Product Code Database
A webcam is a video camera which is designed to record or stream to a computer or computer network. They are primarily used in Videotelephony, live streaming and social media, and security. Webcams can be built-in computer hardware, like a laptop. or Peripheral, and are commonly connected to a device using USB or wireless protocol.
Webcams have been used on the Internet as early as 1993, and the first widespread commercial one became available in 1994. Early webcam usage on the Internet was primarily limited to stationary shots streamed to web sites. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, instant messaging clients added support for webcams, increasing their popularity in video conferencing. Computer manufacturers later started integrating webcams into laptop hardware. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a shortage of webcams due to the increased number of people Remote work and children from school.
The SGI Indy, released in 1993, is the first commercial computer to have a standard video camera, and the first SGI computer to have standard video inputs.
The maximum supported input resolution is 640×480 for NTSC or 768×576 for PAL. A fast machine is required to capture at either of these resolutions, though; an Indy with slower R4600PC CPU, for example, may require the input resolution to be reduced before storage or processing. However, the Vino hardware is capable of DMAing video fields directly into the frame buffer with minimal CPU overhead.
The first widespread commercial webcam, the black-and-white QuickCam, entered the marketplace in 1994, created by the U.S. computer company Connectix. QuickCam was available in August 1994 for the Apple Macintosh, connecting via a serial port, at a cost of $100. Jon Garber, the designer of the device, had wanted to call it the "Mac-camera", but was overruled by Connectix's marketing department; a version with a PC-compatible parallel port and software for Microsoft Windows was launched in October 1995. The original Quick Cam provided 320x240-pixel resolution with a grayscale depth of 16 shades at 60 frames per second, or 256 shades at 15 frames per second.Edwards, Benj. History of Video Calls: From Fantasy to Flops to Facetime , PC World Magazine, June 17, 2010. These cam were tested on several Delta II launch using a variety of communication protocols including CDMA, TDMA, GSM and HF.
Videotelephony via computers already existed, and at the time client-server based videoconferencing software such as CU-SeeMe had started to become popular.
The first widely known laptop with integrated webcam option, at a pricepoint starting at US$ 12,000, was an IBM RS/6000 860 laptop and its related ThinkPad 850, released in 1996.
In the late 1990s, Microsoft NetMeeting was the only videoconferencing software on PC in widespread use, making use of webcams. In the following years, instant messaging clients started adding webcam support: Yahoo Messenger introduced this with version 5.5 in 2002, allowing video calling in 20 frames per second using a webcam. MSN Messenger gained this in version 5.0 in 2003.
For less than US$100 in 2012, a three-dimensional space webcam became available, producing videos and photos in 3D anaglyph image with a resolution up to 1280 × 480 pixels. Viewers must use 3D glasses to see the effect of three dimensional image.
As webcams evolved simultaneously with display technologies, USB interface speeds and broadband internet speeds, the resolution went up from gradually from 320×240, to 640×480, and some now even offer 1280×720 (aka 720p) or 1920×1080 (aka 1080p) resolution. Despite the low cost, the Image resolution offered as of 2019 is impressive, with now the low-end webcams offering resolutions of 720p, mid-range webcams offering 1080p resolution, and high-end webcams offering 4K resolution at 60 fps.
Most models use simple, focal-free optics (fixed focus, factory-set for the usual distance from the monitor to which it is fastened to the user) or manual focus.
Webcams can come with different presets and fields of view. Individual users can make use of less than 90° horizontal FOV for home offices and live streaming. Webcams with as much as 360° horizontal FOV can be used for small- to medium-sized rooms (sometimes even large rooms). Depending on the users' purposes, webcams in the market can display the whole room or just the general vicinity.
