Q. How does LitterBox Cam work?
A.
The Camera is a 3COM
Homeconnect USB . It has outstanding low light performance. Litterbox Cam
runs on a Gateway P-5 200mhz Pentium
with 64mb of ram, and Windows 98 SE. Cam software is ImageSalsa
Refresh rate is every 60 seconds.
The
image is uploaded to the server via LAN to
a Linksys
Router and on to a cable modem. The JavascriptCam code is from GeneriCam.
LitterBox Cam is created on a Dell
Dimension 4100 using FrontPage 2000, WS FTP Pro, Adobe Photoshop 5.5 and Illustrator
9.0. Each computer is protected by it's own APC
500VA Back-UPS Pro USB battery back up.
LitterBox Cam is hosted by ADDR
They offer a full range of features at a very reasonable cost.
Last Hour images are locally saved every 5 minutes and uploaded at :05 past the
hour
The cats are quadruped carbon based life forms. They consume a mixture of commercially produced meat and poultry by-products. After a short period of digestive action the undigested by-products exit the cat on the opposite end of which they entered. (Except for the Grey who barfs frequently!)
The Cat Users Manual is Available Here
Q. How do you get the weather information?
A. Weather data is compiled from a Davis Instruments Weather Monitor II weather station located on the roof of our house. The data is collected with Davis Weatherlink 5.4 and uploaded every 10 minutes. Watches and Warnings are received from the National Service and posted with InterWarn
Q. Can you make the refresh rate any faster?
A. Technically I could, But Litterbox Cam gets about 35,000 hits a month so bandwidth is quickly becoming an issue. Sixty second refreshes seem to be pretty standard in the webcam world.
Q. Why is the picture dark?
A. There are a couple of reasons. First, It's probably night. There is a light that is programmed to come on at dusk, but it turns off at 11:40 PM because my wife can't sleep when it's on. The Second possibility is that someone had knocked the camera behind the bookcase it sits on and there are no humans home to rescue it.
Q. LitterBox Cam isn't updating! Why?
A. Usually this is caused by a failure in our cable service, the computer crashing or the cam freezing up. The USB connection seems to be very sensitive to static discharges, so lighting or a well charged cat can cause it to quit. Since we have gone to a dedicated machine for LitterBox Cam the last two happen very infrequently.
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