Rfalconcam Forum

Shhhh! Don't tell anyone.

I heard a rumor that there will be some new features on the Rfalconcam website next year.

• 24/7 streaming video from 5 cameras
  
  
• Embedded Youtube videos in Forum posts
  
  
• Automatic insertion of member names, avatars, and signatures into Forum posts sent to Kfalconcam (I was up until 1:30 AM figuring out a way to make it work. Don't blame me when Yarak turns into Skynet and takes over the planet.)
  
  
• Easier to use FalconWatch blog and fledge watch calendar
  
  
• A top secret interactive CENSORED CENSORED that will CENSORED you CENSORED for CENSORED CENSORED!

Way to go Shaky! Your doing wonders for us! Thanks. (http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp347/sirikit2/Smileys/camera.gif)

 :thanx: , Shaky!  You're the best!

 :clap:  :notworthy:  :secret2: I thought Yarak already took over the planet

Ei

Go Shaky  :clap:
Our Hero  :bow:
Carol
WV

That will be GREAT!  :mbanana:  :clap:

We might be better off if yarak took over the world :D

Have you seen yarak?   :scaredblue:

:hysterical:

Shaky, that is awesome news!  Seems everyone has time to post smileys but posting a name is impossible!  I'm sure I'm not the only one who will be loving the signature feature and I thank you for staying up until 1:30 a.m. to figure it out!

Jan in CT

Now, Shaky!  Admit that you are always up to at least 1:30am!  ;)
Thank you very much for all your efforts!  They are all appreciated and looked forward to!

Anne in Toronto

Shaky's IT Resume is going to look very impressive!

Not true. I'm normally in bed by 1:29.

Shaky's new book is all "One-liners"! Hey, he gets his point across! (http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e105/CommentCrazyGirl/Smileys%20Action/Read%20School/read0.gif)

He's got a million of them!
Carol P.

I'm so excited I can't wait till Spring ! Somebody go tell Archer Winter is canceled so he will hurry back & get things going w/ Beauty ! Oh how I miss them !  :wub:

I just wish Miss Stubborn Beauty would go to the nest once in a while, (after all, it is hers)! Archer would be there if he were still around.  :confused:

And while we're thanking Shaky for the great features, can I also mention that I am trying to use a very slow wireless connection (not my normal home network, which is pretty fast), and Rfalconcam's speed really rocks!  I'm getting very impatient trying to load a few of my other favorite sites (I can haz Cheezburger, Cute Overload, etc.), but Rfalconcam just pops up and refreshes blazingly fast!

Patti

you know in our defense, those of us who rarely go to Kfalcon anymore and usually stay here. Posting a name seemed redundant since it is at the side of every post on this forum so we I do not usually think about it. and honestly I never signed my posts over there either, since my name was on top of those posts.

BC

Here's one from today, Patti, in case you can't get the page loaded...



Ei

Thanks for the Cheezburger fix!

Patti

A big "under the hood" change to the site was made this morning. It's almost invisible, but if you look carefully, you might spot something different.

Hint: It's not in the Forum.

Hmmm...all I've found on a quick browse is an updated Quest map for December...she's back in Pickering...I guess someone else will have to spot it...

BTW-was it being updated at 4:30...5:00 this morning?  Just wondering 'cause it was WAY slow to load when I got up this morning...

Ei

Are it the YouTube videos?

 :stupid:

  Oh boy, new technology.  I'm still trying to figure out what we already have.  lol  !!

Good catch, Annette!  Youtube is embedded now!  Cool!

 :yes:   Me too!   :gum:

Nope. Not the Quest map. However, you have discovered a lingering problem with our server that occurs every morning between 4 and 5 AM. Some days it's worse than others. Today's was rather bad. I'm working on a solution, but it's on hold while I wait for someone to do their part.


Nope. Youtube videos have been embedded on the Video Archive page since last Spring. You're getting warm though.

Perhaps Community Slideshow?

OK-must have missed that one...habit...I usually go to my shortcuts...

Has quick-n-dirty 30 always been over here?  I think the dailies were here, but it has the new cam now...

Ei

That Shaky is so sneaky....it's like another treasure hunt!

Individual Donors (2010)?

The Community Slide Show is from 2009. You're getting colder.

If it is so difficult to find, do we really need it?
Kapi in VT
The Resident Luddite

Never have I noted anyone get one up on Shaky - but Kapi... you may just have done so!!

(Sorry, Shaky!)

Slainte from the other one... (Luddite, that is.)