Support electronics read the image from the sensor and transmit it to the host computer. Most webcams come with a controller that translates video over USB from Sonix, Suyin, Ricoh, Realtek or others. Typically, each frame is transmitted uncompressed in RGB or YUV or compressed as JPEG. Some cameras, such as camera phone, use a CMOS sensor with supporting electronics "on die", i.e. the sensor and the support electronics are built on a single silicon chip to save space and manufacturing costs. Most webcams feature built-in to make videotelephone and videoconferencing more convenient.
Various proprietary as well as free and open-source software is available to handle the UVC stream. One could use Guvcview or GStreamer and GStreamer-based software to handle the UVC stream. Another could use multiple USB cameras attached to the host computer the software resides on, and broadcast multiple streams at once over (Wireless) Ethernet, such as MotionEye. MotionEye can either be installed onto a Raspberry Pi as MotionEyeOs, or afterwards on Raspbian as well. MotionEye can also be set up on Debian, Raspbian is a variant of Debian. MotionEye V4.1.1 ( Aug '21 ) can only run on Debian 10 Buster ( oldstable ) and Python 2.7. Newer versions such as 3.X are not supported at this point of time according to Ccrisan, foundator and author of MotionEye.
Various software tools in wide use can be employed to take video and pictures, such as PicMaster and Microsoft's Camera app (for use with Windows operating systems), Photo Booth (Mac), or Cheese (with Unix systems). For a more complete list see Comparison of webcam software.
Webcams can also encourage remote work, enabling people to work remotely via the Internet. This usage was crucial to the survival of many businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, when in-person office work was discouraged. Businesses, schools, and individuals have relied on video conferencing instead of spending on business travel for meetings. Moreover, the number of video conferencing cameras and software have multiplied since then due to their popularity.
Webcam features and performance can vary by computer program, operating system, and also by the computer's processor capabilities. Video calling support has also been added to several popular instant messaging programs.
Webcams allow for inexpensive, real-time Videotelephony and , in both amateur and professional pursuits. They are frequently used in online dating and for online personal services offered mainly by women when . However, the ease of webcam use through the Internet for video chat has also caused issues. For example, moderation system of various video chat websites such as Omegle has been criticized as being ineffective, with sexual content still rampant. In a 2013 case, the transmission of nude photos and videos via Omegle from a teenage girl to a schoolteacher resulted in a child pornography charge.
The popularity of webcams among teenagers with Internet access has raised concern about the use of webcams for cyber-bullying.Poeter, Damon. " Webcam Peeper Convicted in Rutgers Cyberbullying Case ," PC Magazine, March 16, 2012. Webcam recordings of teenagers, including underage teenagers, are frequently posted on popular Web forums and such as 4chan. Tip From 4chan Leads To Arrest Of Site Visitor On Child Porn Charges ," The Smoking Gun, February 27, 2012.Goodin, Dan. Feds: bald man posing as 17-year-old secretly taped teens ," The Register (UK), October 13, 2009.
In December 2011, Russia announced that 290,000 Webcams would be installed in 90,000 polling stations to monitor the 2012 Russian presidential election. Russia Election Webcams The Wall Street Journal, January 16, 2012. Webcams may be installed at places such as childcare centres, offices, shops and private areas to monitor security and general activity.
Cameras such as Apple Computer's older external iSight cameras include lens covers to thwart this. Some webcams have built-in hardwired LED indicators that light up whenever the camera is active, sometimes only in video mode. However, it is possible, depending on the circuit design of a webcam, for malware to circumvent the indicator and activate the camera surreptitiously, as researchers demonstrated in the case of a MacBook's built-in camera in 2013.
Various companies sell sliding lens covers and stickers that allow users to retrofit a computer or smartphone to close access to the camera lens as needed. One such company reported having sold more than 250,000 such items from 2013 to 2016. However, any opaque material will work just as well.
The process of attempting to hack into a person's webcam and activate it without the webcam owner's permission has been called camfecting, a portmanteau of cam and infecting. The remotely activated webcam can be used to watch anything within the webcam's field of vision. Camfecting is most often carried out by infecting the victim's computer with a computer virus.
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