cairnwalker

You might want to take a look at Panasonic's lineup: The BB-HCM511A is a megapixel IP camera with remote pan/tilt, digital zoom, that has a built-in webserver, versatile interface, and SD card recording capability. Best of all, it has power over Ethernet (PoE) capability, which greatly simplifies installation, since you won't need an electrical source nearby. I believe that 300 meters is the limit for such Ethernet runs, so your 500 foot perimeter should be OK. This model is not for outdoor use, but Panasonic has others that are. I've installed a number of these, and it produces excellent images, and is very reliable. Like most IP cams, however, they don't provide good coverage in darkness without IR illumination. They retail for about $459 each, but can be found for a good deal less "on the street." Good luck

Mac's are not really great for cctv network viewing/drv cards etc.. Lots of problem! Can you not buy a real computer? Macs aren't great for cctv network viewing because they aren't addicted to Active-X and they aren't clinging to yesterday's analog systems like "real" computers are. Instead, why don't you invest in modern digital IP cams instead, run first-class software like SecuritySpy on a stable Unix-based platform like Mac OS X, and forget about wasting your time and money on real computers. Sure, you won't have an endless supply of cheaply-made, no-name, lookalike, rebranded cameras and DVR's to choose from. And, you might miss the fun of having the single point of failure that DVR's provide. No way you'll get to have the thrill of BSOD! But hey, not everybody loves rebooting every day anyway! You're running Leopard, huh? You must not have what it takes to handle CCTV. You probably want things that just work effortlessly and intuitively. If you don't understand the registry, dll files, and virus scans, then you just aren't cut out for real computers. Real computers are just way too complicated for sissies like you. Why do you think Wizards are needed just to help you plug in a flash drive, anyway?

Are there any quality DVR's that use Java for browser control?