs they can recommend.

Yes. What type of APIs are you thinking of besides software APIs?

I have been doing research into license plate recognition and found an administrator's manual from milestone that provided a very honest and detailed review of what you need to do to make it work: http://www.milestonesys.com/dl/XProtect%20Analytics%20LPR%2015a/Manuals/XPA15LPR_Administrators_Manual.pdf I have also written an article summarizing and commenting on using LPR: http://ipvideomarket.info/review/show/16 There's a lot of hype especially about using LPR on PTZs or analyzing a license plate across a parking lot. The Milestone document pretty clearly shows that this is not realistic. Where are you using LPR and what problems have you faced?

I have never seen a low cost camera solution that worked, especially with your conditions. The Milestone article makes it pretty clear that your angle was too significant, your resolution was probably too low, and you might need to increase your shutter speed. This is a big challenge with analytics. Lots of great sounding talk but then challenging details that don't come through. Best, John

My understanding is that many casinos have requirements that force the casino to shut the floor down if the DVR is down for more than a certain time period. Have you heard of this? Most of the discussion I hear about RAID comes from the casino (and government) market. I do not hear a lot about other segments using RAID.

What's the value of on-board storage? Is it to reduce load on networks? If so, how does it reduce? Is it because it only transmits video when an operator requests? Also, what is the cost premium for on-board storage? Are what are the reliability concerns of placing hard drives in outdoor places?

I am not fan of .NET personally. Nevertheless, .NET is widely regardless as easier and faster to develop in them Java. Specifically, Winforms/WFP lets you build GUIs quickly and without extensive knowledge of the underlying class libraries. Also, the majority of DVR players I know use .NET. I see this as a matter of expediency not out of any personal approval of Microsoft, etc.

Hi Dove, A lot of manufacturers use .NET so you should have a look at using C# or VB. Microsoft's Visual Studio is a pretty easy way to build your own client app. Many manufacturers require using ActiveX controls. It's pretty easy to embed activeX controls using Visual Studio/.NET. Unfortunately, I don't know of any specific links on this topic. Best, John

IoImage is a strong company but there products are geared around analytics. You are likely to find a good fit elsewhere at a lower price. I have used Bosch before and they do have models supporting audio. Also, Axis has encoders with audio (those models end with an 'a'). When it comes to audio support, I do not know the details but try in this direction.

Before you buy or deploy a video analytic system in production, it is critical that you test how many false positives it generates. A lot of emphasis is being placed on basic tests to show an analytic can catch someone (like Bosch at ISC which I think is blatantly misleading). I explore this in detail: http://ipvideomarket.info/review/show/15 Anyone have experiences of testing video analytics? I have done a number, some I have been happy with, others were shockingly poor.

When you say 'open source' do you mean access to the source code and freedom to modify the source code? I have not seen any. That being said, I think it's a great idea that in 5 years will probably be a significant force in the industry. Best, John

Yes, it does help. Unfortunately, MJPEG or proprietary variations of it, are universally poor at maximizing storage duration. I would verify if it can support any other codec. From your description so far, it is unlikely it can. Assuming that it does not support another codec, you need to examine if there are any other settings for this proprietary MJPEG that can be tuned to make storage duration moderately better. Usually there are other settings that can be tweaked, they may not make things dramatically better but you might get a little longer storage. Unfortunately, from what you have described so far, the odds are that things will not improve much unless you replace the system (which I am sure would be extremely difficult to do). Please check on these steps and let us know what you find. Best, John

Hi Scorpion, Thanks for the compliment. I do own the website. It started off as project to learn a new programming language. The articles are my way of thinking through issues I am seeing in the industry. The main goal of the site was to make it easy to find up to date industry information. It was just too hard to physically check each trade mag, company website, etc. I learn a lot just be seeing what comes in new each day. By the way, CCTVforum is great. Most of my friends don't seem to know about and that's too bad. I am certainly trying to spread the word. Best, John

"There is a day coming real soon where IT guys will go the way of elevator operators, switchboard (phone) operators, gas pump attendants with a pump key! (Did I just age myself)??? " I think this is a great point. Product companies have huge motivation to make their products simple and not require advanced IT expertise or lots of difficult on site optimizations. Just like with DVRs, IP cameras and analytics are getting simpler and simpler. The tough elements that will remain are camera selection, positioning, system design to meet security goals, etc. These are all within the domain of the security integrator and manager, not the IT guy.

also, my experience is that IT guys 1. expect to make a lot more money than security guys 2. don't like to do the hands-on physical work required for security

Most integrators I know are learning IT and are picking up 1 or 2 guys with IT experience. I think this is enough for existing integrators to win. Security and electronic skills will remain the majority of the work for as long as I can see so as long as they improve a moderate amount, they should be fine.

From what I remember installing it, you need a real copy of Windows. I have seen video through Parallels, it worked but it puts a high load on system resources. However, I use Parallels for software development reasons so I have not extensively tested DVR clients.

For information on Parallels, see http://www.parallels.com/. It's an application, like word or excel. You install it. It runs on your Mac. Inside of the Parallels window, your windows application runs. The benefit is that you can fairly seamless switch between Mac and PC applications from inside your running Mac. Parallels requires intel Macs and at least 1 GB RAM. If you can't or aren't able to get a pure Mac solution, Parallels is a strong option to make windows clients work in a Mac.

Rooney's solution is much better than using separate encoders and decoders - it's cheaper and the quality will likely be higher.