Soundy

Not sure what "casino quality" really means, but if you're using analog video to a capture card, you're always gonna be limited since NTSC video vertical resolution is limited. If you really want ulta-high res, look at the hi-def IP cameras. VigilHD from www.camacc.com does up to 3.2MP (approx 2000x1500) at 20fps with supported cameras.

Ooo that's a good one!

RDP works alright if your DVR or remote machine is Windows XP Pro, or a version of Windows 2000 Server or higher. The one big drawback I've found to it is that you have to login to the same user as the remote system is running on, or it will kick that user out (not good for DVRs), plus remote login kicks the local screen to the login prompt, and RSP won't work unless you have a password set on the account, meaning your user needs to know the password for that account (not always a problem IN CONCEPT, but most users are too dense to understand how to logon properly). It also makes the connection pretty much unsable if you have live video running on the remote end... VNC will let you have a live view of the other screen without kicking the local user off, will work on most versions of Windows (with remote clients for a number of non-Windows systems), and you can have a login that's completely separate from the Windows login.

Depending on the type of insects, a yellow "bug light" near the camera might help...

You can always just take analog video out of the equation, and go with something like this: http://camacc.com/news/VIGIL%20HiDef%20Software%20Announcement.pdf

Anyone else had a chance to check one of these bad boys? I spent a few minutes playing with one at my local Burtek the other day - man, is this slick! http://www.omniscape360.com/

I'd rather put the two nobs in the car to sleep...

Umm, I'm surprised Newegg doesn't get in crap with Microsoft - OEM software is by definition not supposed to be sold separately, it's only supposed to be sold pre-installed on a new system.

We're looking to start replacing some client VCR/MUX systems with standalone DVRs, mostly 4- and 9-channel systems. Looking for suggestions for low-cost (not "cheap") units - what do you recommend, and more importantly, WHY?

That's not a standalone - unfortunately it's still hard to sell some companies on replacing a $1000-$1500 MUX/VCR setup with a $3000+ PC-based DVR (what do bean-counters know?)... so we need to find them solutions in the $1000-$1500 range

BTW, I first learned about this a couple days ago when I hit my local Burtek for a replacement VCR, and they told me VCRs were no longer being made and they had only a very limited stock left. It's down to the crunch now!

BetaCAM (as opposed to Beta/Betamax) is still a staple of professional video systems. It's been used for TV, ENG, etc. for decades and won't likely disappear as quickly as consumer formats.

From your description, it sounds like you simply had the polarity switched on one balun. Most baluns, passive models at least, require you use the same polarity at both ends - the MUXLAB ones I use, for example, are marked TIP and RING on the terminals: the TIP on one must be connected to the TIP on the other, and RING to RING, or you get a scrambled picture.

They could mean a number of different things - bad wiring, bad camera, electrical interference of various different types... if you can snap a photo of the screen, most people here would probably be able to tell you at a glance where the problem lies.

Actually, a photo of the screen with the lines would be very helpful...

Depends on the MUX, but as a general rule, most aren't converting to digital, and there should be no loss at all.

Just to throw in my $0.02 (plus tax and service charges)... I don't have a problem with manufacturer reps and the like posting links and even outright propaganda for their products... IF it's in response to someone's question. For example, if I posted a question like, "What's a good PC-based DVR?", I would have no issue with Thomas going to town telling me all the great things about Video Insight complete with links to the website. Placing a limitation on that kind of response serves only to block the information I'm after, and any further questions I may ask ("Yeah, but does it slice bread?") may be useful to someone else as well. To my thinking, the standard definition of spam applies here: UNSOLICITED, commercial postings, such as some just starting up a thread out of the blue with, "Hey, everyone, come check out this website for my company's great new products!"

Reliablility is possibly THE primary consideration for a DVR; the extra 5%-10% speed you might get out of overclocking and other tweaking is pointless if you start getting crashes and lock-ups.

Agreed - ASUS make good solid boards, but they, and a lot of others, tend to have a lot of stuff you probably don't need: a gazillion onboard USB ports, 7.1 surround sound with optical I/O (unless you like to really immerse yourself in the surveillance experience), heavy-duty 3D video, and so on. Servers don't need a lot of extra stuff like that, and neither do DVRs. Disk I/O and good RAM capacity are more important concerns, for both servers and DVRs

No worries, I caught that too Just making conversation...

Actually, it took me no time at all to notice the distinct lack of heavy-handed moderation. Like I said, I may be new here, but I'm a real old-timer with message boards

I find moderation is only as hard as the moderator wants it to be. If you want to be super anal about things, it's obviously gonna be a lot more work; if you can allow yourself to allow the users to moderate themselves, I think you'll usually find it's a pretty easy job, and in this environment, should work out pretty well.

So please remove images from your signatures they will cause too much trouble for everyone involved. Thanks Larry Fair'nuff

Forget that... ever bought a wife on eBay?

Yeah, those are great... the ones I've worked with include a makeshift "compass" to draw a perfect circle to cutout for the size of the dome. VEry nice. I dunno about everyone else, but I was referring more to standard armored domes surface-mounted on the tiles.