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  1. wtimothyholman

    An LPR success story

    That will be a different battle. For now, the "neighbor saves the day" story is what the news people want.
  2. wtimothyholman

    An LPR success story

    Believe me, I would be absolutely ecstatic if I could at least convince some of my neighbors to install Wyze Cams, as opposed to the Rings (or no cameras at all) that most have.
  3. wtimothyholman

    An LPR success story

    Rekor Scout (i.e. OpenALPR). I had completely forgotten about the alert until my phone went off on Monday night.
  4. wtimothyholman

    An LPR success story

    Sometimes having an LPR system definitely pays off. Here's my latest story: On June 14, I recorded a couple of catalytic converter thieves hitting my neighbor's Prius parked right across the street from me in the early hours of the morning. I uploaded my video to YouTube, posted it on...
  5. wtimothyholman

    Newbie seeking advice for small retail store security camera system.

    Agreed, multiple 2.8mm fixed lens cameras will generate a lot of wasted pixels with little benefit. Two or three good varifocal cameras will let you zoom in on the faces of the people going in and out the door, standing at the register, going in and out of the restroom, etc. If it is practical...
  6. wtimothyholman

    Inherited IP Cameras from Home Purchase, Can't Set Up

    The general wisdom is that you don't want to use an internal SSD for a computer connected to multiple cameras that are configured for continuous recording. The constant reads and writes will reduce the lifetime of the SSD, which is definitely not good if it is soldered to the motherboard of the...
  7. wtimothyholman

    Inherited IP Cameras from Home Purchase, Can't Set Up

    I've been using SecuritySpy for years, so feel free to ask questions about it. You should consider purchasing an external enclosure and buy a hard drive that is optimized for security camera applications (e.g. Western Digital Purple). You don't want to record video to a solid-state drive over...
  8. wtimothyholman

    Inherited IP Cameras from Home Purchase, Can't Set Up

    @DanDenver's advice is spot on. The ability to customize and control your camera alerts via AI is something that you'll wonder how you ever lived without. For example: (1) I get an alert if a human figure walks near my car between midnight and 5 a.m. The detection of a human figure also...
  9. wtimothyholman

    Inherited IP Cameras from Home Purchase, Can't Set Up

    Another suggestion: if you can easily unmount the non-working cameras, you'll find it much easier to troubleshoot them inside your home. Once you get them working, then remount them outside.
  10. wtimothyholman

    Inherited IP Cameras from Home Purchase, Can't Set Up

    You're really not in bad shape right now. The previous owner installed some good cameras, and did it right with Ethernet. Given that you have a mix of different camera brands running into a single location, my guess is that he had them running into a PC or Mac running Blue Iris or SecuritySpy...
  11. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    Slipping into a coma at the outset was probably a blessing for her. Medical professionals with experience in burn wards have been saying that she was almost certainly in far worse condition that initial news reports indicated, with very little chance of survival. Even if she did live, she...
  12. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    Given her history of mental illness and her previous driving record, I wonder if she somehow thought she could "thread the needle" and dodge through the traffic crossing the intersection. She might have even sped up to attempt it.
  13. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    We all zone out from time to time on the road, but to then accelerate to 90 to 100 mph on a busy city street? Maybe, but I'm still skeptical. We shall see.
  14. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    So basically you're thinking that she effectively "zoned out" due to exhaustion or lack of sleep. Not truly "eyes closed" asleep at the wheel, but not really there either. You may be right.
  15. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    If the Mercedes had an auto-cruise or auto-steer feature, that might keep the car moving in a straight line if she fell asleep, but not at 90 to 100 mph. One possible defense on her part: unintended acceleration by the Mercedes. It has happened (or been claimed to happen) with vehicles using...
  16. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    It was one hell of a safety demonstration, but I don't think that Mercedes will be hiring the nurse as a spokesperson anytime soon. :-)
  17. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    I originally dismissed @looney2ns' speculations, but now I'm not so sure. She's wearing scrubs, and now they're saying she was not driving under the influence. This is truly baffling. Most people who fall asleep at the wheel will quickly veer off the road, and it generally happens on an...
  18. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    She was driving a Mercedes. Whatever else you can say about them, they are built to withstand a frontal impact. The vehicles she hit were struck in the side, which was far worse. So she was certainly lucky, but good engineering had something to do with it, too. But on the whole, I imagine...
  19. wtimothyholman

    Las Vegas smoke shop owner stabs man multiple times during attempted robbery

    Yes, I've seen that. If the store owner actually did get on Reddit and do that AMA, then he has seriously undermined his self-defense argument. In fact, he was an idiot if he got on Reddit afterwards. Even if he avoids criminal prosecution, he's opened himself up to a world of hurt in civil...
  20. wtimothyholman

    Las Vegas smoke shop owner stabs man multiple times during attempted robbery

    Initial reports were that the owner would not be charged, but of course that could change. Many District Attorneys will bend to public outrage or political pressure and reverse themselves. However, I think that Mr. Nguyen has several things in his favor right now: (1) He is Asian, and the...
  21. wtimothyholman

    Poor IR contrast in new Tennessee license plates

    I think it would help quite a bit. If @33696933 is getting that type of image at 45 feet with a -Z4 camera, I certainly think I could do just as well at 80 feet with a -Z12 version.
  22. wtimothyholman

    Poor IR contrast in new Tennessee license plates

    Tennessee vehicles only have rear plates. But the point about the LED plate lights is well taken. That's enough white light to account for the improved contrast.
  23. wtimothyholman

    Poor IR contrast in new Tennessee license plates

    Your results make me wish that Dahua would market a -Z12 version of the 5442 series camera. The larger sensor and improved resolution makes a big difference in readability, even with the poor contrast of the new plates.
  24. wtimothyholman

    Las Vegas smoke shop owner stabs man multiple times during attempted robbery

    It is absolutely real and being reported by multiple media sources. The owner dragged the perp out from behind the counter, dropped him, then went to call 911 to save the perp's life. The latest word is that the owner will not be charged. He has made it pretty clear that he feared for his...
  25. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    I tend to doubt it. Women, unlike men, generally do not choose to take innocent bystanders with them like that.
  26. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    Along similar lines of drunk driving, Anne Heche probably just ended her own acting career. https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/anne-heche-crashes-car-home-igniting-fire-taken-away-ambulance-severe-burns
  27. wtimothyholman

    Poor IR contrast in new Tennessee license plates

    That's actually a pretty darned good image. Do you have some special lighting nearby? Perhaps a very bright streetlight, or exterior white lights?
  28. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    A 40 year old woman? Old enough to know better, probably too young to be having a medical crisis. My vote is drugs or alcohol. I would also bet multiple priors for DUI, but kept out of jail or other serious consequences by a good lawyer.
  29. wtimothyholman

    Really Bad Car Accident Caught On Camera

    The vehicle was a Mercedes, the driver a 40-year-old woman who suffered "major injuries". I am guessing that drugs and/or alcohol were involved.
  30. wtimothyholman

    Poor IR contrast in new Tennessee license plates

    I have not. I've spoken to a police officer, and according to him the situation is only getting worse as more of the new plates are issued. Both Rekor and Flock Safety have been tweaking their LPR software to improve IR readability, but there's only so much that can be done when the contrast...
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