[IMC-Video] live streaming

Todd Boyle tboyle at rosehill.net
Tue Aug 22 09:58:54 PDT 2006 

Webcams are not a bad idea but you could do better quality video
with old analog camcorders (now around $10-20 at thrift
shops and garage sales) and converters to VHF TV (now $10 at
the local radio shack) and run 100 feet of tv. coax to a computer
with a $15 video capture card.  Also you get audio that way.

I love the wireless stuff but at meeting situations with hundreds
of the public, lots of other wireless gear, wireless mikes, etc.
it introduces risk of momentary video defects.

Goal is to spool up video on hard drives, from multiple cameras,
for the lowest possible costs.   If we can't spool up good digital video
from a 3-chip prosumer camera then we can always drp back
to analog.  We could take the analog "AV" or S-video output
from the high end camcorders (which always have better CCDs
and lenses than the $20 cameras) and down-convert it to Channel 3,
that's one way to get the video across the room, and capture it
with any ol pentium with a $15 capture card,

Todd



At 02:25 AM 8/22/2006, ben at riseup.net wrote:
>hm...
>
>anyone looked at the wireless IP cams?  (like sitecom for example)
>
>They would run off batteries and need no expensive laptop to lug around.
>
>An inexpensive cardboard and tin foil parabolic reflector would provide
>9db of gain from the inboard antenna, especialy if it could be extended
>away from the cam itself with a short extension to the coax.
>
>They cost about 150 bucks I think, which makes them virtually disposible.
>
>They are webcam quality, typically 320x240 at maybe 15 frames per second
>and often have a limited choice of compression standards, ie. mp4
>
>they are unlikely to have useful features like zoom which make make them
>unsuitable for live coverage in the field but certainly have lots of other
>advantages.
>
>Two or three of them could be set up on poles around the perimeter of an
>event and maybe also an access point set up specifically in a set location
>and linked to either an open node or a pay node. Somebody could monitor
>all the streams from the cameras and switch the best feed out onto the
>public streaming server.
>
>Anyway, just some thoughts.
>
>Ben.
>
>Ps. check out a bunch of people using the name 'hive'. They are hardware
>hackers who, amoung other things, have mod'ed wireless storage devices to
>act portable wireless internet radio player attached to small FM
>transmitters, all run from batteries and placed in a back back.... cool
>
>
> > This related, but is partly topic drift from my original question of
> > how to stream video for live broadcast
> >
> > In an attempt to summarize the discussion so far as I understand it.
> >
> > 1. WIFI connection has the best chance of providing the required
> > bandwidth for video. Cell phone too slow.
> > 2. Some kind of software like Icecast installed on the IMC server is
> > required to stream the video.
> > 3. The following equipment is required in the field:
> >       Lap top with WIFI
> >       Web cam or video cam USB or firewire connected to laptop, microphone
> >       Antenna (cantenna) may be required in some locations -
> > http://www.turnpoint.net/wireless/cantennahowto.html
> >
> > 4. Process and set-up:
> >       IMC site would have icon link on homepage that sends user to page
> > where video streams (Javascript?)
> >       reporters in the field would would 
> locate open WIFI network and remote
> > log on to the local IMC server and send video
> >       software on IMC server would receive video and stream video out to
> > users.
> >
> >
> > James
> > LA-IMC
> >
> >
> >
> > On Monday, August 21, 2006, at 12:21  PM, Robbt wrote:
> >
> >> I found this which streams DV from Firewire to
> >> ethernet.
> >>
> >> http://www.sfc.wide.ad.jp/DVTS/
> >>
> >> Speaking of storing DV, what codec do people
> >> recommend for archiving B-roll DV footage that
> >> would be easily decompressed back into DV for
> >> editing without too much quality loss. Any
> >> suggestions. I'm thinking I could probably use
> >> mencoder to put into Xvid but I'm not sure about
> >> how the encoding back into DV would work. Has
> >> anyone done this, and if so what do you
> >> recommend.
> >>
> >> Later,
> >>   Robbt
> >>
> >>> Now we're talking but $800 is outside my budget
> >>> especially for a 40 Gbyte thing.   we've already
> >>> considered
> >>> plunking down a laptop next to the camera.  but
> >>> we
> >>> need to be accumulating the video files in a
> >>> place
> >>> they are accessible for distribution ON SITE to
> >>> the
> >>> participants and audiences in events. and upload
> >>> to the web immediately rather than next
> >>> christmas,
> >>>
> >>> Somebody up there (Apple, Sony etc) wants to
> >>> charge
> >>> ten times the actual cost of a storage device.
> >>> That's all we are
> >>> talking about---- a storage device with a
> >>> proprietary
> >>> interface to keep the volumes low, wall out the
> >>> generic
> >>> devices, and costs and prices high.   NAS
> >>> storage is around
> >>> $300 for a 500 GBytes
> >>> http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&satitle=nas+storage
