Re: store system w 4-8 cameras ?

[james.homeadditions@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Hi.

I am in the process of closing my shop as we speak.

In my experience:
1 x 8 port 200fps card is the best. This way you have the flexibility
to make it a 16 card system without jamming up all the PCI slots.

VERY IMPORTANT - you must egt a system that timestamps everything -
otherwise it is inadmissable in court.

I used dome cameras because they look neat and do not give away what
they are looking at, so a thief cannot tell if he is in a blind spot as
easily.

4fps+ would probably do, but the higher the better!

I used 15fps per camera, on a 200GB hard drive this gave nearly a
month's footage.

Use constant recording during open hours and motion detect outside
those hours - shoplifters tend to try to stay still in order to trip
your system up, because when it goes to court they will ask why there
is a gap in the footage to raise doubt.

Try to get 2 angles on most things if possible, as it makes it harder
for thieves to block your view - try one at each end of the aisle,
depending on how long it is. - Draw a floor plan and use little
triangles (to represent what the camera can see) to get the best
coverage.

Wireless is not really a good idea as it will be more expensive( both
to buy an run), complex and lower quality. In a shop, most areas you
want covered should be relatively easy to cable to.

You will need quite a powerful machine, and will need to be careful
about what hardware you use. I bought my card separate to the computer
and had compatibility issues, it took 3 machines before it worked
properly (between intel and AMD chips, Intel and VIA chipsets etc.)

Anyway, if you have any other questions, feel free to mail me at james
{at} home-additions {dot} co {dot} uk

Also, if your friend is interested in a cheap, fully built system
complete with PC, 8 port, 200fps card, 7 x dome cameras, 1 x box camera
cabling etc. email me.