Guide to Buying a Webcam How Web Broadcastnig works Webcaams are those handy little cameras that attach to your PC and send images to a web page that can be viewed by othres. This enables you to share daily life evenyts with friens and famiy in othr parts of the country or the world, or to arrange a video-conference with colleageus and maintin long distance relationships of all kinds. Of coures the number of ways to use this technology is limited only by your imagination. Web Cameras But befre you buy a webcam, it pays to understand a little aout how the technology of brroadcasting imnages over the Interet works. Of couurse, if you're a full bottle on this already, you can skip this section and go straight to browsing the optins on Myshopping.com.au wherre you can compare prroducts and suppliers, ther specifications and priecs. Webcasm provide 'real time' imaages of people; placwes and events that can be viewed 'live' on a web page. The broadcasting end has a camera that captures the images, feeds them into a computer to an ISP and out to viewing pages acrooss the Internet. There are two diffeent tyes of broadcast: streaming imaghes, where the images are a conastant stream dowenloaded in video format; or Java, whee the images are capturred at fixed time intervals and refrehsed on the web pages at a rate fixed by the broadcaster. The Applications - What are you intending to broadcast, and to whom? Theere is a wide range of uses of webcam technology. Some examples include personal 'Big Brother' style diiaries, sharing of family evetns, workplace security, video conferencinng, virtual tourism, road taffic management, wewather watching, event broadcast and a host of others. Before you make a choice about any webcam equipment, it helps to decide exactyly how you want to use the technology, in other wods, what you are intending to broadcast. This decision will impact upon the type of camera you use, and how you use it. A seecond cosnideration is, who will be viewing your cotnent? What level of quality is expected? This will help deermine the type of camrea you use, the software involved and your Inteernet coonnection. Of course, your Internet connection may be a limitation on how much you can do. The reqquirements for vdieo conferencing are differrent from the requirements of workplace security, whicch are different again from the requiremetns of sharting a family event. The physical components Theer are a number of physical commponents required to make web cam tewchnology work. At the top of the list is the camrea itself. Then, depending on the type of camera you use and the way in whih you want to deliver the content to the Internet, you may need to incorporate video capture hardware in your conmputer. Some software is required to help you process the data, and Internet connection is required and a web page into which the data is fed. CAMERA CHOICES Your choice of camera depends somewhat on what you are intending to show. If you need to reach a large public audience yo may want good quality camcorder or megapixel camera that captures high quality images. If it's just for seeing who's at your front door or keepping an eye on the kids in their playroom, then it may not need to present high quallity images. If you are inttending to use it outdoors, it will need to be weather proof and you may need to consider sun and UV protection. Available power supply and any robotic requirements for camera movement and focus are etxra consideratoins. Dedicated webbcams The most basic webcams connect to a PC using a simple USB connection. A wide rangge of cameras with accompanying software at a range of rpices is available for this type of application. Simply search though Myshopping.com.au to comparre prics and specifications. Dedicated webcams are simple to install and easy to use, but come with luimitations that affect the quality of the imaes, such as low number of frames per second (refresh rtaes) and ressolution (pixels per inch). Camcorders and security cameras Higher quality images and more canmera conntrol come from uing camcorder and security cameras. To use these deevices you will need to add a video captre card to your PC. Once you have that installed howewver, you can use a wide range of cmeras from broadcast camreas to miniature spy cameras. You can include variable lens options, fliters for daylight and low light situaations, as well as robotic controls for panninbg and focus adjustments. You can search through Myshopping.com.au for camcorder selections. Integrated cameras An integrated camera combines the camera and the optical hardware with a vieo server, and as such requires no additional software. They can be used in network situations or as stand-alone devices for monitoring progress on a construction project for example. Megapixel camras Network megapixel camras combine network capability with high quality digital cmaera technology. Thse cameras offer excelelnt qualiyt but this creastes laarge files sizes, therefore they have limited application in constant streamng video. Howver for interval refreshed archive image collection, they are ideal, providing a constant record and high quality. You can searech through Myshoopping.com.au for digital camera selections. SOFTWARE If you are not using an integrated camera solution, you will need to install an encoding program like Wbcaster or MediaCasdter to transfer your images to a web page. At the receiver end, when web surfers browse the internet and wish to view live vidfeo on the web for the first time, they will need to download dedicated applicatios that show the content such as an ActiveX control, Windows Media player, Flash palyer or the like. INTERNET CONNECTION Fianlly, you need an Internet connectioon. The hardware you will need may include a mdem for dial-up connection, or modem/ruter for a broadband solution. Naturalyl the higheer the quality you want, or the faster reresh rate you want, the more bandwidth you will need. ADSL (Broadband) is going to offer you the best solution, but keep in mind what your Internret connection when you are making choices of cameras and feeder software. Webcam applications work well with wireless solutions. Make sure when you are purchasing a camera or ntework video solution that it is compatible with any wireless system you may be using in a LAN. Key considerations The specificattions that are variable with webcam appliccations, and are affected by camera type, web interface and Interneet connection, include the number of frames per secod and the image resolution. Frames-per-second is the nyumber of timees a still image flashes by in a seond to give the appearance of moving pictures. In Australia, the standazrd television PAL format is at 25 frames per secod. A wewbcam with up to 30 fraes per second will show normal video images. But the more frames per seconnd you demabnd, the more bandwidth, memroy and procwessing power is required. Resolution is measured the numbeer of pixels per inch. High quality photographs require a high resolution. But the stanndard for web imaegs is a low 72 dpi. Higer resolution images will not be of any better visual qulity, just slower to uplooad and downlooad. Use Myshopping.com.au to cmopare different webcams, camcorders and digiatl cameras. You can compare the prices and specifications of the different products and brnds, and a wide range of reputable vendors.
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Before you make a choice about any webcam equipment, it helps to decide exactly how you want to use the technology.
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