******************************** dc210web - DC200/210 Web Adaptor ******************************** Version 1.0 11/15/1999 Author: John Fitzgibbon fitz@jfitz.com dc210web is a FREEWARE utility to allow a Kodak DC200 or DC210 camera to be used to create time-lapsed images on the Web. The package includes a web server and all the required graphic processing tools. It does not modify the registry or system settings in any way. INSTALLING AND STARTING THE WEBCAM ================================== BACKUP ANY PICTURES YOU HAVE STORED IN THE CAMERA! THIS PROGRAM DELETES ALL PICTURES IN THE CAMERA AFTER EACH PICTURE IS TAKEN! If you DO NOT already have a web server running: ------------------------------------------------ 1. Unzip the files in a folder of your choice. 2. Connect to the Internet. 3. Execute "Tinyweb.bat" (Do not run Tiny.exe.) (Close the DOS window when the webserver has started.) 4. Connect the DC210 using the serial cable and switch it on. 5. Ensure the Picture Format is "JPEG", Quality is "Best" and Resolution is "High". 6. Set the camera's mode switch to "Connect". 7. Execute "dc210web" 8. Select the appropriate COM port and speed. (Only necessary if the camera doesn't respond to the defaults.) 9. Click "Start" and you're away! The URL for accessing the WebCam images is: http://XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX/ replacing XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX with your IP address. If you don't know your IP address, try using "Eclipse". You can download it from: http://members.xoom.com/LunaSoft/ If you already have a web server running: ----------------------------------------- 1. Unzip the files somewhere in the web server's file system. 2. Connect the DC210 using the serial cable and switch it on. 3. Ensure the Picture Format is "JPEG", Quality is "Best" and Resolution is "High". 4. Set the camera's mode switch to "Connect". 5. Execute "dc210web" 6. Select the appropriate COM port and speed. (Only necessary if the camera doesn't respond to the defaults.) 7. Click "Start" and you're away! The webcam's index.html file is created in the same folder as the unzipped executables. UNINSTALLING THE WEBCAM ======================= To uninstall this software, simply delete the entire contents of the folder where you unzipped the files. If the Tinyweb web server is running, you must use the Task Manager to stop it, (or restart the computer), before deleting the files. WEBCAM CONTROLS AND OPTIONS =========================== Speed - Bit (baud) rate for the serial port that the camera is connected to. Try "Auto" if you're unsure. Port - COM port 1, 2, 3 or 4. Try "Auto" if you're unsure. Camera - DC200 or DC210. (I have not tested with a DC200) Refresh Interval - Value between 30 and 90 seconds that specifies how often the image is updated. Archive Images - If this option is checked, images are saved in an "archive" folder. The URL for viewing the archived images is http://XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX/archive Message - Text message that appears below the image on the Web Site. Start - Starts taking pictures. (Make sure the camera is on!) Stop - Stops taking pictures. (Last picture stays with "WebCam is OFF" message.) Note: If Archiving is on, the list of archived images is not updated until the "Stop" button is clicked. Exit - Exits the program. Status - Displays current status information. Try to look your best when the status reads 'Say "Cheese"!' Note: "Finished Processing" means the current image is ready - it does not mean the WebCam has stopped. "WebCam stopped" appears when you click the "Stop" button. CLEANING UP ARCHIVE AND LOG FILES ================================= Tinyweb stores web server logs in the unzipped folder. The files are: access_log, agent_log, error_log and referer_log You should review and zip/delete these files from time to time. If you leave the "Archive Images" option on all the time, you may want to keep an eye on the archive folder - it can get quite large. CUSTOMIZING THE WEBCAM'S HTML PAGE ================================== If you have some HTML experience, its quite easy to change the appearance of the WebCam's main web page. The INDEX.HTML file is patched together from the following: - TOP.TXT (or TOPOFF.TXT when the WebCam is being turned off) - The Image File Name - MIDDLE.TXT - MESSAGE.TXT (generated from the text in the "Message" box.) - BOTTOM.TXT Feel free to edit TOP.TXT, TOPOFF.TXT, MIDDLE.TXT and BOTTOM.TXT, but bear in mind that the image file name and the message must "fit in" to the HTML at the appropriate points. CUSTOMIZING THE IMAGE PROCESSING ================================ This program dumps the raw JPEG image from the camera to a file called "image.jpg". It then uses a command line program called "nconvert" to process this image. If you wish, you can modify "makejpeg.bat" to change the processing that nconvert performs. The default processing is: nconvert -quiet -in 0 -out 0 -o image%1.jpg -q 65 -gamma 1.6 -resize 576 432 input.jpg -quiet means don't display any messages on the the screen -in 0 tells nconvert that the input image is a JPEG format image -out 0 tells nconvert to output a JPEG format image -q 65 is the jpeg quality. This value can range from 0 to 100 (Higher values for higher quality images, but also larger file sizes.) -gamma 1.6 sets the gamma correction factor to 1.3. (You can increase this value up to 5 for brighter images.) -resize 576 432 sets the width/height t0 576/432. (This is half the original size.) "nconvert -help" prints a full list of the conversion options that can be used with nconvert. I have saved this list in the file "nconvert.txt". As well as modifying the existing parameters, you can get some interesting results by adding other processing options. BUGS/LIMITATIONS ================ - Operation with a DC200 has not been tested. - Only tested with high res pictures. - You cannot copy Tinyweb.bat as a shortcut to the DeskTop. Workaround: To start Tinyweb from the desktop: - Create a shortcut to Tiny.exe on the desktop. - Right click the shortcut and click "Properties". - In the shortcut "target" box add a space followed by the path to the executable directory. For example: C:\webcam\TINY.EXE C:\webcam (Note: In this example, the working directory should also be C:\webcam) - Click OK CREDITS ======= This program is really just a bunch of software duct-taped together: DC210V201_32.dll comes from Kodak-Eastman. Its the "official" DC200/DC210 SDK. You can get more information by registering as a developer at the Kodak site: http://www.kodak.com nconvert.exe is written by Pierre E Gougelet (pierre.g@mail.dotcom.fr or pierre.g@wanadoo.fr) The home page for nconvert, (and the excellent xnview), is at: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/pierre.g tiny.exe is written by Max Masyutin (max@ritlabs.com). The home page for TinyWeb is at: http://www.ritlabs.com/tinyweb/ dc210web.exe and imglist.exe are my own creations. The source code is available somewhere on my web site: http://www.jfitz.com