todd2

Playing with FTP notification for this DVR and notice that though the web viewing app lets me watch at full (720x480) resolution, the snapshots sent via FTP are low resolution...320x288. Is there any way to change this resolution? If not, looks like the only solution would be to get my hands on an open-sourced ftp server, and hack up the source code to trigger web streaming into a file when picture uploads are detected. Of course, I'd have to reverse engineer what the Video Server E app is doing via frame analysis in Ethereal, and I'd also have to run the server on a dedicated machine. (With ftp, there are several free ftp providers.) Sigh. I guess this machine is just a trainer...

If you look at the reference chart on the Panasonic web site: http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ModelDetail?storeId=11201&catalogId=13051&itemId=101553&catGroupId=14463&surfModel=WJ-ND200/240&displayTab=R It indicates that model WJ-ND200 only supports motion detection "from camera" instead of just "yes" like the higher end models. This probably means it takes an alarm input that can trigger recording that is generated by some cameras. (Some of the cameras listed in that same reference chart indicate "motion detection" as a feature.) A PIR output could probably be used as a trigger as well.

Having problems with USB backup on the 761. Recorded several events and played them back without problem; I see them in the event list. However, when I insert the USB key and try to do the backup, nothing is put on the USB drive even though the 761 tells me the backup was successful. USB drive is a FAT32 formated OCZ Rally 2gb drive, which is not on the list of approved USB drives--but the user manual says that if the drive is not approved, it won't be recognized at all. My drive is recognized "USB inserted" and the backup menu shows me the free space (1809mb). I bump the year for 'start' back to 2007, select channels 1 & 2, and hit "start" and a bunch of stuff shoots by too fast to read, though I can see "cannot find file CH01,"cannot find file CH02", etc. for each channel I selected. At the end it says something like "backup succesful 1-1-2000". (I.e., a wacko date is shown even though the current date is set on the DVR.) Is it a USB drive brand issue, or something else?

The compression happens when the video is stored on the HDD; that's why the hard drive space is consumed at a low rate--compared with the equivalent uncompressed raw video frame rate. So the compression algorithm type is determined when you hit record. You don't have a choice when you play back--you must decompress with whatever algorithm type was used to encode it--MJPEG, MPEG1, MPEG4, etc. That's why I have a little trouble with your statement that you're using two different codec types to play back the same video segment from your DVR--both MJPEG and MPEG4. The video could be decompressed--using whatever algorithm compressed it when it was originally recorded--and then recompressed for web transmission, but that usually degrades quality. (I.e. passing something through a series of algorithms usually degrades it, or at best leaves it the same.) Therefore, it's puzzling how the VSE file can end up looking better. The only thing I can think of is that it's perhaps using a better implementation of the same algorithm that the DVR uses--one that's more processor intensive but generates better quality. (I.e., we must decompress with the same algorithm MJPEG, MPEG1, MPEG4, etc. that we compressed with, but the decompression algorithm can be implemented in various ways, leaning more towards speed or more towards quality.)

Yeah, I used the term "events" since I wasn't sure what to call them. Say your motion detection goes off 4 times giving you 4 clips of video that show up as 4 events or entries when you hit the left play button "play list". By backing up "events" I meant clips but maybe that term is not clear. I stand by my claim that it's non intuitive; when you don't select the *exact* time of one of the "events" or "clips" then you get nothing for your backup. Bounding them is not sufficient.

Just a question, but software/hardware design workplace PCs are usually left on 24/7 rather than shut off for the day since users may log in from home to do work or virus scans/updates run at night. Often times these are Dells that use consumer-grade harddrives. I'm not aware of any issue nor have any of my (personal) machines ever had hard drive failures in 13 years of using such PCs. Coworkers have had hard drive failures but they just replaced them with another consumer-grade drive. Life should be at least 3 years of continuous running, at which point you probably want to upgrade to get higher capacity anyway. Provided the drive is stationary, not subjected to shock, and cooled properly, I don't see that continuous running is worse than subjecting it to start/stop cycles. Each start cycle releases particles into the drive that can eventually cause problems--that's why drives are rated for max start/stop cycles. Continuous run can wear the bearing, but it usually progresses in a predicted decay unless the drive is subjected to shocks or attitude changes.

