Epiphan Systems Announces New Open Source Frame Grabber

A first in the market of high resolution video capture hardware, Epiphan Systems has announced a new open source frame grabber - Epiphan Lecture Recorder.

According to the product page, shipping of the Lecture Recorder will start sometime in November. Epiphan Lecture Recorder, or ELR in short, has some promising features that, at the price tag of $2000, are unbeatable by similar offerings.

ELR’s Unique Features

Even though this product seems to be aimed at the educational market, Epiphan Lecture Recorder has some unique features that make it a perfect frame grabber for pretty much any application. Firstly, ELR supports not only DVI and VGA capture, but also has on-board inputs for composite video and stereo audio.

Furthermore, Epiphan Lecture recorder has a very generous 32GB of buffer memory, which is expandable via portable flash sticks, network drives, or external hard disks.

Finally, ELR features 5 USB ports for external devices and peripherals, meaning that you can create software that will allow you to connect external control devices such as IR remotes, CD/DVD writers, wireless modules, an so on.

Open Source

As mentioned earlier, Epiphan Lecture Recorder will be an open source device. What this means for developers is that it is possible to access all features of the frame grabber. And, because the ELR is more of an embedded computer or internet appliance, many interesting applications can be written for it. For example, the ELR, as it has an Ethernet network interface, can function as its own server, as pictured below.

In a Nutshell

The Epiphan Lecture Recorder is more of a computer with on-board frame grabber and video and audio capture cards than it is an actual frame grabber. While this might not be the ideal device for the general public, the ELR could be used as a platform for a wide variety of applications.

Click here to view Epiphan Lecture Recorder’s product page on Epiphan Systems’ website.

ScreenSnapr: Yet Another Screen Capture Utility Released in Beta

If you haven’t picked a favorite screen capture utility, here’s one that you may want to put on your list of apps to try, especially if you want to upload your captures to an FTP server.

ScreenSnapr is a simple screen capture utility. The free version has no expiry date and lacks some of the more interesting features such as posting screenshots to Twitter, something that the full version includes, for a fee of 5$.

Since paying for screen capture applications is nonsense (browse our website to see that there plenty of free apps available), let’s have a look at the features of the free version:

• Unlimited 1-click uploads
• Custom FTP uploads
• URL shrinking
• Custom GUI
• Dual-monitor support

Using ScreenSnapr

ScreenSnapr is launched by a shortcut that is predefined within the program. The program settings are very simple and self-explanatory. FTP settings are easily configured.

A simple window pops up as soon as you create the shortcut. Note that the Tweet option is not functional in the free version of ScreenSnapr.

Conclusion

ScreenSnapr, while still in beta, is a very simple application with no real features that make it stand out. Even free web-based screen capture tools such as Aviary are more advanced than ScreenSnapr, and do not require a payment to use the full version.

Overall, it’s a nice program if you often upload screenshots to FTP, but otherwise it’s best that you evaluate some other alternatives, many of which are available by browsing this site.

You may read more about and download ScreenSnapr at ScreenSnapr.com.

Epiphan Systems first to announce compatibility with Windows 7

As the Windows 7 Release Candidate was made for free public downloading this week, manufacturers of hardware and software developers were able to test their software and hardware compatibility with Microsoft’s new operating system, slated to hit retail stores in October 2009.

Epiphan Systems, the manufacturer of external frame grabbers, recording, and broadcasting solutions for VGA and DVI has announced that all of its’ devices run smoothly under a Windows 7 environment and that the latest version of their software includes full support for this new operating system.

However, users may encounter some difficulties upon upgrading to this new OS, so it is still recommended that you reinstall the software when upgrading from XP or Windows Vista, as the drivers might not remain after the update.

ScreenCaptureNews will keep you updated as more software and hardware developers announce their products’ compatibility with Windows 7.

Frame Grabber Specification Comparison Table Updated

One of the most visited pages on our site is our massive and extremely informative feature comparison table for the world’s best VGA and DVI frame grabbers. Since it was created, some manufacturers have changed the specifications for their devices, while Epiphan Systems introduced the VGA2Ethernet frame grabber, which is now part of the table.

The first thing that you may notice is that the VGA2Ethernet has much higher specifications than any other frame grabber on the market. This is due to the fact that the VGA2Ethernet is a  much more sophisticated device and, as such, is not really comparable to the other grabbers.

Why is the VGA2Ethernet different?

You can think of the VGA2Ethernet as a separate small computer equipped with a frame grabber. As such, it is able to function remotely. In other words, the VGA2Ethernet does not have to have close proximity to the target computer, as is the case with PCI or USB based frame grabbers. As shown below, the only requirement for the VGA2Ethernet is that it be on the same network as the target computer, and within proximity of the source that it is capturing the VGA signal from.

