Re: [tlug] Questions about specifications for some cutting edge videorecording via laptop

[Dave Gutteridge <dave@example.com>]

Thank you for responding. Your questions and explanations are very helpful.

>The most important thing would be how long are the feeds going to run?
>  
>
Each of the three feeds would probably need to be a maximum of 5 
minutes, and most usually about one and a half minutes. If I could pull 
this system off with each camera recording up to 3 minutes, that would 
be acceptable.
Wouldn't the three feeds be writing directly to the HD? Might that not 
require 3 hard drives? I mean, once the three feeds are complete, they 
could be copied from whatever drives were taking the initial recording 
to some huge hard drive for final storage. But initially, with all that 
IO going on, would there need to be a HD with it's own channel to act as 
a "scratch disk" for each feed?

>Do you really mean NTSC?  Isn't that an analog standard?  Or do you
>mean a digital feed that is compatible with NTSC resolution and rates
>of display?
>  
>
Oh... yes, you're right, that's what I mean. Sorry, I wasn't being 
clear. NTSC is probably not the important factor at this point.
I mean that the recording has to be broadcast quality, suitable for 
final distribution by DVD. 720X480 resolution, at a frame rate of 29 
point something... I forget the exact number at the moment. Call it 30 
frames per second for now.

>I've seen PCMCIA cards with two firewire ports, so if you've got a
>built-in port and a PCMCIA slot you'd have the physical connections.
>  
>
Okay, so that part of it seems feasible without too much hassle.

>This depends on the camera manufacturer, of course.  While you're
>waiting for Linux-specific answers, why don't you find out if there
>are Linux drivers (preferably open-source) for the cameras of
>interest?  Second, find out whether the control protocol is open, and
>if not, what it would cost to get your hands on it.
>  
>
Ah... this is very helpful. What do you mean when you say "control 
protocol"? Is this in reference to a hardware driver, or software code...?
I kind of already have it in my head that the ideal camera to work with 
would be the Sony DSR PD150. In the matrix of costs and benefits, it's 
the most suitable for independent film production. Now, of course that 
could be completely squelched if, as is often the case with Sony, the 
drivers were completely unavailable. But that's why I'd like to know 
more accurately what it is you say I should be looking for. Aren't 
drivers that control cameras and whatnot usually bound up with whatever 
software they distribute?
I'm sorry if my questions are a little chaotic and/or I'm missing the 
obvious. This concept is so fresh for me that I'm not even really sure 
where to begin asking. Please bear with me.

Dave