Setting Up a Web Cam:
This page should help. If you don't want to bother,  we can assist at a VERY REASONABLE PRICE! 

Our cams: 
Cam 1 : Axis Cam with it's own internal server Cam 2: Sony Digital Video Camera hooked up to a BUZ /JAZ interface from Iomega, using webcam32 software Cam 3: Pelco Spectra II Dome, Pan Tilt & Zoom  camera Cam 4: contact webmaster@belmar.com Cam 5: Kodak DC325  (webmaster cam) hooked up to USB port using inetcam.com software Cam 6: Perceptual Robotics System -coming soon! Cam 7-9: at Bar A  a Belmar Beach Cam exclusive coming soon! (Cam Type TBA) And Pool & Hot Tub Cams July 2000!

What to Buy (order cam software & hardware and how to books right from here)!

The first thing to know about buying a digital video camera for use as a Web cam is that you will want one of the models that is designed to be attached to your computer 100 percent of the time. There are handheld electronic cameras that allow you to view your pictures on your computer, but they are not suited for building a Web cam. The handheld models are great for packing to the office holiday party, but they cannot send a constant feed.

Another thing to take into consideration when buying a camera is how you are going to attach it to your computer: via the serial port or the parallel port. If you have an external modem and a serial mouse on your computer, then you probably don't have a spare serial port. Likewise, if you have a Zip drive or a printer, you might have difficulty with a camera that hooks up to the parallel port. Before deciding which camera to buy, figure out which port you will have free.

Connecting to the parallel port often causes the least disruption to your hardware and peripherals. But if you have an older PC, your parallel port may not be sturdy enough to provide the kind of transfer rate that a Web cam requires. Translation: Your Web cam images will be very slow. The one thing to know -- make sure you have what is called a bi-directional parallel port. If your computer still has a uni-directional parallel port, you can upgrade the card that hosts the parallel port for about $40 to $75.

List of WebCam Software to fit any needs!

Now we'll try to keep a list of the most significant WebCam-related software. You'll be able to find a more complete, searchable list of WebCam software at The WebCam Resource. 

For extra details, visit each software page. Sites ordered in alphabetical order. Prices expressed in U.S. dollars are average and oriented. 

You can enhance your WebCam with some additional and interesting Accessories which we we'll try to cover here.

Web cam software must periodically capture an image, convert it into a common Web format like JPEG or GIF, and transmit it to the Web host machine. Some of these steps are not needed if, for example, your capture software produces a GIF and the camera is attached to the Web server. In my case, however, I needed to tackle all of these steps.

Early on, I went to File Mine and searched on "web cam." There are quite a few shareware Web cam programs out there. Many of them will put a message on your image like "Powered by Super-Cam: Unregistered" until you purchase the software. Others will only work for a few hours at a time before they stop and ask you to buy the software. Many of the programs are good and worth the time to try. You usually just have to tell it where the camera is, where to put the image and how often to refresh the image.

Available webcam software packages range from the basic, that simply grab (capture) images from the webcam and move them to a server, to very advanced feature rich packages. If your camera did not come with software, there are packages available, in freeware, shareware, or licensing versions, such as Webcam32 (easy to use and only 25 bucks)!, ISpy, and EarthCam's  software, Tableau streaming solutions,  http://www.snapnsend.com/,  E-Cap. The following is a list of possible features to look for:

1. Video for Windows compatible - this means the software will be compatible with any video for windows compatible device.
2. Captioning – overlays a timestamp, copyright, logo, etc. onto the images
3. FTP – transfer images to a server using ftp protocol
4. Dialup – manages dial-up ISP accounts, automatically connects and disconnects to ISP
5. Scheduling – schedule captures and transfers for hourly, daily, or continuous operation.
6. HTTP server – some capture software can provide webserver functionality and send images as response to requests from web clients. This type of server usually has a very limited user base. (less than 10 simultaneous connections allowed)
7. Server Push support

Note: although we are focusing on Windows software here, there is software available for other operating systems including Macintosh, Sun, Linux, dos, etc. Some require specific hardware as well.

Some programs assume you have a Web server on the same machine as the Web cam. You might actually want to transfer the image to your ISP's machine and let its Web server handle the traffic. Look for a program that can FTP the image to another machine with a Web server.

If you are running the Web cam from home over a modem connection, you will have to set up your computer to dial your ISP on request. If your computer already dials and connects to the Internet when you fire up your Web browser, then you already are done.

