Computer Hardware

We had 2 DMA controllers go out on 2 motherboards in 2 weeks. One of the suspects was the old Osprey 100 video capture card, so I spent days trying to find a video capture card which would work both in Windows and Ubuntu. The Hauppuage 558 ( product# 64405 ) seemed to fill the bill.

Summary: The DMA controller on 2 motherboards blew within a week of each other on our webcast computer. Since this computer had been running for a year without any problems, we were stumped. Thus, we need to eliminate any external ESD problems and replace the old Osprey card just in case it was the cause of the problem.

We also would like to run Linux (Ubuntu) using VLC for the encoder to gain more stability and flexibility. 

Electrostatic Discharge

If your computer's motherboard dies, the repair technician may point to the A/V input wires and tell you electrostatic charges coming down those wires caused the failure. This could be true for equipment sold in the United States, but not for equipment sold in the European Union. Since 1995 all consumer equipment sold in the European Union has to pass stringent testing for both electrostatic and electromagnetic interference.

Selection

We are currently using an Osprey 100. It was bought used, works fine, and customer support is first rate. Switching cameras is done manually with a simple rocker switch for cheapness and so the operator doesn't have to try to find a button somewhere on a computer screen.

Reliability is the key factor to buying a computer. Cheap motherboards, skimpy memory and poor setup are just a few factors that effect reliability.

Here is an interesting thought on how to buy a reliable computer: