[TriLUG] Linux-based surveillance system suggestions

[Greg Brown]

I am doing this.  Only right now I'm using my Mac but I was, for quite some
time, using Linux.

You have many options for IP cameras.  My personal favorite cameras are made
by Axis (http:///www.axis.com).  The question is: what do you want to
monitor?  Indoors?  Ourdoors?  Combined day and night or just daytime?

When I was in Belgium and The Netherlands last year I hooked up an Axis 207
camera to my home network and did video capture using a package simply
called "motion".  It worked, did pretty well, but at night the pixel rates
shoot through the roof (a black night shot will change thousands of pixels
during each frame grab from dark brown to black hence "motion images" of a
nearly black screen quickly filled my disk).

Using motion is nearly a 100% home-spun affair, fun for some, but not what I
had in mind.  I wanted something a little more "packaged".

Enter Zomeminder.  Talk about complicated (but very useful).  You'll have to
give Zoneminder a try, it really has some cool features but it can be a bear
to set up (at least back in the olden days of about two years ago).  I'm
sure it's much more polished these days.

Today I use my G4 Mac Mini running some motion detection software for the
Mac.  I only went that route because I had done the same thing at the beach
network the year before and wanted a quick and easy solution I wouldn't have
to tinker with for hours on end to get working.

In closing:
use motion if you want to build your own image capture system
use zoneminder if you want to use a more complete package from the start

Hope that helps!


On 6/21/07, James Tuttle <jjtuttle at trilug.org> wrote:
>
> Might any of you have suggestions about network cameras, capture card,
> or software?  I'd like to implement a cheap 1 or two network camera
> surveillance system at home.  I have a cheap USB Logitech at home
> implemented with Motion, but I'd like something better if it can be had
> cheaply enough.
>
> I expect the cameras could all be wired and for indoor use only.
> Power-over-Ethernet would be nice, but isn't required.
>
> Anyone already doing this?
>
> Thanks,
> Jim
>
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