You might run into some funny little gotchas setting up a Web cam:

• The cords on the cameras usually are pretty short.
• You might have to move the host computer nearer to the subject in order to get the camera in place.
• If you are pointing the camera out of a window, then you should be careful of lights inside making a glare on the window and hiding the subject outside.
• Also, fog, rain and dirt on the window can be a nuisance.

Now that many people have done it, setting up a Web cam has gotten a lot easier. I remember seeing the original Amazing Fishcam and thinking it was a crazy and great thing. Web cams show some of the creative potential of the Web. I hear you can take the infrared filters off of some cameras and make a night vision cam out of it. I plan on putting motor control on my camera so you can move it around and really take a look. Stay tuned ...

Wondering how you can buy a Web cam? We've put together a list of some of the most popular Web cam manufacturers:

• Axis Communications (our cam #1) and Perceptual Robotics (on order & coming soon)! 
  
• Connectix
  
• Creative Labs
  
• Intel
  
• Kodak (On cam 5 coming soon for pool & hut tub cams...is a Kodak DC325) USB VERY PORTABLE! great long cord.)
  
• Panasonic and Pelco or here
  
• Tekram and Tableau
  
• Winnov

Scripts & Applets

• May be, one of the most wide spread Java Applets in the Net (and easy to set up too) is the JavaCam Applet.

  Please note that we're NOT offering technical support on it, just recommending it as an alternative to HTML commands to refresh images. You'll find detailed information at WebCam32's site on how to set up this applet to work for you.

  One last consideration regarding Java Applets refers to its complexity in front of single, easy-to-use HTML commands.

   

• Updating images can be displayed with standard html image src tags. A meta refresh tag can be used to automatically reload pages at some pre-defined time delay. There are a number of Java Applets that can be used to display webcam images smoothly and seamlessly without reloading the entire page. EarthCam offers such an applet. Click here and download it for free. Or Tableau applet & system

• The most basic way to display a live image to to use standard HTML image reference techniques along with a META tag to automatically refresh the image or page at some designated interval. An example follows below:

META TAG to refresh page every 10 seconds:

<meta http-equiv="refresh" content=10>

• Java script for web cam in a pop up window & 90second refresh rate

...more soon!

ADSL - [link to http://www.adsl.com/] Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line: Modems attached to twisted pair copper wiring that transmit from 1.5 Mbps to 9 Mbps downstream (to the subscriber) and from 16 kbps to 800 kbps upstream, depending on line distance.

applet - An applet is a small program done in Java. The EarthCam Applet is a program that looks at a specific image URL and checks if the image is new. If so, it loads and displays it seamlessly.

bandwidth –

1. Technically, the measure of how quickly you can move information from one point to another. If you are using a 14.4 kbps modem, you have at least six times the bandwidth of somebody using a 2400 bps modem. It's similar to roadways -- a four lane highway can carry more traffic than a two lane highway.

2. Socially, the measure of how many messages or files a user is willing or able to access in a given time. If a user is only willing or able to read 50 or so messages in a day, then they will tend to choose to read low-traffic newsgroups or mailing lists in which a high proportion of the messages are on those topics they are interested in. Posting off-topic or needlessly lengthy messages is therefore called "wasting bandwidth", because it can encourage busy users to drop out.

client - A software program that is used to contact and obtain data from a Server software program on another computer, often across a great distance. Each Client program is designed to work with one or more specific kinds of Server programs, and each Server requires a specific kind of Client. A Web Browser is a specific kind of Client.

digitize – Converting NTSC or other analog video formats into a digital format which can be stored and viewed on a computer

DSL – (Digital Subscriber Line) – A method for moving data over regular phone lines. A DSL circuit is much faster than a regular phone connection, and the wires coming into the subscriber’s premises are the same (copper) wires used for regular phone service. A DSL circuit must be configured to connect two specific locations, similar to a leased line.

ftp – File Transfer Protocol. ftp is the underlying protocol on the Internet for copying files between sites. Whenever a user clicks on a Web link which delivers a file to their machine (say, for example, this one: <A HREF="ftp://bible.acu.edu/Technology/ctt/netmap.zip">, it is actually ftp which transports the file, even though the user is using a Web browser at the time. There are many "ftp sites" on the Internet, where a system administrator has made files available for "anonymous ftp." That is, users can connect with an ftp tool and download files without having to register on the system where the ftp site is located. This can make large amounts of material easily available on the Internet, and is, in fact, one of the biggest reasons why the Internet is such an incredibly useful tool. The kinds of files made available for anonymous ftp can be nearly anything, from the text of Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress to specification sheets for out-of-production hard drives. For example, an ftp site run by a software company may have demo versions of the software for sale, device drivers, patch files, help files, and so on.

gif - (Graphic Interchange Format) -- A common format for image files, especially suitable for images containing large areas the same color. GIF format files of simple images are often smaller than the same file would be if stored in JPEG format, but GIF format does not store photographic images as well as JPEG.

host - Any computer on a network that is a repository for services available to other computers on the network. It is common to have one host machine provide several services, such as WWW and USENET.