The fact that the VGA2Ethernet can be separated from the target computer distance-wise is not the only thing that makes this device different from others, however. By using the Gigabit Ethernet bus to transfer the images and a PowerPC processor paired with an advanced FPGA, the VGA2Ethernet is able to digitize images at resolutions up to 2048 x 2048 and, depending on the change in content from frame to frame, transfer them at up to 120 frames per second, making the VGA2Ethernet significantly faster than other any frame grabber available on the market.

Please click here to go to our complete VGA frame grabber review and specification page. Do not hesitate to contact us should you wish another product to be added to the table.

 

ScrnShots: A Screen Capture Sharing Community

 

The introduction of high-speed broadband internet to people’s homes meant that internet users could now share vast amounts of files and information with each-other. P2P and file sharing started out with music and has evolved into a medium through which all kinds of data and information is shared.

ScrnShots has taken the evolution of online file sharing further by offering an unlimited screenshot sharing service. In other words, you can take screenshots from your computer, post them online, tag them and name them. Other people will be able to view your screenshots and comment on them and you will be able to do the same to others.

 

As soon as you load ScrnShots, you are able to search for screen captures simply by typing in a keyword, as in the example above. If you have an account, you may comment other people’s screenshots and upload your own screenshots to share.

Uploading to ScrnShots

Uploading to ScrnShots may be done in two ways. First, you may take your own screenshots, save as picture file and upload using a browser uploader, or you may install the ScrnShots application, pictured below.

The advantage to using the application is that you are able to instantly upload the screenshot, it is available for Windows and MAC OS.

For developers, ScrnShots offers and API for Windows and MAC OS, allowing you to integrate ScrnShots’ functionality in your own programs. In other words, using the API, a program can be made to upload images directly to the ScrnShots server.

Final Thoughts

While the idea of sharing screenshots is great, there are many other services that would accomplish the same thing, such as Flickr or Google’s Picasaweb, which also allow you to upload large resolution pictures, tag them, and search them. ScrnShots’ interface is very straight-forward and easy to use, which does make it a good service if this is what you are looking for.

 

New free and easy to use screenshot software for Windows XP and Vista

We at Screen Capture News like to write about interesting software releases that allow us to do new things in the field of screen capture and recording. Screen Capturer, however, does nothing but the most simple operations, and we like that too.  If you are still saving a lot of screenshots using the traditional PrintScreen button method, you’d know how annoying it is to open up an image editing application each time that you want to transfer it from a clipboard to a file (in Windows XP).

Screen Capturer is a 100% free application that is launched automatically whenever you press your PrintScreen button.

Screen Capturer allows you to:

• Capture your entire screen, part of the screen, or a window on your screen.
• Create an image file out of the screen capture in many formats, including BMP, JPG, GIF, PNG and TIFF.
• Capture a video of your screen activity in .WMV (Windows Video) format.
• Send the captured image or video directly to the Windows clipboard, an Image/Video file, e-mail, or to print from the printer.

Of course, this program isn’t going to give you advanced editing or annotation functionality or provide you with many more options than what is listed above. Sometimes, however, all you need to get the task done is something simple, and Screen Capturer does that job perfectly.

EDITORS NOTE (27/10/2009): It looks like the program is no longer offered for free. Please have a look at our Software section for more similar free solutions.

ScreenToaster 2.0 Released

ScreenToaster is probably the most exciting, easy-to-use, and feature packed free screen capture applet available. Today, the developers of ScreenToaster have announced that the Beta testing is over and that ScreenToaster 2.0 is available with the following new features:

- Live audio capture
- Embed webcam in screen capture
- Accelerated or slow-motion playback
- Pauses during recording
- Download the completed screencast (experimental)
- Redesign and improved content organization
- Personal profiles

The devs over at ScreenToaster are also promising an API and direct uploads to video sharing sites like YouTube, Veoh, DailyMotion, and others. If these features will be added, then ScreenToaster will be hands down the best free screen capture application available.

You can read our review of the ScreenToaster beta by following this link.

Epiphan Systems Unveils Portable Broadcast Solutions

For a while now, Epiphan Systems has been making the popular VGA Recorder and VGA2WEB web-based collaboration and conferencing devices. This month, however, Epiphan has unveiled the VGA Recorder Lite and VGA2WEB Lite, both of which are “light” and portable version of the mentioned devices.

Both the VGA2WEB Lite and VGA Broadcaster Lite are budget-oriented devices which are able to broadcast a VGA signal with a resolution of up to 1600 x 1200 to an Internet audience. Using the Gigabit Ethernet interface to connect to a local area network (LAN) or the Internet, these devices are ideal for those that would like to collaborate, present, or broadcast a VGA signal but do not want to hassle with complicated software or hardware modifications.

