Webcam Basics

Instead of just communicating over the internet with text and emoticons, people are beginning to realize just how easy and fun it is to send video clips through cyberspace. Webcam setups range from simple to complex, and increasing the complexity is only a matter of adding functionality through software, custom code and/or equipment connections.

A simple Webcam setup consists of a Digital Camera attached to your computer, usually through the USB port. The camera part of the Webcam setup is just a digital camera -- nothing out of the ordinary so far. The "Webcam" functions of the camera originate from the software. Webcam software takes a frame from the digital camera at a preset interval (for example, the software might grab a still image from the camera once every 30 seconds) and transfers it to another location for viewing.

If you're interested in using your Webcam for streaming video, you'll want a Webcam system with a high frame rate. The frame rate indicates the number of pictures the software can grab and transfer in one second. For streaming video, you need a minimum rate of at least 15 frames per second (fps), and 30 fps is optimal. To achieve high frame rates, you must necessarily have a high-speed internet connection

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