Ok, I finally figured this out. I thought it might be a usb stick compatibility issue but it wasn't (OCZ Rally 2gb stick). Apparently, the issue is that the "start time" you configure in the USB Backup menu must *exactly* match a labeled event time listed in the list of playable events. (The stop time apparently doesn't matter.) I was originally just trying to bound the events I wanted with a pair of times, but that would always generate a bunch of "not found" errors and the final "Backup Successful" would have the date 1-1-2000. When finally, I put the exact time (down to the second) of one of my events, then the backup didn't exit in a few seconds, and instead started displaying a status bar. When it finally exited, the correct date was displayed, rather than 1-1-2000. So apparently, the backup is only successful if you see the correct date (regardless of whether it says "backup successful".) A few comments: * The API I just described is horrendous. It's non intuitive and gives no feedback as to what the problem is. * The backup process takes a very long time, perhaps as long as it took to record the segments. I can't believe the I/O takes that long, so it must be running a format conversion algorithm. I wonder how long a flash stick will last under such brutal conditions. (Flash drives have limited write cycle capability; I once burned one out with 2 weeks of continous writing. That's only 336 hours.) * I was very impressed by the quality of the video format VSE that's produced on your PC when you click on the USB backup file. It almost seems to be higher quality than what you get when you press "play" on the DVR, which is unusual because you usually lose fidelity during format conversions. I was not impressed by the AVI quality if you convert it to an AVI, but the VSE quality is impressive--little blocking.

I wasn't talking about the fps, I meant the quality of CIF independent of the fps--the fidelity of the pixel capture. On the AVC761, even frame best is not very good. I can accept the 7.5 fps per channel, but don't like the fact that I'm not getting DVD resolution capture.

Are you sure you only need CIF? I tried CIF on my avtech and it was really crappy quality. Even frame at best resolution is disappointing. Make sure you actually see the CIF format in person if you're going to drop a lot of coin.

Dude, it's a brand new machine. What's more, I wiped the hard drive, and recorded a single "event" before trying to back up. I selected 2007 just because it was an easy way to select all the events. I actually was a little confused by the fact that I'm supposed to select "start" and "end" times rather than selecting the events to backup, but I assume if I start at 2007 and run to the current time, I'll get them all. (With one event, probably < 50mb.)

I removed the little stock fan as it made way too much noise. Right now I have the cover open with a room fan blowing on it--I'm just playing with it. The larger the size of a fan, the quieter it can be and still deliver the same air flow. Ultimately, I'm going to attach a quieter fan to the back with a funnel duct. The more noise the system makes, the more easier it will be detected. The goal is to catch someone, not scare them away. Think if an undercover informant wore a wire that clicked whenever someone walked through the door. That guy wouldn't live too long, right?

As I had mentioned in an earlier thread, I removed the buzzer from my DVR for complete silence. However, today as I was playing with motion detection, I was upset to find that when detection was activated (and deactivated), a loud click is generated by the unit. I knew this wouldn't be for the recording of the hard drive, since it's already spun up and controlled by software, so I guessed it would be either related to the buzzer (which the DVR doesn't know is gone) or the external alarm notification via the rear DSUB connector. I found that by setting the first ALERT setting, "EXT ALERT," to OFF, the click goes away and I get silent operation. I'm happy but this doesn't make too much sense since the description is "Select to enable or disable the sound when any external alarm is triggered." (Perhaps the relay I hear is the external alarm *output* relay for motion detection? I wouldn't use that output to trip a monitored alarm if they're any windows in the room since clouds and moving sunlight will cause it go off.)

