The Raspberry Pi as a motion-sensing webcam
Video surveillance has become a hot topic, but most cameras available are not really recommended: A colleague recently described the hair-raising vulnerabilities that Linux-based web and netcams typically entail in a blog post [1]. After this kind of read, Linux admins will probably prefer to look for alternatives, which will take them right to the Raspberry Pi with the PiCam add-on (see the "Rasp Pi HD Video Camera" box).
The Hardware
The equipment need not cost an arm and a leg. Figure 1 shows the components used in this example: Anyone wanting to use the camera in places without Ethernet wiring will need a WiFi dongle and case. The Pi detects most wireless dongles automatically; in our lab, I used a USB dongle by Edimax. The SD card comes with several OS images, which will save you a huge amount of work for a small additional price.
The Raspberry Pi project website has devoted a page to the camera with instructions [2] and a video documenting installation steps. The connector for the camera lies between the Ethernet and HDMI ports (Figure 2).
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