[2]

One camera, DVR, color monitor and cables: $1,400
Three cameras, DVR, color monitor and cables $1,900

Would be interesting to know the specs on the camera, and how well any stabalization might work.

http://www.windshieldcam.com/

[flood]

i like using the handy-can better than a web cam. you can do alot more with it than you can with a any web cam. i can at anytime hit the buttom and take a pic that i can save. i can stop at a rest area and get out and take pic's to send later. shoot video that i can send later or hook it to my vcr and use it as a dash cam and the video is better than any WEB-CAM can ever hope to be.

[lurchgs]

I suggest software such as Ivisit if you just want to pass stuff back to the home gang...It will allow you to chat back and forth with family, too

I'd argue against a web cam. They are typically low res and require much more in the way of ambient light than a true video cam.

Just about any laptop will do, since the big choke is going to be bandwidth.

One thing I intend to do with my system is set up a 4-hour buffer file on the laptop. That is, raw video is captured to the laptop for 4 hours. any data that's more than 4 hours old is flushed. If there's a segment I want to keep (say, something that may clear me from getting a ticket) I can easily set it aside for keeps.

I should look into things like Hughs - I wonder if they have a live-tracking satelite antenna that could be used onboard a moving truck...

[Malaki86]

For the live tracking, I use a combination of programs to allow it:

Franson GPS Gate - this allows the GPS device to be "shared" - it also sends my current location to their tracking site

GooPS - This program runs on the peoples computers who want to track me - they use my login name to retrieve my data.

Google Earth - The data pulled from GooPS is displayed on GooPS in real-time. It also shows the "breadcrumb" for the exact route I've driven.

The trail is VERY sensitive.I zoomed to the closest level and checked it out. You could see where I came into a T/A, fueled, pulled around the building, set myself up and backed in. You could tell to the parking spot that I was in.

[Skywalker]

I've never been particularly interested in doing any web-cam stuff....but I have been interested in hooking up a video camera to some kind of loop that will record some number of minutes or longer to show the stupid crap that people do in front of me or on the sides....

There was a driver down in FL who got caught in a "Swoop and Squat" down in FL....and the end of the story was in court when he went to fight the tickets, he showed the video to the judge.....his tickets were thrown out, and the two guys pulling the swoop and squat are now in prison for a few years, and their insurance companies paid for the damages to the truck and some other stuff....

I'm thinking of doing it as a "protective device".

Suggestions?

[flood]

skywalker my setup works for that, i have the cam running to a vcr

[matcat]

Well damn I just noticed this post! OK here is how I do it, I have a $600 laptop from Walmart, you do not need anything particularly special, a cheap laptop will work well for surfing the web, cam, etc. I have a Microsoft Lifecam vx-3000, very descent cam, about $50, and Sprint 959u USB modem, price in this depends on your credit, $60 a month for service. I would also recomend a microphone or headset to plug into the laptop for sound, as the vx-3000s built in one does not pick up voice well over the noise of the vehicle running. Broadcasting over the internet espially on cellular broadband will have a lag anywhere from 5 seconds to a couple of minutes, depending.

[matcat]

Originally Posted by SteveBooth

There are many ways but here is one suggestion. You will need a web page so you have a permanent address that you can store the picture and other people can bring up your web page that will display and update the image.

Next you will need a simple video capture program that will run on your PC and will take a picture once every second and store it on your web page storage area.

When your wife is at home she would access your simple web page that will display the current picture and will update itself once a second.

There is no way you can have real time video at TV type speed. Doing an update once a second will not offend your internet provider like Verizon or others.

Doing this is very very simple for a junior computer person but very difficult for someone without any experience.

Your a bit behind on your understanding of technology, still frame capturing is hardly ever used anymore as even Sprint or Verizons cellular broadband is fast enough to broadcast a fairly good quality stream. Also Verizon has a no streaming video clause in the contract, sprint does not. Also sprint is faster anyway.

[matcat]

Originally Posted by lurchgs

I suggest software such as Ivisit if you just want to pass stuff back to the home gang...It will allow you to chat back and forth with family, too

I'd argue against a web cam. They are typically low res and require much more in the way of ambient light than a true video cam.

Just about any laptop will do, since the big choke is going to be bandwidth.

One thing I intend to do with my system is set up a 4-hour buffer file on the laptop. That is, raw video is captured to the laptop for 4 hours. any data that's more than 4 hours old is flushed. If there's a segment I want to keep (say, something that may clear me from getting a ticket) I can easily set it aside for keeps.

I should look into things like Hughs - I wonder if they have a live-tracking satelite antenna that could be used onboard a moving truck...

Unless you buy a cheap $10 webcam, most webcams today will work in most lighting conditions, my MS Lifecam vx-3000 will clearly show a good image even at night with it pointed towards me in the cab with all lights off. ($50 webcam)

[matcat]

Originally Posted by Rev.Vassago

That's an overly complex way of doing it. There are plenty of free websites that allow you to post webcams. Just search free webcam hosting to find them.

camstreams.com is the one I use, as well as many other drivers.