A sector editor is just a piece of software that lets you read and write disk sectors directly, independently of any file system format on the drive (FAT, FAT32, NTFS, etc.) You'll find several freeware or shareware versions on the web. A logic analyzer is an expensive piece of hardware somewhat similar to an oscilloscope, but it has many more channels, logs the values across time, and operates digitally. I checked the price on a Fluke logic analyzer with 96 channels, and we're talking $10,000. You can do the research as easily as me on Google. With a minimum budget, the software approach is only reasonable path, but will require a lot of smarts and a little time or a little smarts and a lot of time.

First, I'm a bit concerned about your use of the 3.5 HDD on the boat. HDD are not designed to be jostled about--especially when running, but even if not running. Even if the unit is shock mounted, you'll still get bearing wear if the drive is running and you repeated bob to and fro, due to gyroscopic loading. I think a laptop drive might be more resilient, but it would probably require extra work to convert to EIDE interface. As far as the format of the data on the drive, not sure why it would start auto-formatting without human intervention when hooked up to the PC; that should never happen. If the format is proprietary, you'll need to reverse engineer it. Do a low level format of the drive to wipe it to all 0's, and then put it in the DVR (which I believe just does a quick format) and then record just a few minutes of video. With a sector editor you should be able to search the disk for the non-empty sectors and copy them to your main PC hard drive for analysis. If you know the compression method, it should make your job easier. Actually, what you really need is a logic analyzer; you could clip onto the EIDE cable when the drive is installed in the DVR and snoop the command sequence going between the controller and drive to determine what sectors are being written. This requires much more money, though. Or....you could also get TWO dvrs of the same model, of course, and view the drive at home that way!

I filled my piezo unit with silicon caulk and it was still loud, so I don't think putting tape over it would impact the sound level much. When I ultimately removed it from the PCB and crushed it with pliers in triumph, I found that there's actually a little coil of wire on a tiny post underneath the top diaphram (i.e., like a speaker), so it's a pretty strong little bugger. However, I think the user is not wanting to disable his buzzer if I understand him--he doesn't want it completely off. He wants it on for only the 1st camera and off for the others--which is the part that isn't possible.

Anyone know to stop a manually initiated record besides disabling Manual Record Enable from the menu? If I hit the record button, it will start recording, but hitting the stop button doesn't stop it. I was about to yank the power when I figured out I could stop the record by disabling manual record enable. The weird thing also is, if I try to enable it, it asks me whether I want to start recording, and if I say no, it doesn't enable it. It sounds like they confused "manual record enable" with actually recording or not recording. At least, I'm confused.

I think it would be sufficient to protect the "stop record" like "off". You can't shut the DVR off without logging in, right? I can understand requiring that, but once I'm logged in I can go to the menus and shut down recording anyway, so why not let the stop button work? I actually thought about using my universal remote to just program a macro to navigate through the menus and stop recording, but the menus unfortunately remember the last place you left them rather than starting at the top item, so the macro wouldn't work very well.

Ok, let me try to restate what I'm asking. When I touch the 'record' button, the DVR automatically sets the "manual record enable" to true for me--I don't have to navigate through the menus. The record button is a shortcut. Is there a shortcut (single button) to turn off the "manual record enable"?

All I did was install the hard drive as per instructions. Both HDD power and EIDE cable are pressed securely into position. I yanked the AC power after about 2 seconds, so I don't know if it's normal, but it seemed so loud I couldn't stand it.

I've got some soldering experience, so I just pulled the little bugger off the main board. Got it back together and it seems to be OK. Sweet, sweet SILENCE! Had to crank the Weller up to 800 to liquifiy the solder--strange--I usually run at 600. I voided the warranty of course, but it was a $200 DVR and I couldn't have the damn thing yacking whenever the power glitches. I also going to upgrade the fan; the stock fan is too noisy. A larger fan with a funnel adapter should provide identical airflow with much lower sound. Ideally, I don't want any noise louder than the hard drive which is basically inaudible more than a foot away.

If I disable the "internal buzzer" using the menu system on the DVR will that shut it up? It's smoke detector loud and phracking annoying. Thanks...