todd2

Ok thanks, reason I asked is I remember as kid building a little camera whose "lens" was a tiny hole. A pinhole camera. You can google this. So I felt I should check that there's actually something in the hole in this case.

Many models of board camera have models with the normal screw lens, and several types of pinhole lens--conical, flat, etc. What I'm wondering is if with the pinhole models, is there a piece of glass or plastic in the hole, or is it just a real hole straight to the camera ccd? The reason I'm wondering is the use will be a dusty environment so I don't want dust getting inside. Needs to be more covert than normal lens will allow.

Looking for a 4 or 8 channel DVR that will ftp or email images of reasonable quality (not just tiny thumbnails). I know of one that will ftp video files, but I don't like that approach because it only sends the file after the complete event (motion) is over. If the DVR is disabled during the motion event (say after 10 seconds) the video is never uploaded. The ones that send images I believe start sending as soon as the event happens.

I'd hoped to learn from the experience of others here, rather than go through the trouble of installing something that won't work (because the tint level blocks too much light). Isn't that the point of this forum, to share knowledge? What's the point of telling me to go try something myself? If I were new to flying R/C aircraft for example, and wanted to start with a fast aerobatic stunt plane, would you tell me to go try it rather than provide guidance to start with something easier to handle?

Using a low lux (.003 lux) B&W camera, I'm experimenting with tinted enclosures. In some cases, I'm applying tint to standard glass myself. In a brightly lit room, a limo tint (5% VLT) level seems OK. I assume this would be OK in daylight down to some level of dusk. What level of tint is usually used to obscure the camera position but still let enough light in?

Already have a siamese cable (standard power/video BNC) run from a camera back to DVR. Is there any not-too-expensive way to pack a second signal onto that wire (and pull it off at the other end)? I realize the composite signal sits at 3.5Mhz--so the device(s) would need to freq-shift it at both ends. Possible?

I'm sure it can be written, but is any aware of software free to download that will extract motion detection events from an existing mpeg4 (h264) video file?

The first link you provide, the EH5108H, doesn't appear to have FTP capabilityi. At least, it's not listed there. The second link refers to a 16 channel DVR, which will have a significantly higher price point, though I do see that it lists FTP capability.

Looking for: * Avermedia standalone Linux-based DVR (not a card, or a windows box) * 8 channels * capable of ftping images at good resolution on motion detection I get lots of hits on Avermedia & ftp for their cards and windows DVRs, but can't seem to find an 8 channel Linux DVR from them that does it.

Anyone have experience with this company? Do they make good products?

I believe this is a linux DVR. Anyone know what file system is used on the drive? Is it a linux ext2 or ext3 format, or some proprietary format? I'd like to read the drive directly.

After trying a number of different configurations, I find that the only way to avoid large blind spots and filming mostly interior of the vehicle is to point the cameras directly out the window from a close distance. Current plan is to have a pair on each middle pillar (between front and rear doors) where one of the pair points forward and one rearward, thereby providing complete coverage of each side. Only problem is that in that configuration, bullet cams are very visible poking against windows. Using a dome might provide slightly more concealment (though if the dome is tinted enough to hide the camera, I'd think it would hurt the lux rating of the camera). Also, the domes would probably be harder to mount as the dome base is large and flat, as opposed to the pivoting bullet cams with a relatively small (1.25 inch) base. Any thoughts? Thought about using static cling tint strips at the top of the windows (which could be removed at night) but not sure about the optical clarity. I doubt I'd get a ticket for having tint on a parked vehicle.

Thanks, but do they make a siamese cable using RG-179?

Actually, I don't want the RG59 style because the cables are thicker. I need to run it through the interior panels of a vehicle, so I need the thinner cable. I'm ok with a little degradation, but that's not what I'm seeing. I'm seeing an issue at the cable end (when I jiggle it around).

Have DVR with several BNC terminals on the back. Bought several 25' BNC to BNC siamese cables to connect cameras. I've found that I get occasional problems from loose connections between the connectors on the back and the cables. Occasional meaning that in practice it only happens once in a while but I can reproduce the issue by touching the cable end. (Yes the connectors are locked, give me some credit.) I don't believe its a loose connection inside the DVR since the BNC terminals themselves are not loose and the problem seems to happen equally between all the terminals (not just one or two). So, naturally, I assume the cable, right? However, testing the cable at home, it seems OK with the connectors I try. So all I can make of the issue is that the diameters or natural manufacturing tolerances between the cable and terminals must be off enough to cause the issue. I do find that if I connect an RCA cable with a RCA to BNC adapter (about 1 inch long) that connection doesn't have the problem, again seemingly implicating a terminal/connector sizing issue. Comparing the back of the RCA adapter and cable does show the gap is different between the shield and center piece of the BNC connector. So, just try some new cables? Cheapest cables that don't look like the same (probably Chinese) manufacturer are like $15 a piece (for 25' cable), so if it's something else I guess I'm tossing that money away. Anyone face this issue before? Is there a good name brand 25' siamese cable? (I'd prefer not longer since for my application the cable would have to be tucked away and longer cable just has more potential for voltage drop and other issues.)