WebCam - Release Notes
Download
The download comes in 2 pieces, the base install which includes a non-functional version of the program's exe and all the dlls and controls, and the latest version of the executable.
Once you have done the base install once, you only need to download the new executable for upgrades.
Download base install
Download current exe (see most recent version below)
Software License available here.
Installation
Unzip the WebCam-base.zip file in a temporary directory and run the Setup.exe program.
Unless you change the default settings, the program will install in C:\Program Files\WebCam and create an entry in the Start menu under KO4BB Software.
If you select another directory, make a note of it.
Then download the WebCam.exe file directly into the program's installation directory.
It will overwrite the WebCam.exe file created by the main install.
Initial setup
- Make sure your web cam is connected and that the drivers are installed.
- If you have more than one video source (such as several web cams, or a web cam and a TV tuner card), select the source by clicking on Image->Source.
Please note that the window which opens when you click Source vary, depending on the currently selected device. The window will offer choices for the options available with your device. This is defined by the device driver for your web cam and not by my software. Do not ask me why you do not see such and such setting, rather talk to your web cam manufacturer and Microsoft (good luck :-).
- Set the FTP parameters to upload your web cam snapshots to your home page by clicking on FTP->Settings
- The first field, Name, is just a reference for you, it is not used by the program for now.
- The Hostname field is required, the Port number is prefilled with port 21, which is the default port for most FTP servers.
- You need to select the access method for your server, anonymous or username/password. If you select anonymous, the program will automatically send "anonymous" as login and the e-mail address as password. You do not have to enter a valid e-mail address, but it is courteous to do so. At least, it must be formatted properly (it must "look" right.)
- By default, the local file is c:\webcam.bmp. You can rename it anything you want, including moving it to another folder. The extension will be changed to whatever is the proper extension for the file type you choose.
Please note that this is where the image file will be stored when you click on File->Snapshot or FTP->Send Now.
- If you select image compression (JPEG, PNG or GIF), both the original BMP and the compressed files will be saved to the hard drive, but only the compressed image will be uploaded.
- If you select JPEG, you have an additional choice of image quality. 10 is low quality, high compression (can compress files as much as 50 times), while 100 is high quality, low compression (about 10 times smaller files than BMP).
JPEG is what is called a "lossy" image compression algorithm, while PNG and GIF are (in most cases) lossless.
With a 50% quality setting, a JPEG file will be typically 10 to 20% of the size of the same picture compressed under GIF or PNG.
- The remote file must be a valid file name and directory, if applicable, for your ftp server. With my ISP, I use /httpdocs/webcam.jpg.
Please note that the local file uses reverse slashes "\" as separators, while the remote file uses forward slashes "/"
- Select Passive (firewall friendly) operation if you are having difficulties accessing your ftp server without it. Passive mode has slightly increased security concerns, so only use it if you have to. I personally need it to access my ISP through my firewall, and I have not had a problem with it. YMMV.
- Select the time interval for uploads to your FTP server. If you enter a value of 0, FTP uploads are turned off.
I recommend against setting a short delay because the snapshot files can be pretty big if you use high resolution, and you may exceed your ISP's monthly upload allocation without even noticing.
Please note that the delay you enter does not include the time it actually takes to upoload the file. So, if you select a short delay such as one minute, and it takes 30 seconds to upload the file, the total time period between two uploads will be 1 minute and 30 seconds.
- When done, click "Good". If you click "Fuget about it", or the x at the top right of the window, any setting you changed will be lost.
- Set the Email parameters if you want to send a snapshot via email on a regular basis by clicking on Email->Settings
- The file name is as defined in the FTP Settings window.
- The parameters in the top sub-frame are required, the other parameters are not necessary. The parameters that are greyed out at not setable and not used at this time.
- If you select Authentication, the login and password entry boxes are enabled.
- Make sure you use valid email addresses in the upper sub-frame. The email will not go out without it.
Operation
Plug the webcam: If you have a web cam installed, the program will immediately display the image. That will be the first check that it is working. If you get this, the hardest is already done :-)
Save Snapshots: When you click on File->Snapshot, the current picture frame is saved to the "local file name" as defined in FTP->Settings. A snapshot is also taken and saved when you click on FTP->Send Now.
Other notes
- There are still a number of "issues" (bugs) with this program. You are free to discover them as you go :-)
Particularly, the video capture is not quite "streamlined" yet. It sometimes works, but tends to crash the program.
- This program has been tested under Windows XP Home. It should work under XP Pro and 2000 without any difficulty. Other versions of Windows may work or not.
- This program actually has relatively few lines of code. All the magic is done by Windows and the included dll's, COM and OCX objects, and accessed through the API.
The program puts a fancy window and menu around the API, and that's pretty much all. The program is written in Visual Basic 6.0 Professional.
- The next planned upgrade will be to make video capture work reliably.
- As always, there are no guarantees. If you have questions, I will do my best to address them.
Version info
Version 0.1.8 (December 17, 2004)
- Added Motion Detection so you can get an email and/or an audio signal when something moves in front of the camera.
Version 0.1.7 (December 10, 2004)
- Added Default Size to Image Menu to resize image window to default camera capture resolution.
Version 0.1.3 (March 18, 2004)
- Added Image Compression Options: JPEG, PNG and GIF, with quality selection for JPEG.
- Fixed a bug in EMail.
- IMPORTANT: this version requires to download the base package again, which includes additional files.
Hopefully, this will be the last time, as all the basic dll's, COM and OCX objects needed are now installed.
Version 0.1.2 (March 15, 2004)
- Added Email capability,
- Some bug fixes,
- Some UI improvements
- Please note that both FTP and Email include provisions for defining activity time periods. This functionality is not implemented as of this version. FTP and Emails, if defined, will be send at the prescribed time period 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.
- IMPORTANT: this version requires to download the base package again, which includes additional files.
Version 0.1.0 (March 13, 2004)