Frames

# CamStream

### Introduction

CamStream is (going to be) a collection of tools for webcams and other video-devices, enhancing your Linux system with multimedia video. All written in C++ and with a nice GUI frontend. The interface is based on Qt, an excellent GUI framework.

The aim of this project is build a set of programs for:

- Webcamming, that is saving an image and uploading it to a server at regular intervals;
- Video conferencing;
- Webcam broadcast (including server);
- Recording movie clips (AVI, Quicktime) from a webcam (and playing them back);
- Using a webcam as a security camera.

### News

2002-12-30: CamStream 0.26.2 is available for download. It fixes a problem with devices that only have the RGB24 or RGB32 palette available. I also fixed the camstream/configure script (would fail to built after a second run).

2002-08-25: A fix has been made such that CamStream will compile with GCC 3.*; you can either apply a small patch or download a whole fresh new version at the download directory.

2002-06-03: There are some issues with camstream 0.26 and OV511 based cams; people only get a black screen; appearantly CamStream 0.25 works normally. I'm not sure what the problem is, I've changed quite a few things. I bought a OV511/OV518 based webcam to test, but that cam doesn't work at all!

2002-05-17: CamStream 0.26 is out! Thanks to all the testers of the -pre versions! Get it at the usual place.

2002-04-30: CamStream 0.26 pre 2 is available. It hopefully fixes the compile error in VideoDeviceDlg.cc and should work with the qt-mt library as well. See on the download page.

2002-04-27: A new version is out! CamStream 0.26 pre 1 can be downloaded here. It's a pre-version because the documention (most notably user manual) isn't updated. However, I would like your feedback on this. See the Changelog to see what has been fixed/added.

2002-03-10: So you may wonder what I've been doing the past 6 months... Well, a lot of things, including work on CamStream. But there are just a couple of delays... I've been busy with the Philips webcam drivers, but that work is largely finished now. And I've got a new job, and some other hobbies that take up time. Yes, I do have a life, you know :-)

What I have done so far on CamStream is speeding up the display process quite a bit, and added all the features for the Philips webcams. Currently I'm working on solidifying the FTP stuff, since the Qt classes simply don't do what I want, and the other code was barely working. I really hope to make a new release within the next 14 days.

2002-01-04: I'm going on vacation for 2 weeks, so don't expect an answer from me until the end of January... Wish me Hals und beinbruch :-)

2001-07-13: There's a bug in the Qt library regarding FTP uploads; unfortunately, there is no workaround available.

2001-06-20: Released version 0.25. It fixes a small bug in the palette detection logic of the video devices. Also, an old piece of documentation from the camstream user manual has been deleted.

2001-05-29: Complete revamp of the website, and the application. The app itself has been transformed into a MDI applications, and some of the dialogs have been redesigned with the Qt Designer (which I may recommend to anyone doing regular GUI design).

2000-11-27: I am releasing version 0.23; it contains a few bugfixes and should compile on Debian/woody systems (it just shows how Linux really is Linux... :-( ). In case you missed the announcement of 0.22: that's right. The website was unreachable from most part of this planet for a week (!), and just in that time I managed to released 0.22 :-). Anyway, everything is back to normal now.

2000-11-11: Version 0.22 is out; partly, this is an upgrade for the Philips webcam modules 5.07 and up; in addition it has somewhat better support for TV cards with multiple inputs and tuners.

2000-10-12: I added an errors page that lists known issues and (hopefully) some fixes. This in case I'm too lazy to release a new version with fixes and/or the code is in an unusable stage. So pleace check this page first before sending mail.

2000-09-25: Oops. camstream-0.21 requires Qt 2.1 (haven't tested 2.0.*). I am using some functions that are not available in 1.44 or 1.45. So I guess it's time for you to upgrade :)

2000-09-24: It took a while, but I'm still here. This version features simple FTP upload code, so you can do some "real" webcamming. But I disabled the video conferencing stuff since it was a bit in the way of some the class redesinging that I did.

2000-08-06: A new version, a new webdesign. And a lots of changes in the code. I don't think you'll recognize it back ;) I've spent a lot of time on implementing code that will turn camstream into a webcam/broadcast tool.

### Status

At the moment the first part, webcamming, is functional. For a full list of features, see this page.

There is also a small utility available, caminfo. Caminfo probes your video devices from /dev/video* and displays what it has found.

There is still a lot of work to do, so anyone who is willing to help is welcome! (provided you know how to program in C++, of course). See also the TODO list.

### Supported hardware

Currently all webcams that are supported by the Linux kernel and TV cards are supported fairly well (some better than others: your kilometrage may vary :-) ).

For USB cams you will need a fairly recent kernel, like 2.4.* or >= 2.2.18. www.linux-usb.org for more information on status, supported hardware and instructions.

### A bit of history

CamStream was originally developed in parallel with the Linux USB drivers for Philips and CPiA based webcams (WebBlaster, Zoom and others). Since 0.21 it also support TV cards (in a limited fashion), and it should work with other devices that implement the Video4Linux API and have a read() or mmap() call.

I started working on these programs because I was dissatisfied with the available Open Source tools for webcams for Linux. Basicly I encountered 4 problems:

1. The tools were designed for one piece of hardware only, and thus inflexible;
2. They were hard to use, with obscure command-line settings;
3. It was usually not possible to adjust settings from within these programs;
4. The tools that were decent were commercial, binary-only programs.

I wanted to write something that was easy to use, with a GUI (Graphical User Interface), where you could just go point-and-click.

### Feedback, etc

Your comments, ideas, bugfixes, patches etc. are always welcome! Send them to camstream@smcc.demon.nl.
Note: I speak both English and Dutch.

### Miscellanceous

Linux drivers for Philips USB cams.

Graphics are done with The Gimp.

Uploading of this homepage is done with Weex.

Other software by me

- Nemosoft Unv.