Soundy

Yeah, until it gets dark, or the sun moves around and gives you nasty backlighting.

Quoted for greater agreement - some DVRs will allow you to simply connect a printer, others use common file formats that you can view and print from any basic video player/editor, still others provide a standalone player app that can print to your PC's printer, and some use highly proprietary formats that will require a lot more hacking around. Rather that go into detail on ways to hack around, it would be helpful to first know what we're dealing with, to (hopefully) come up with the simplest solution possible.

Those 484s are definitely in the top-end of the analog CCTV spectrum - ultra-wide dynamic range, auto-backfocus, user-adjustable white balance, maskable light-level detection areas for iris drive... they cost a pretty penny, but you really get what you pay for.

Umm... okay, big WTF to crirvine's first response there... Jerry... I really doubt .ps stands for PostScript in this case... PostScript is NOT a video format and would make for very inefficient video files if you could convert it somehow. It's very likely that it's a more common format (M-JPG, MPEG, H.264, MPEG-4, etc.) and just has a different extension, probably to prevent what you're trying to do (ie. view it without their proprietary software). So, there are a few options. Some player software like this will include an option to export to another format - if you can play it on a PC that has QuickTime installed, you may even be able to re-export it directly to QT format. If not, it can probably be exported to some other standard format that QuickTime will play. I've also seen, with some systems, that the player installation also installs a codec (compressor/decompressor) that allows other media players and editing software to read the files. If there's no PC available, you could try using a different media player, like VLC, which can play a LOT of different file formats. There's an OSX version of VLC available at http://www.videolan.org. And worst case, you could use any of a number of file-upload sites to put the video and player online so I can download them, convert them, and send them back to you One thing to keep in mind: any editing of the video may make it inadmissible as forensic evidence. Most proprietary or semi-proprietary formats like this, along with their bundled player, have embedded authentication data that the player can verify in realtime, to prove that the video hasn't been edited; converting to another format will likely destroy that data, meaning the video can be edited with no proof of authenticity. Depending on your needs, it might be necessary to keep the video in its original format; to play it for the court, you may need to simply buck up for a PC laptop. Or, use something like Parallels or Fusion for the Mac, to allow you to run Windows within your OSX environment.

It will depend on the specific forum software and how the admin has it configured, but with this particular installation of phpBB2, you can only delete your own posts, if they're the last post in the thread. You cannot delete an entire thread. Also, if you're worried about your post count, keep in mind that deleted posts will also be subtracted from your total.

The only "comprehensive guide" you'll find will be a local law library - as Scott points out, the laws vary from one region to the next. In Canada and the US, these sorts of laws are usually set on a state or provincial basis. Rather than asking lawyers about the exact law surrounding the issue, you might be better asking them about past cases and rulings... especially since future rulings may depend as much on precedent as they do the letter of the law.

If the lens is a DC-iris type, the iris (aperture) of the lens is controlled by the camera - as the scene gets brighter, the iris closes down to the restrict the light; when the scene gets darker, the iris opens to allow more light. Most cameras with DC-iris control will have an adjustment, either in the OSD menus (on cameras that have that), or a small potentiometer that's accessible through a hole in the camera body (it will usually look like small screw-head), that allows you to adjust the reference level for the lens drive. It may be necessary to adjust that level.

Look for an adjustment (possibly a small screw) labeled "DC DRIVE" or "LENS LEVEL" or something similar...

Even if you have the right protocol, you still need to match the baud rate and the camera ID before it will work... it's good to have that info or you could be hacking about with different combinations forever Some cameras will display that info when they power up. One thing you could try, is look at the various circuit boards for a silkscreened FCC ID number... if it's made with the US market in mind, it will have one that you can look up at www.fcc.gov and find at least the manufacturer, and likely the model as well.

Missed this post initially. No, I don't thing you're missing anything... they just don't have any audio in their demos. Can't really tell you why, but I know it's supported.

Uh, what city?

From http://www.dvrsecurityforum.com/showthread.php?tid=30&pid=30: So yes, D1/4IF will be substantially better than CIF for picking out facial details. Standard TV/DVD video is 30fps; 7.5fps will be a little "stuttery" but unless you need to catch fast-moving action, it should be plenty smooth and worth it to gain the extra resolution.

Welcome! Coffee's on, but you need to bring your own sugar.

It SHOULD be as simple as setting up port forwarding on your router - just tell it in the proper section (sometimes called port forwarding, sometimes called "virtual server", sometimes something else) that the designated port routes to the DVR's IP. Then from the outside world, you just connect to your router's real-world IP - you can look this up on a site like www.showmyip.com or www.ipchicken.com. Dynamic DNS isn't generally NECESSARY if you can always remember that IP... it just makes it easier to remember. And it's a lot more convenient if your ISP changes your IP regularly, since cable and DSL IPs are usually dynamic and can change periodically (although most will assign you a static IP, usually for a small additional monthly fee).