Once the VGA2WEB Lite or VGA Broadcaster Lite devices are plugged in and running, the audience can simply access the broadcast using their web browser or media player, such as QuickTime or VLC.

While both devices work with signals of up to 1600 x 1200 and broadcast supplied image in 100% lossless diagnostic quality, the VGA2WEB Lite uses motion JPEG compression, meaning that its broadcast can be accessed via a simple web interface. The VGA Broadcaster Lite’s webcast, on the other hand, uses H.264 or MPEG4 video compression to relay the VGA signal to its viewers, meaning that a media player such as QuickTime is needed in order to view the broadcast that is created by it.

 

A comparison of both devices can be found by going to this page on Epiphan System’s offical website.

New, Revolutionary VGA Frame Grabber Released

With current high end PCI-based and USB-based VGA frame grabbers pushing maximum capture rates of 60 frames per second, a VGA frame grabber that could capture at twice that rate seemed like a far-fetched idea… until today.

Already up for sale on this page, the VGA2Ethernet frame grabber claims to operate at a maximum resolution of 1600 x 1200, at which it can capture at a maximum rate of 66fps. However, that number is 120fps for lower resolutions.

Typical of any frame grabber made by Epiphan Systems, the VGA2Ethernet is external, portable, and has the same recording, archiving, and broadcasting functions of its smaller siblings. You may find a detailed review of these functions in our Epiphan VGA2USB LR Review.

Unlike any other VGA or DVI frame grabbers, the VGA2Ethernet, as the name suggests, plugs into the Ethernet port of the target computer. While GigE and other machine vision frame grabbers have been using the Ethernet protocol for some while, emplying Ethernet in a VGA frame grabber is a first for the industry. VGA2Ethernet uses the Gigabit Ethernet protocol, which is what allows it to achieve such high transfer rates when compared to traditional USB or PCI frame grabbers.

Besides the capture rate advantage, using the Ethernet protocol also allows you to extend the distance between the actual frame grabber and the target computer, as long as both the grabber and the target computer are on the same LAN. A diagram is shown below (taken from Epiphan.com):

Stay tuned for more news and reviews as more information is released by Epiphan Systems about the VGA2Ethernet.

New Web-Based Screen Capture Utility Now in Beta

Here at ScreenCaptureNews, we like all things that are simple to use and don’t cost an arm and a leg. ScreenToaster is a completely free exciting new web-based Java applet similar to ScreenCast-O-Matic. You can read our full review of ScreenCast-O-Matic here. While ScreenCast-O-Matic was an easy applet to use, we did find some problems, notably the ultra-low capture rate (~2fps), that took away from the usefulness of this application.

ScreenToaster is basically an online applet that records your screen or an area of your screen and then instantly publishes the recording to the web in Flash YouTube-like format for you to share with your peers or co-workers. This can come in extremely useful in situations where you need to demonstrate to someone how to use a piece of software, create instructional videos, or upload a video of your screen for others to see for troubleshooting purposes.

While ScreenToaster is still in Beta, you will need an activation key to use it. The activation key can be requested by going to the registration page of the ScreenToaster website. Once you have registered your user account and logged in, ScreenToaster will bring you to your control panel. From here, you will need to press “Start Recording” to launch the recording proccess. You will also be prompted to install the ScreenToaster Java applet, which you must accept.

Once you have clicked on “Start Recording,” ScreenToaster will display a small info box which explains how the software works. It is rediculously easy to understand and use. First, you must bring forward the application which you would like to record. Then, pressing “ALT + S” begins a recording of your entire screen, whereas “ALT + SHIFT + S” allows you to select an area of your screen to record. Finally, once you are done recording, “ALT + S” must be pressed again in order to publish the video.

Once you have finished recording (after pressing ALT - S), you will be taken back to the ScreenToaster control panel where you’ll be able to see your recording.

Using the three options on the left side of the video preview, you can add subtitles, audio, or change the preview shot of the video.

You must now name and describe your video. When you are done, click on “Publish”

Unfortunately, we at ScreenCaptureNews were unable to publish any videos due to the fact that it gave us an error every time that we hit “Publish”. The developers of the software wrote to us and said that, because the software is still in beta, bugs do pop up from time to time.

What we saw in the preview, however, was fairly decent. The frame rate was pretty good and it even recorded a video off of YouTube at about 20fps, which is a ten-fold difference between ScreenCast-O-Matic. ScreenToaster was also exceptionally easy to use and overall is a promising web applet.

The developers of ScreenToaster claim that the application works with Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. ScreenToaster will always be free and will most likely be ad-supported once it is released to the general public. Tentative release date, according to ScreenToaster staff, is “end of October”. We’ll keep you posted  with a full review once ScreenToaster is out of beta.

 

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