Webcam Surveyor

Installing video surveillance has its benefits, even for home users who do not necessarily have to appeal to costly solutions for the job.

Webcam Surveyor is designed as a full-blown alternative for recording activity in a specific area by using a webcam connecting to the computer. It adds to the mix easy to control surveillance and video capture features.

It should install without a hitch and the procedure includes the download of all the dependencies needed for the application to work properly. The interface is straightforward and sports frequently used options within easy reach.

As such, starting to record, taking snapshots or a sequence of images, enabling motion detection and adjusting the camera settings are present in the lower part of the main screen. Watching the video and captured pictures can also be done from this location.

One of the more interesting features is motion detection, which allows recording when movement is detected. There is the possibility to enable automatic video noise reduction and to apply a mask (exclude an area high in motion activity) in order to eliminate false alarms.

When movement is detected the program can automatically send images to an email address or upload them to an FTP location. If such scenarios occur, Webcam Surveyor can be instructed to run a program or play a sound.

Part of the configuration settings is adjusting the frame rate that can lead to longer recordings of a lower size. There is control over the compression quality.

Webcam Surveyor is not complicated to work with and reveals an impressive array of settings that can be applied to regular webcams. It includes live broadcasting options and there is plenty of configuration available.

However, some video codecs that could lead to better results are not supported and in some of the features are not explained in the documentation file.