Technology – Mike's Viewpoint

How-To: Home Automation Scripts

How-To, Review, Software, Technology No Responses »

Mar 232020

I have a Lorex 4K IP home security camera system.¹ I wrote two blog articles that describe how to use its e-mail notification facility and its File Transfer Protocol (FTP) facility.

In those articles I mention scripts I wrote for my website to process and customize snapshots generated by my Network Video Recorder (NVR). I now make those scripts available for download. You can use them as a starting point for your own purposes. I wrote the scripts using PHP and they are provided in a ZIP file. If you download this file, un-ZIP it within your website development environment.

https://home.iseeancestors.com/access.php?file=cctvscripts.zip

You will be prompted for a user name and password. The user name is Guest and the password is scripts. The ZIP file includes complete documentation in Scripts.pdf.

I do not provide support or customization for these scripts. I might answer questions about them specifically, but not about programming, PHP, or your website in general. Again, these are meant only as a starting point for your own implementation. You must change the code to suit your particular circumstances. Therefore you must already have experience with PHP and website operation in order to utilize these scripts.

Footnotes:

Specifically I have model 4KHDIP86, which is described as “4K Ultra HD IP 8 Channel NVR System with 6 Outdoor 4K 8MP IP Cameras, 130FT Night Vision, 2TB Hard Drive.” The Network Video Recorder (NVR) is model NR908X, or specifically NR9082 with the 8-channel configuration. [back]

How-To: Lorex NVR E-Mail Notifications

How-To, Review, Software, Technology 2 Responses »

Jan 262019

This is my review of the e-mail alert notifications on a Lorex 4K IP Camera System.¹

You can configure the Lorex NVR to send an e-mail alert when a surveillance camera detects motion in its field of view. It can optionally include a snapshot, which hopefully shows what caused the event.

Continue reading »Footnotes:

Specifically I have model 4KHDIP86, which is described as “4K Ultra HD IP 8 Channel NVR System with 6 Outdoor 4K 8MP IP Cameras, 130FT Night Vision, 2TB Hard Drive.” The Network Video Recorder (NVR) is model NR908X, or specifically NR9082 with the 8-channel configuration. [back]

How-To: Lorex NVR File Transfer Protocol

How-To, Review, Software, Technology 7 Responses »

Jan 242019

This is my review of the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) feature on a Lorex 4K IP Camera System.¹

Here is a quick way to review snapshots taken during motion detection events. I used the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) feature of the Lorex NVR. Basically I set the NVR to transfer snapshots to my web server, then I wrote a script that displays them. This is an advanced topic intended for those who manage their own website. Here’s how I did it.²

Continue reading »Footnotes:

Specifically I have model 4KHDIP86, which is described as “4K Ultra HD IP 8 Channel NVR System with 6 Outdoor 4K 8MP IP Cameras, 130FT Night Vision, 2TB Hard Drive.” The Network Video Recorder (NVR) is model NR908X, or specifically NR9082 with the 8-channel configuration. [back]
The configuration screen shots below are from the NVR web interface. Newer Internet browsers no longer support the NPAPI plug-in required to view live video and to playback video. However you can still use this interface to make configuration changes. You could also use the Flir Cloud Client on your PC, but it may not allow you to set all the same options. Of course you can use the NVR interface directly with a monitor or TV. However it is easier to show screenshots from the NVR web interface. [back]

Review: Lorex 4K IP Camera System Installation

Review, Technology 1 Response »

Jan 182019

This is my review for installing a Lorex 4K IP Camera System. Specifically I have model 4KHDIP86, which is described as “4K Ultra HD IP 8 Channel NVR System with 6 Outdoor 4K 8MP IP Cameras, 130FT Night Vision, 2TB Hard Drive.” The cameras with this system are model LNB8111. The Network Video Recorder (NVR) is model NR908X, or specifically NR9082 with the 8-channel configuration. (See Amazon.)

A Method for Sorting Images by Keywords

Software, Technology No Responses »

Feb 142017

I developed Met[A]lbum, short for Metadata Album, which is software to create electronic photo albums. These are Portable Document Format (PDF) files with one image per page along with associated metadata like headline, caption, and date. One feature is the ability to sort images by keyword. However the method of sorting by keyword is not straightforward. I shall describe the algorithm I used.

Online Product Reviews

Scams, Technology No Responses »

Jan 212012

Always being skeptical, I don’t put much emphasis on product reviews. These are the “user” reviews you see on company websites that are trying to sell you something. I’ve seen news reports about paid reviewers. These are people that give glowing product reviews to entice buyers. Of course they are paid by the company or brand to promote the product. They may sound like the guy down the street, but that’s the way they are crafted, just to dupe you.

Beware Online Guarantees

Scams, Technology No Responses »

Jan 262011

A word of caution to fellow webmasters: Online guarantees from your web hosting provider aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on. I’ve been with IX Web Hosting for four years. When I signed up, one of the reasons I chose them was their “price-freeze guarantee.” They promised to never increase the renewal price as long as I maintained my hosting plan.

They reneged!

How To: Reset a NETGEAR PS101

How-To, Software, Technology 4 Responses »

Jan 202010

I have an old NETGEAR PS101 parallel print server that I wanted to move to a different router network. I had configured it with a fixed IP address that will not work on the new network. I wanted to change it to a dynamic IP address. Unfortunately when I tried to reconfigure the device normally via its browser interface, it would revert to the old configuration when I powered the device off and then back on.