HTML - (HyperText Markup Language) -- The coding language used to create Hypertext documents for use on the World Wide Web. HTML looks a lot like old-fashioned typesetting code, where you surround a block of text with codes that indicate how it should appear, additionally, in HTML you can specify that a block of text, or a word, is linked to another file on the Internet. HTML files are viewed using a World Wide Web Client Program, such as Netscape or Mosaic.

ISDN - (Integrated Services Digital Network) -- Basically a way to move more data over existing regular phone lines. ISDN is rapidly becoming available to much of the USA and in most markets it is priced very comparably to standard analog phone circuits. It can provide speeds of roughly 128,000 bits-per-second over regular phone lines. In practice, most people will be limited to 56,000 or 64,000 bits-per-second.

ISP - (Internet Service Provider) -- An institution that provides access to the Internet in some form, usually for money.

Java - Java is a network-oriented programming language invented by Sun Microsystems that is specifically designed for writing programs that can be safely downloaded to your computer through the Internet and immediately run without fear of viruses or other harm to your computer or files. Using small Java programs (called "Applets"), Web pages can include functions such as animations, calculators, and other fancy tricks.

Jpeg - (Joint Photographic Experts Group) -- JPEG is most commonly mentioned as a format for image files. JPEG format is preferred to the GIF format for photographic images as opposed to line art or simple logo art. Webcams typically produce Jpeg images.

NTSC - National Television Standards Committee -- A video standard established by the United States (RCA/NBC} and adopted by numerous other countries. This is a 525-line video with 3.58-MHz chroma subcarrier and 60 cycles per second. Frames are displayed at 30 frames per second.

PAL - Phase Alternative Line System -- The European TV standard based upon 50 cycles.per second electrical system and 625 lines per frame and 25 Frames per Second. (NTSC, the North American standard is based on 30 frames per second) (French use SECAM)

PCI - Peripheral Component Interface: the 32-bit bus architecture (64-bit with multiplexing), developed by DEC, IBM, Intel, and others, that is widely used in Pentium-based PCs. A PCI bus provides a high-bandwidth data channel between system board components such as the CPU and devices such as hard disks and video adaptors. PCI is one of two widely adopted local-bus standards. It has largely superseded the other, the VL-Bus, which was widely used in 486 PCs.

plug-in - A (usually small) piece of software that adds features to a larger piece of software. Common examples are plug-ins for the Netscape® browser and web server. Adobe Photoshop® also uses plug-ins.

The idea behind plug-in’s is that a small piece of software is loaded into memory by the larger program, adding a new feature, and that users need only install the few plug-ins that they need, out of a much larger pool of possibilities. Plug-ins are usually created by people other than the publishers of the software the plug-in works with.

POTS - Plain Old Telephone Service: the only name recognized around the world for basic analog telephone service. POTS takes the lowest 4kHz of bandwidth on twisted pair wiring. Any service sharing a line with POTS must either use frequencies above POTS or convert POTS to digital and interleave with other data signals.

SDSL – Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line - ADSL with the same bandwidth available for upload as download.

server - A computer, or a software package, that provides a specific kind of service to client software running on other computers. The term can refer to a particular piece of software, such as a WWW server, or to the machine on which the software is running, e.g. Our mail server is down today, that’s why e-mail isn’t getting out. A single server machine could have several different server software packages running on it, thus providing many different servers to clients on the network.

streaming audio/video - Technology that allows to play audio or video while it is still downloading. SVHS

T-1 - A leased-line connection capable of carrying data at 1,544,000 bits-per-second. At maximum theoretical capacity, a T-1 line could move a megabyte in less than 10 seconds. That is still not fast enough for full-screen, full-motion video, for which you need at least 10,000,000 bits-per-second. T-1 is the fastest speed commonly used to connect networks to the Internet.

Good web cam resource site : Web Cam World 

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