Camcorder as video source for 24x7 monitoring?

["Jeff Sutter" <lurkeroo@xxxxxxxxx>]

Greetings.

I need to videotape activity (vandalism) some 200 feet away, 24x7, for
about two months, from two camera positions.  Standard mini-DV
camcorders with 20x zoom lenses would provide the best image, but I
wonder if I'm asking for trouble - has anyone tested the duty-cycle on
such camcorders?

Would there be a more practical way to obtain a 10-20x zoom setting on
a security camera?