> >>> and these outperform a firewire drive since
> >>> every chipset
> >>> in every computer since the 1980s is designed
> >>> from the ground up,
> >>> to read and hurl data from memory to/from the
> >>> network
> >>> interface,
> >>>
> >>> sorry for the rant.   proprietary standards are
> >>> destroying
> >>> the planet and filling the landfills with toxic
> >>> waste.
> >>>
> >>> Todd
> >>>
> >>> At 11:23 AM 8/21/2006, Michael Eisenmenger
> >>> wrote:
> >>>> if you just want to build a file for later
> >>>> post,
> >>>> get a firestore drive. These mount on the hot
> >>>> shoe of your camera and record the video
> >>>> straight to disk. Not sure what AVI format you
> >>>> want, but it does several:
> >>>>
> >>>> <http://www.focusinfo.com/solutions/catalog.asp?id=3>http://
> >>>> www.focusinfo.com/solutions/catalog.asp?id=3
> >>>> No matter which DV nonlinear editing (NLE)
> >>>> system you have, the FireStore FS-4 as you
> >>>> covered. Files are recorded to disk as RawDV,
> >>>> AVI Type 1, AVI Type 2, VI Type 2 24p, Matrox
> >>>> AVI, Canopus AVI, Quick-Time or QuickTime 24p.
> >>>> Some models also include Pinnacle AVI, Avid
> >>>> DV-OMF and HD support. Simply connect the FS-4
> >>>> to your Mac or PC editing system like a normal
> >>>> FireWire hard disk drive and you are instantly
> >>>> ready to edit. No capturing, no file transfer,
> >>>> no file conversion. Just shoot and edit.
> >>>> Transfer clips to your NLE system’s media drive
> >>>> at up to four times real-time or edit instantly
> >>>> in real-time using the FS-4 as your media
> >>>> source.
> >>>>
> >>>> They run about $700-800. We use these on some
> >>>> shoots ­ in conjunction with an Sony Anycaster.
> >>>>
> >>>> Michael
> >>>>
> >>>> On 8/21/06 1:04 PM, "Todd Boyle"
> >>>> <tboyle at rosehill.net> wrote:
> >>>>
> >>>> Whle we're on the subject how can I stream
> >>>> video from a
> >>>> camcorder over TCP/IP to a fileserver?   In my
> >>>> dreams, there
> >>>> would be a little device the size of a pack of
> >>>> cigarettes,
> >>>> with a keypad to set the IP address, and you
> >>>> plug in your
> >>>> firewire from the camcorder on one end, and
> >>>> plug in
> >>>> a wired 100BaseT or Gigabit ethernet the other
> >>>> end.
> >>>> (I want to build an AVI file on the hard drive,
> >>>> not stream it. )
> >>>> (and if there's an easier way to connect my
> >>>> camcorder to
> >>>> my computer 150 feet away please tell me!  I
> >>>> can't seem
> >>>> to find a 150 foot firewire cable!)
> >>>>
> >>>> Thanks in advance
> >>>> Todd
> >>>>
> >>>> At 10:27 PM 8/19/2006, you wrote:
> >>>> I don't think there will be enough bandwidth
> >>>> for video streaming using
> >>>> the verizon phone. Can of course do an audio
> >>>> stream with that. There is
> >>>> also the next generation broadband mobile being
> >>>> rolled out now, I don't
> >>>> know what the status of that is in LA (need to
> >>>> do some research). I just
> >>>> passed through Seoul where you can now see
> >>>> people walking around on the
> >>>> street talking to each other with full motion
> >>>> video on their cell
> >>>> screens... Even though that tech is not
> >>>> available (or nowhere near
> >>>> widespread) in the US yet, we should start
> >>>> planning already for the
> >>>> future of live IMC video broadcasts direct from
> >>>> next gen cell phones ...
> >>>>
> >>>> schock
> >>>>
> >>>> Echograph wrote:
> >>>>> Wow. That sounds like a good way to go. I
> >>>> have a verizon cell phone. I
> >>>>> will look into that.
> >>>>>
> >>>>>
> >>>>> On Wednesday, August 16, 2006, at 05:46  PM,
> >>>> lotu5 wrote:
> >>>>>
> >>>>>> On Fri, 2006-08-18 at 10:08 -0700,
> >>>> Echograph wrote:
> >>>>>>> 2. Cell phone network
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> If you already have a verizon wireless
> >>>> phone, most of them provide free
> >>>>>> modem speed internet access anywhere they
> >>>> can get cell phone coverage.
> >>>>>> it's an unadvertised service called mobile
> >>>> office or something like
> >>>>>> that. you just need a phone to usb cable
> >>>> and you configure your phone as
> >>>>>> a modem. its probably too slow for
> >>>> streaming, though.
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> the instructions to do this are here:
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>>
> >>>> <http://hyperpoem.livejournal.com/2005/04/23/>http://
> >>>> hyperpoem.livejournal.com/2005/04/23/
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> --
> >>>>>> blog:
> >>>> <http://deletetheborder.org/lotu5>http://deletetheborder.org/lotu5
> >>>>>> podcast:
> >>>> <http://feeds.feedburner.com/radioAntifascista>http://
> >>>> feeds.feedburner.com/radioAntifascista
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>> gpg:0x5B459C11 // encrypted email preferred
> >>>>>> gaim: djlotu5 // off the record messaging
> >>>> preferred
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>>
> >>>>>
> >>>>>
> >>>>
> >>>> _______________________________________________
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> >>>>
> >>>>
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