BI Newbee questions

C

CritterCam

n3wb
Nov 14, 2019
13
12
Redmond, OR
I am still new to all this fun and the learning continues, but have hit a couple of issues with Blue Iris (5.3.8.5 x64 - 1/16/2021) that are befuddling me. I’d appreciate any insight that you might provide. Additional background that might be relevant: 5 IPC-T5442T-ZE cameras running V2.800.0000000.22.R.201119; 1 IPC-T3241T-ZAS camera running V2.800.0000000.14.R.200612.
  • Audio: I run BI on a computer that is in a closet and then I use Window’s Remote Desktop to connect to that computer when I want to fiddle around. When I play back video associated with an alert, the audio plays just fine thru the speakers of the computer from which I’m remoting in (either a laptop or desktop). However, when I am just looking at current view of any camera, the audio being captured by that camera plays thru the speakers on the computer in the closet (again, the behavior is the same on my laptop and desktop). I have tried both options for audio output (BI – App Settings/Audio/Output – both Default & Remote Audio), but the audio only plays on the computer in the closet. Thoughts?
  • Highlighting:
    • I have highlighting turned on (Camera Settings/Trigger/Configure/Highlight = “Show object rectangles”) and most things behave as expected: the alert email has the rectangles; current view has rectangles; alert playback has rectangles. When I capture video of an alert, then the rectangles do not appear – which I like. Cool so far. However, if I take a “snapshot” at any point, the rectangle appears there as well. Since capturing video of an alert removes the rectangles, I had hoped that taking a snapshot would do the same. But that’s not the case. Thoughts?
    • For one camera (a IPC-T5442T-ZE) I have highlighting turned off (Camera Settings/Trigger/Configure/Highlight = “Do not highlight motion”), but the only difference I notice is that the alert email does not have rectangles – current view and snapshot still have rectangles. Is it possible to always have highlight rectangles turned off?
  • Zoom: I have never been able to have the BI zoom controls do anything for me. Whenever I want to change the zoom, I connect to the camera directly from a browser and do it there. This works, but it is annoying. My Camera Settings/Video/Configure/ Make = Dahua, and since Model does not contain my cameras, I use “*Main Stream RTSP”. I’m guessing I still don’t have things configured properly, a little help would be appreciated.

As an aside, are these kinds of questions appropriate for this site or do you have a suggestion for somewhere better to ask?

Thanks,
Mark
 
Running BI as a service results in live audio not working on the computer you are viewing on via remotely so what you are experiencing is normal and BI has said that will continue to be the case as I am assuming there is some major issue preventing it. But as you said, in playback it will play on the computer you are watching from remotely.

You can turn on the video to show the motion in playback if you ever want to - right click the mouse and select the show trigger or something like that. Not sure about the rectangles showing up on your snapshots as I do not have the motion rectangles option selected.

The BI zoom controls usually only work for PTZ cameras; however, some people have got the zoom going on varifocals by making changes in the PTZ tab (even though they are not PTZ). However, keep in mind that varifocal cameras you have are not intended to be zooming in and out at any regular frequency - they are meant to be you zoom to your point of interest and leave it alone.
 
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Thanks for taking the time to help, I greatly appreciate it!

From where I'm sitting, the live audio issue sounds strange. But, at least there wasn't pilot error on my part...

For one camera, I believe that I do not have motion rectangles selected either, but I still get them. I wonder what I messed up.

So far, I have only used the zooming capabilities of the cameras to get them set up. So, it really isn't a big deal. As a software developer myself, having features exposed that do nothing, &/or fail silently, drives me crazy. I suspect they have bigger issues to deal with, but that is part of the "fit & finish" aspects of their product. The current behavior is disappointing.
 
If your right click the mouse in that area, you do have the option to turn that off since you do not have a PTZ camera...and then all your images get bigger too!

The developer is one guy, not a they....
 
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I wonder if he surfs to Camera settings\Video\configure\Find Inspect and lets BI "find inspect" his camera by IP address and enters the user ID and Pass for the cams Browser credentials, it would possibly set the camera up a little differently than using the "list" where he found Dahua. My 5442 AS-LED was set up like that.
 

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Grrr. i tried to delete that .jpg cuz its been altered from the 5442 config. I was trying to bring in a Freacking Nightowl DVR into BI to no avail. So the numbers are wrong probably. But thats the page where you'd paste into the mainstream string of values returned by a "find inspect".
 
Here was how I got a Nightowl DVR into BI. After you find the right combination, you simply add camera and then copy and then change the camera number on the page. They are one off what the camera number is on the DVR.

