A Conversation with James Whitcomb -- Security Today

A Conversation with James Whitcomb

Aug 10, 2011

With IP capabilities increasing seemingly by the day, end users need a system that can manage all the information they’re getting. Video Insight’s CTO James Whitcomb is an expert on the subject, so we sat down with him to discuss VMSs.

Q. What advantages does a centralized VMS, such as the Monitor Station in Video Insight's IP Video Surveillance Version 4.3, provide a user?

Network speed and reliability have improved dramatically over the past few years as more critical systems move to the network. Telephones now use VoIP, and entire organizations rely on software applications like e-mail to function. Analog video surveillance had been installed in decentralized buildings due to the cabling limitations, but with H.264-based IP cameras connecting to existing network infrastructure, a centralized VMS can dramatically reduce the number of servers required. This also decreases the maintenance costs, because technicians do not have to travel to distributed server locations.

Q. In today's multi-camera IP environment, configuring cameras can often be a time-consuming task. How does the Monitor Station simplify that process?

When using multiple Video Insight servers, the Monitor Station will store all settings in a Microsoft SQL Server database. This allows a user with the Monitor Station and administrator privileges to configure cameras centrally on any server. In addition to auto-detecting new cameras, the Monitor Station allows users to set all critical camera features includes fps, resolution, image quality and motion settings for more than 1,100 different camera models.

Q. Mobile surveillance and the ability to bring up live and recorded camera video from any computer or mobile device is becoming a talked-about feature. What mobile surveillance options can Video Insight provide a user?

Users with iPhones, Blackberries, Androids, iPads, iPods and Windows Mobile Professional-based PDAs can access live and recorded video and see motion alarms. This access can occur via WiFi or cellular connections and uses the same Microsoft IIS infrastructure as the Web Client. Users access the same URL as the normal browser except the server automatically detects the device and removes the left navigation tree in favor of device-specific navigation. Users have the ability to view live and recorded video from any camera on the Video Insight system. User authentication uses the same method as the other clients, including active directory.

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