Your cheapest way out these days is to pick up an old laptop for next to nothing. It is now not uncommon for people to have 1 or 2 old laptops sitting around not being used anymore.

Get yourself a USB camera and go for it.

There are many programs that will capture video. You want to set the capture rate to 1 frame per second or maybe 5. Normal video is around 30 frames per second but that would fill up a hard drive.

Setup the laptop to keep running when the lid is closed so you don't have to keep it open and the screen will also be off. You can buy long USB cables or connectors to put shorter ones together so you can keep the laptop in the back out of the way.

This setup would cost you next to nothing depending on the cost of the laptop. I have 2 laptops I don't use anymore but I plan to keep them around for other stuff.

The quality of the video is dependent on the quality of the camera. The more you spend the better the quality. I have a Sony EVI-D30 which cost close to $1,800 and the video quality is excellent. I also have a USB for $29.95 and it sucks. You can also use a digital camera that has a video capability. Keep in mind the field of view. Most USB cameras are used only for personal video so they don't take in a wide view which you want. You may want to keep that in mind when looking for a camera. Spend the money on the camera, not the laptop.

 

Geez, I missed all the fun in the Pick a Fight thread. Someone needs to tell me when I'm getting my ass kicked by Bandit. I never had a fighting chance and the thread was locked down.

 

Hey NotSteve.......Sounds like you know how to make movies......LOL :lol:

 

lol....No, I don't know how to make movies but sometimes the cheapest, best and simplest solutions are sometimes overlooked.

Using a laptop with only a 20 gig drive would allow you to record about 1863 hours of non stop video at 4 frames per second which is way more than enough to capture an F16 flying by at Mach 5 (actually I really don't know). Oh wait, I just calculated it. The jet would fly about 1095 feet in 1 second so I'll say a Cessna instead of an F16

You can setup the laptop to automatically start your video recording program every time you turned the laptop on or just plain leave it recording non stop and have the video wrap around at the end.

This is really simple stuff that anyone can do and does not require any special talents.

 

That question deserves its own thread.
I'll start one, since you already didn't.

 

A little overkill there #2. You must be an ex engineer...lol

You can buy a Dell refurbished laptop on Ebay for $125.
1.4 GHZ 20 gig hard drive

USB camera from Walmart for $29.95

USB cable $2.95

$125 + $29.95 + $2.95 = $157.90

Over 70 days of recording non stop 24 hours a day.

 

Here ya go Rank. A demonstration of a cheap solution


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEK2uHIlBvY

 

Yep you missed it, and you got your azz kicked.
Some of the best post on this forum are when TF goes off though. :P

 

LMAO I can't believe you made a video out of my question!
Excellent then. I already have the laptop part covered since I use it as my GPS.

Now I just have to find a camera.

 

It could be a little over kill, but then again, the web cams have a more limited capability. I also question the durability and capabilities of the software that comes with it.

I haven't spent much time with the software, but after poking around a little, I haven't been able to do much with it. It might work fine, after some practice, but I don't know, right now. Just collecting bits and pieces, until I'm ready to go ahead.