Menneisyys
07-24-2008, 02:38 PM
In my last Bible of Windows Mobile, Symbian and Blackberry webcamera applications directly usable in desktop messengers like Live Messenger (http://www.pocketpcmag.com/cms/blog/9/multiplatform-roundup-tutorial-web-camera-applications), I haven’t elaborated on the apps that are a bit different: they let for using your camera-equipped handset as a camera for your messaging application running on your desktop PC (connected to your handset). OctroVideo is radically different: it allows for your handset to be used as a Web camera in itself, without running any external application. This means you don’t need any desktop computer to publish your video stream – it can directly use any Internet connection it has access to (for example, the built-in packet connection) and stream what the camera sees. (Without sound.)
To access the stream, your clients will need to go HERE (http://video.octro.com/index.php), enter your username in the uppermost text input field (“View Video. Enter the username of the user whose video you would like to view.”) and, if everything is OK with the Java runtime environment on your desktop PC, it’ll immediately play the video stream in a pop-up window like this:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/octrosreamingreceive2.jpg
Here, you can switch between the display size of 320*240 and 640*480, regardless of the input resolution. That is, if the latter is 320*240 and you use the display size of 640*480, the size of all pixels will be doubled.
Note that if you move the cursor onto the left part of the window, some other (for example, zoom) controls will be displayed.
To stream, you’ll first need to create an account on the same page (http://video.octro.com/index.php), by filling in your user information in the four textboxes in the “Create a new account for streaming Video” group and, then, activating the account by clicking the activation URL sent in the subsequent mail.
I’ve tested the app on all the three supported operating systems: Symbian S60v3 (v21 Nokia N95), Windows Mobile Professional (PPC PE) and Standard (MS Smartphone).
Symbian
On Symbian, it worked, more or less, flawlessly. After starting the app and logging in (upon the first start, it asks for the credentials – streaming login and password –; these can also be altered in Options), it may complain about the untrusted certificate:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/untrcert.jpg
Then, just click Action and, then, Continue:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/untrcert2.jpg
In Settings, you can switch between the front and back cameras, set the resolution, (M-)JPEG encoding quality and the frame per second:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/symbiansettings.jpg
Finally, after pressing Stream, it starts streaming. A screenshot:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/symbianbc.jpg
(Note that this screenshot also shows the tasklist and an error message. I couldn’t make a screenshot without them.)
Note that some people have managed to make it stream in 640*480 on their v21 Nokia N95 (http://www.symbian-freak.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20155). I wasn’t able to do this on my v21 N95.
Also note that 3+G upload can result in a HUGE power consumption. I’ve measured about 2.5W with disabled backlight.
Windows Mobile
Unfortunately, the situation seems to be much worse on Windows Mobile. Neither of the two tested devices worked (without major flaws) as of the current, tested (1.0.3) version.
On the HTC Universal (3G PPC phone with two cameras), nothing was streamed (while the app certainly displayed it did stream). On the HTC Vox, the (only) camera did work, but with a major flaw: instead of transferring the entire picture resized to the, on the device, only available 160*120 size, it just uploaded the cropped center area as if it made some heavy (digital) zooming – with the 2Mpixel (1600*1200) Vox, 10 times zoom (1600/160 = 1200/120 = 10). This means the results are utterly useless. That is, on many Windows Mobile models, it’s (still) useless, it seems.
Some Windows Mobile people reported success (http://www.modaco.com/content/pocket-pc-software/269833/octrovideo-does-this-work-for-anyone/), others didn’t.
Note that the Windows Mobile settings dialog of OctroVideo certainly lacks the switching between front and back cameras. (Unfortunately, currently, as far as third-party apps are concerned, only Ateksoft’s titles are able to do so – nothing else.):
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/octrovideo103WMSettings.jpg
To access the stream, your clients will need to go HERE (http://video.octro.com/index.php), enter your username in the uppermost text input field (“View Video. Enter the username of the user whose video you would like to view.”) and, if everything is OK with the Java runtime environment on your desktop PC, it’ll immediately play the video stream in a pop-up window like this:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/octrosreamingreceive2.jpg
Here, you can switch between the display size of 320*240 and 640*480, regardless of the input resolution. That is, if the latter is 320*240 and you use the display size of 640*480, the size of all pixels will be doubled.
Note that if you move the cursor onto the left part of the window, some other (for example, zoom) controls will be displayed.
To stream, you’ll first need to create an account on the same page (http://video.octro.com/index.php), by filling in your user information in the four textboxes in the “Create a new account for streaming Video” group and, then, activating the account by clicking the activation URL sent in the subsequent mail.
I’ve tested the app on all the three supported operating systems: Symbian S60v3 (v21 Nokia N95), Windows Mobile Professional (PPC PE) and Standard (MS Smartphone).
Symbian
On Symbian, it worked, more or less, flawlessly. After starting the app and logging in (upon the first start, it asks for the credentials – streaming login and password –; these can also be altered in Options), it may complain about the untrusted certificate:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/untrcert.jpg
Then, just click Action and, then, Continue:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/untrcert2.jpg
In Settings, you can switch between the front and back cameras, set the resolution, (M-)JPEG encoding quality and the frame per second:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/symbiansettings.jpg
Finally, after pressing Stream, it starts streaming. A screenshot:
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/symbianbc.jpg
(Note that this screenshot also shows the tasklist and an error message. I couldn’t make a screenshot without them.)
Note that some people have managed to make it stream in 640*480 on their v21 Nokia N95 (http://www.symbian-freak.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20155). I wasn’t able to do this on my v21 N95.
Also note that 3+G upload can result in a HUGE power consumption. I’ve measured about 2.5W with disabled backlight.
Windows Mobile
Unfortunately, the situation seems to be much worse on Windows Mobile. Neither of the two tested devices worked (without major flaws) as of the current, tested (1.0.3) version.
On the HTC Universal (3G PPC phone with two cameras), nothing was streamed (while the app certainly displayed it did stream). On the HTC Vox, the (only) camera did work, but with a major flaw: instead of transferring the entire picture resized to the, on the device, only available 160*120 size, it just uploaded the cropped center area as if it made some heavy (digital) zooming – with the 2Mpixel (1600*1200) Vox, 10 times zoom (1600/160 = 1200/120 = 10). This means the results are utterly useless. That is, on many Windows Mobile models, it’s (still) useless, it seems.
Some Windows Mobile people reported success (http://www.modaco.com/content/pocket-pc-software/269833/octrovideo-does-this-work-for-anyone/), others didn’t.
Note that the Windows Mobile settings dialog of OctroVideo certainly lacks the switching between front and back cameras. (Unfortunately, currently, as far as third-party apps are concerned, only Ateksoft’s titles are able to do so – nothing else.):
http://www.winmobiletech.com/072008ModemBible/octrovideo103WMSettings.jpg