Almost anywhere... building supply store, electronic store, department store, surplus store, dollar store... I'm talking about these things: Use whichever style suits your needs and space requirements. The top one would work fine with the power supply style pictured further up.

As far as outside viewing, yes, they essentially are. All the DVR is doing is providing a buffer - it's still connected to the outside world through the same pipe, and assuming it's not recompressing or in some other way changing the video, the video it spits out will require the same bandwidth.

Those CNB domes sit out a fair bit from the wall and can angle back to look right along the wall... other domes are capable of the same (although I wouldn't count the Pelcos among them). I'm not familiar with the Speco bullets, so I can't offer a direct comparison.

Kinda depends. If you only need a single camera per site and don't need to record things, but only view live action, it's extreme overkill and adds unneeded cost and complexity.

No, you don't need to put power AT the cameras - like I said before, just remove the current centralized power supply, mount power bars there instead, and connect the existing power runs that now terminate in the box, each to its own adapter. I'm not familiar with that brand, but from looking at the various different listings for them, those particular cameras seem to be fairly mid-low-end. Most listings I found had them selling for $110-$140 (although a couple places were selling them for well over $200). Guess you don't always get what you pay for Unfortunately, the common-ground design is pretty standard even with better 12VDC cameras - only the ones with built-in power regulators really get away from that problem, because the power ground is then separated from the video ground. 24VAC cameras avoid it because they necessarily need a transformer/rectifier/regulator to step the voltage down (since the internals in most cases still run at 12V).

Not necessarily "easier". If you're running multiple cameras on a site, then a DVR provides a single point of login for all of them, but if it's just one or maybe two cameras, and you don't need to record them (ie. strictly for viewing), then the DVR just adds an extra level of cost and complexity.

I've seen similar symptoms sometimes, particularly with Capture PTZs. It looks to be interference from the control signal itself - it happens even with just menu commands, or if I switch use a non-existent camera number so it's not actually moving that camera. As to how to fix it, I don't really know, as I haven't had to fix it - I've only really seen it when connecting my laptop to the camera in close proximity for testing and setup.

Do you have any specific cameras or types of cameras (dome, box, etc.) in mind yet? Is this an "even" stone surface (like brick) or will it be rough and uneven? If it's a fairly even surface, any decent weatherproof dome can just be mounted to it - just drill through the stone with a masonry bit and use long deck screws to anchor it to the wood behind. If the stone isn't installed yet, you could perhaps mark out where the camera's back-box would go, and have the stonesetters leave an "opening" for it, so the camera is effectively countersunk in the stone. If you have the cameras in advance of the stonework going up, you could even pre-mount the backbox and just tell them to work around it. This method works especially well if the stone surface is very uneven. They're not my favorite cameras to work with, but the Pelco IS-110/ICS-111 outdoor domes have good deep backboxes are are fairly suited for this sort of install. Or, take a look at some of CNB's outdoor domes - I've installed tons of these, they're excellent cameras at a really good price, and again, for outdoor mountings they have a separate back-box that can be mounted first for the stone guys to build around.

It might help us to know the EXACT make and model of DVR, and what make and model of internet modem/router you're using, if any, plus what other steps you've taken so far - for example, have you tried connecting to the DVR via your LAN?

Probably something similar to what I've already described. It's a little more extreme than your needs, perhaps, but take a look at Video Insight's demo page at http://www.demovi.com - that's a PC-based DVR with a web-browser-based client. It records video internally, and depending on the security settings, can allow internet users to connect and view the cameras and the recorded footage. If this person's daycare facility has a surveillance system with an appropriate recorder (which is likely), chances are they've set it up in a similar fashion to allow clients to check in remotely.

Tearing out the cable could be a lot more work than you're ready for. If it's just straight runs across open ceiling or something, that's one thing, but if it's running in and over HVAC, around corners, or if they've got it strapped up or hooked in T-bar hangers... you're potentially looking at a LOT of labor to re-run all the wiring. I'm guessing this was a new construction when the system was put in, and now it's an operating business? If so, add to your rewiring labor, the fact that you either have to do it over and around their daily operations, or do it after hours... Really, there's nothing wrong with baluns and Cat5 - it's inherently a slick setup that gives great results and offers a certain degree of "future-proofing". All you need to do is get around a power issue that stems back to the cheap cameras. Easiest "fix" by far is just to replace the single power supply with a series of wall-warts. All the involved work takes place in a single location: the terminus of the Cat5 runs. Remove wall box, mount power bars as necessary, and splice existing camera power connections into transformers, one for each camera. The specs I found for the cameras calls for 310mA each, so if you can find a bulk-buy on 12VDC, 400-500mA adapters, you're laughing. If possible, look for slim-profile types so you can cram more of them onto a power bar - like this one: