Help- Linking New Webcam to Wunderground via FTP from Mac

[atnbirdie]

I just got a TRENDnet TV-IP110W webcam and have set it up fine on my internal network (Airport Extreme base station).  I can access it from any computer on the LAN just fine via the web.  I assigned it a fixed IP within the network so its IP is in the format of 10.0.x.x.  I want to set it up to FTP images to Weather Underground and have a couple of questions:

1) I can't figure how to make the camera accessible from the web (and not open my LAN to attack).  I'm know I have to open a port, but don't know how to do that (which port, UDP, TCP, public, private, etc., etc.?)

2) Once I get the camera on line, do I need secondary software in order for the Wunder system to upload images from my camera?  I got the impression from the sign up page on Wunderground that I didn't; all I needed to do was provide the URL of the camera.

Any Mac owners out there who can advise me?
Thanks, Steve

[smorris]

Hi Steve,

I have an IP camera that I'm using with my iMac. Mine is a Sharx Security SCNC3605

Are you using WeatherLink IP or WeatherLink for Mac for your weather station uploads?

I am using an application called EvoCam from Evological Software to get my images online. I have EvoCam upload them to my web space and then use the URL for the image at Weather Underground. I also have EvoCam create a time-lapse video, and upload it to my web site. I am also using a Mac specific weather application called WeatherCat from Trixology that has the capability of uploading images to your web site or creating time-lapse images. I'd use that now, but I already had EvoCam before WeatherCat was released.

According to the instructions HERE, you can either FTP directly to WU or use an image online via URL like mine. If your web cam has FTP capabilities, it looks like you could use it to send images directly to WU, skipping the step of first uploading them to your web space.

I hope that helps,
Steve

[atnbirdie]

I just have Weatherlink that uploads my CWOP and WU data.  I have no website of my own and don't want to create one.  I have a guest network setup to isolate my weather station computer from my main LAN since I leave that computer on 24/7.  I'm running Weatherlink (5.9.3) on a Windows computer.  However, all my computers on the Main LAN are Macs and I can access my webcam from them now that I've set it up.  However, my main problem is figuring the ports out to make the camera visible on the web.  Can you PM me with how you set that up on your system?
Thanks, Steve

[smorris]

Sorry, I can't help with that. I haven't made mine accessible from the outside, instead choosing to send data out only.

Steve

[gt651]

1) I can't figure how to make the camera accessible from the web (and not open my LAN to attack).  I'm know I have to open a port, but don't know how to do that (which port, UDP, TCP, public, private, etc., etc.?)

Any Mac owners out there who can advise me?
Thanks, Steve

It's been a while since I ground through this but here's an example of 3 ports port-forwarded on my Airport Extreme.

I don't think you need anything in the UDP boxes.

[atnbirdie]

gt651, Thanks for those screen shots.  Looks like I've done everything you have and still no access.  I'll sleep on this a few days.  Maybe something will come to mind I've missed.

Steve, Duh, I thought I had to have the camera accessible on the web in order to upload images to Wunderground.  Sounds like all I need is an FTP program to do it for me.  BTW, I am not using Weatherlink for Mac for two reasons: 1) I understood it couldn't record a second temperature sensor, which I have; 2) I didn't want to commit my MacBook pro to full time use as a weather station server and didn't want to connect, download, disconnect from my weather envoy.  So I picked up a cheap refurbished Windows machine and set that up with Weatherlink for Windows on my Guest network and just leave it running all the time.  I didn't see anywhere in Weatherlink (for Win) to do an FTP upload of images.  I'll search around for some Mac based FTP programs then set up our iMac to FTP the camera images to Wunderground.
Thanks

[gt651]

gt651, Thanks for those screen shots.  Looks like I've done everything you have and still no access.  I'll sleep on this a few days.  Maybe something will come to mind I've missed.

I had the same experience.  I tried for weeks to port forward these ports then one day it just started working.  I have no idea why.

[smorris]

Steve, Duh, I thought I had to have the camera accessible on the web in order to upload images to Wunderground.  Sounds like all I need is an FTP program to do it for me.

Download and test out the 30 day trial of EvoCam for your iMac. It can see the IP camera on your network and has your specific camera listed in the setup list. You should then be able to FTP images to Weather Underground directly from EvoCam, as well as have it create time-lapse video for you stored locally.

Or if your iMac is running all the time and convenient to your Envoy, ditch WL completely and give WeatherCat a try. It can upload current conditions and images directly to WU from within the weather software, as well as to CWOP, PWSweather, AWEKAS, WeatherBug, various regional weather networks, UK Met Office WOW program, and Twitter. It does not upload to WeatherLink' service if that's important to you. You can put a copy of the Weather Cat Client on your MacBook and see all the data you see on the iMac anywhere on your home network, or if you configure it with outside access, from anywhere you have Internet connectivity. All you need WL for with the Envoy, is to set your elevation for the barometer.

You can give it a try free, too. This if course assumes you have a USB data logger. You'll need t install a driver on the iMac to try it, too. Lots of info on the WeatherCat forum.

That help to confuse you?
Steve

[atnbirdie]

Steve,

I've already downloaded EvoCam and have got it seeing my webcam, so progress is being made.  Now I need to sit down, read the user guide and figure out how to get it to upload the right sized images to Wunderground.

I am looking into WeatherCat.  I've sent them a couple of questions about its functionality.  Specifically, I have 2 temperature sensors and want to record/log data from both.  I am uploading to CWOP and Wunderground with WL but not sending to WL's service so I could change to WeatherCat.  I do have an Envoy and data logger.

Thanks for the advice.  I'll work on it over the next week or so.  I have that pesky thing called work getting in my way though 

Steve

[atnbirdie]

I'm bummed
I was about to pull the trigger on WeatherCat which seems like it offers the most functionality of Mac software for PWSs.  They say it will record my second temperature sensor and it will solve my webcam issue by uploading images via WU FTP.  The down side is it is incapable of importing my Weatherlink database which has a year's worth of data in it.  I hate to throw that out so I'll have to re-think moving to WeatherCat.  May have to just get a program to FTP images to WU and keep using Weatherlink 

I don't understand why a company with a great product, which in an earlier incarnation (LWC)  apparently could import Weatherlink data would do away with that.  Seems like a marketing tool to be able to tell all Weatherlink customers they can jump ship for your product with no hassle or loss.  However, in all the threads I've found on the subject (including their email to me) the WeatherCat folks just keep saying "if there's a need" they may consider adding it.   In forums, this is always followed by a raft of "please add the capability".  So it appears the WC people don't care to market to WL customers.  Seems short sighted to me...
Steve

[gt651]

May have to just get a program to FTP images to WU and keep using Weatherlink 

Looks to me like FTP in included in your camera.  Have you tried using it?

[atnbirdie]

No. I've been busy with some other things and got hung up on making the camera visible from the web.  Now I don't see that as necessary for my purposes.  I may return to that issue later, but don't need the capability now. 

I will try to set up image FTP to WU and see how that works.  If it does, I may stay with WL on a Win machine since I can't import my data (1 year's worth) to WeatherCat.  I really like WC based on reading the manual and seeing forum posts about it.  I may just bite the bullet and leave WL now and convert totally to Mac.  I'd hate to wait a year only to find WC is never going to enable data importing from WL- better to lose 1 year now than more later.

While I'm mulling that over, any comments on WL vs WC from folks who've 'been there'?

Thanks, Steve

[smorris]

I'd bet that Stu (Stuart Bell, the developer of LWC and now WeatherCat) would be willing to offer a "test copy" of LWC so that you could import your WL data. If you deleted your WeatherCat data that you've created during the test, ran LWC to import your WL data, and then "upgraded" to WeatherCat, you'd be all set.

Steve

[atnbirdie]

gt651, Steve and others,
Thanks for all the help. I think the access from internet to my camera issue is because my ISP assigns dynamic IPs.  I'll deal with that later.  For now, I've had success in just uploading images from the camera directly.  I programmed the camera last night and it is uploading images on its own to Wunderground just fine.  See it here:
http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KMDMIDDL9
It faces East, so depending on time of day, you may not see much detail on ground in foreground.  When you can, you'll see my Observatory, my home away from home. 

I've decided that given the features of WeatherCat, I'm going to migrate to it.  Will work on that this weekend.
Thanks again, Steve

[atnbirdie]

By the way, got to my camera from the internet last night.  Had all the settings right (thanks in large part to gt651).  The problem was (newbie) user error.  Once I addressed the proper IP address and included the port, I found it. Duh!