1611455142763.png
 
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wittaj said:
If your right click the mouse in that area, you do have the option to turn that off since you do not have a PTZ camera...and then all your images get bigger too!

The developer is one guy, not a they....
Click to expand...
I've turned off the PTZ controls, and the larger images are quite nice.

A single developer, very cool!
 
Having the PTZ work on varifocal cams, at least in my setup for my use, pisses me off. I have everything setup just the way I want it. And sometimes I forget and get click happy and smurf up the varifocal zoom. Argh! So then I have to go to the web GUI and get it reset to the number I want.
 
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Flintstone61 said:
I wonder if he surfs to Camera settings\Video\configure\Find Inspect and lets BI "find inspect" his camera by IP address and enters the user ID and Pass for the cams Browser credentials, it would possibly set the camera up a little differently than using the "list" where he found Dahua. My 5442 AS-LED was set up like that.
Click to expand...
I did the "find inspect" originally, but since Make = Dahua was available, I decided to use that because I thought getting as specific to my actual camera as possible would be better then using the generic settings. I reran "find inspect" and accepted it's values this time. While the settings changed, I don't see any difference in results.

Thanks for the assistance.
 
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Most of us have found that if you use the results of the Find/Inspect you will get the best results and functionality. You may not notice an image quality difference, but something behind the scenes is probably working better.

And sometimes we do see the difference. For example, I have a few Dahua cams with two-way audio and the two-way audio only only works running with the settings under find/inspect. If I select Dahua, it doesn't work.

I was there once too thinking that selecting the Brand made a difference in Blue Iris.
 
Now that I've reconfigured all my cameras, I notice that zoom will work on all but one - the one I commented on above where reconfiguring made no difference. Progress!

On the one that behaves differently, the output from Find/Inspect is claiming "Bad response" after the "Requesting device information...". I double checked the FW version, and they are the same. I restarted the camera from BI, but no difference. I'm guessing that my next step will be to reset from the camera itself - I won't be able to do that immediately.
 
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samplenhold said:
Having the PTZ work on varifocal cams, at least in my setup for my use, pisses me off. I have everything setup just the way I want it. And sometimes I forget and get click happy and smurf up the varifocal zoom. Argh! So then I have to go to the web GUI and get it reset to the number I want.
Click to expand...

Just go into the config for that camera in BI and under "PTZ" deselect PTZ control. No more accidental screw ups with zoom that way.
 
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CritterCam said:
Now that I've reconfigured all my cameras, I notice that zoom will work on all but one - the one I commented on above where reconfiguring made no difference. Progress!

On the one that behaves differently, the output from Find/Inspect is claiming "Bad response" after the "Requesting device information...". I double checked the FW version, and they are the same. I restarted the camera from BI, but no difference. I'm guessing that my next step will be to reset from the camera itself - I won't be able to do that immediately.
Click to expand...
Restarting a camera from within BI does not restart the camera. It restarts the feed that BI is receiving from the camera.
You need to restart the camera by accessing the WebGuI setup of the camera, and use the reboot under maintenance.
If that cam still gives you fits, reset it back to factory defaults (again from the webgui) then set the camera backup from scratch.
 
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Restarting a camera from within BI does NOT really restart the camera.
 
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CritterCam said:
Now that I've reconfigured all my cameras, I notice that zoom will work on all but one - the one I commented on above where reconfiguring made no difference. Progress!

On the one that behaves differently, the output from Find/Inspect is claiming "Bad response" after the "Requesting device information...". I double checked the FW version, and they are the same. I restarted the camera from BI, but no difference. I'm guessing that my next step will be to reset from the camera itself - I won't be able to do that immediately.
Click to expand...
Sometimes i’ve deleted a camera entirely, and started over.
 
looney2ns said:
Restarting a camera from within BI does not restart the camera. It restarts the feed that BI is receiving from the camera.
You need to restart the camera by accessing the WebGuI setup of the camera, and use the reboot under maintenance.
If that cam still gives you fits, reset it back to factory defaults (again from the webgui) then set the camera backup from scratch.
Click to expand...
I read this after I tried some other stuff. I unplugged the net cable from the POE switch - made no difference. I re-installed the version of FW I put everywhere - made no difference. I went to the device (with ladder, in the snow, cold tools, cold hands, whine, whine, whine...) and pushed the Reset button - that worked!

Your solution would have been a heck of a lot easier (and warmer). Oh well, hopefully I'll remember that next time.

Thanks for your help!
 
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