As I stated, this is an under the hood change. It is required to keep this site running next year as we continue to reduce our costs in these tough economic times. The fact that it is hard to spot is a good thing, especially for Luddites who don't like perceived change.

The Dailies?  ???

Sponsorship/Corporate? IDK

Shaky, you go right ahead and keep doing that under-the-hood work for all of us... even the Luddites. Where'd we be without it?!

I asked the question.  That is a good answer.
Back in the dark ages, when the Apple IIe was the ultimate computer, I took a "Computers in Education" course.  Back then, most software was written by computer folks, who knew nothing about how people learn, and was pretty awful educationally.  The most important/lasting thing I learned in the course was to always ask of new software whether or not what it did could be done more easily, more cheaply, and at least as effectively, the "old fashioned" way.  The answer is not always "yes" by any means but I think it is still a good question.
Kapi in VT
The Resident Luddite

This makes me wonder if it's actually something that is no longer there.  If none of us miss it, it must not have been that popular a feature.

That said, I am the type that will, at some point, go to look something up and SWEAR a feature used to be right there, forget this entire discussion, and assume I've just lost my mind.  ;)

Ei

Yes, it has something to do with the Dailies and the Youtube videos.

You can watch the dailies on Youtube!  :gum:

No, that's not new. The Dailies have been on Youtube since March.

 :stupid: Hey, what do I know? I don't go there much!  :gum:

Well, I found a typo on the daily's page,..

Videos are also avalable on YouTube.

Other than that I'm still stumped...

Ei

Oops.  :paperbag:

Ok, I fixed my typo from March.

I wonder if it's the videos themselves that have changed.

The dailies popup has been large since they've been archived on youtube, right?  With the date & time on the side.  The music is the same. 

The pictures on the page have been updated.  I already said the new cam has been added. 

Still stumped...

Ei

Bingo.

OK...it used to just be in the banner up top...I'd need a magnifying glass when I was looking for something in the dailies.

Very subtle indeed.

Ei

Good eye Ei!   (http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj286/dvora072096/SMILEYS/smiley-eye-exam-1.gif)

I selected a larger, higher quality font when I moved it to the side. And by moving it to the side, there will no longer be the possibility of the banner obscuring part of the picture.

Expect to see the side banner in all archived images starting January 1st.

Good idea Shaky!  :clap:

Just in from YouTube:

"Congratulations! Your account is now enabled for uploads longer than 15 minutes."

YouTube has recognized Rfalconcam as a good video citizen. Now we should be able to upload to YouTube all those mega-hour streams on Ustream.

http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2010/12/up-up-and-away-long-videos-for-more.html

I can't wait to see Brian's 4-hour version of the Falcon Dance. Do the bird!

Rock 'n' roll, guys! Well done!  :notworthy:

 :thumbsup:

I have made a few changes to the streaming video page (http://rfalconcam.com/rfc-main/streamView.php). The links below the chat pane have been updated.



If you're one of those people who prefers not to have the two video streams and the chat stream tied together on a single page, you can use the new links to easily open each stream in a separate window and then reposition and resize them to your liking. You can open one, two, three, or all four* streams.





* This includes the chat stream and three video streams.  The third video stream is reserved for special events.

Floating cams are great....I like this new feature. Thanks Shaky.

Ok, not really floating but you know what I mean! I can have it open but not as a tab. :thumbsup:

Psssst, now might be a good time to learn more about PayPal. It may come in handy soon.

Real soon.

Have you noticed that Forum names, avatars, and signatures are now included in posts sent to Kfalconcam?

Yes, very nice  :thumbsup:
Also nice to see you making progress on your Book  :devil:
Carol
WV

Hey, that's pretty cool Shaky and Carol, maybe this is his book and these are all his notes!  :moneymouth:

Yes, I sure did notice, and I thank you very much!  Jan in CT

I'm still tweaking it a bit.

Looks good!  It even shows the user name in the compressed view!  Very much appreciated!

But of course.

I am not seeing the forum names but am seeing the avatars...and I don't much like them.  (Big surprise.)  Among the things I don't like about the forums is all the extraneous stuff...pictures, smilies, fancy text... that make it more and more difficult to find the message.  One reason for staying with the Kfalconcom format is that it has been "cleaner."  Not so much any more.
Crawling back into my snow cave,
Kapi in VT

Well its a known fact you can't make everybody happy. If you read the forum here you have the ability when you set your profile to shut off a lot of that stuff. At least you used to be able to. I for one like all the extras.

I believe everyone has a right to their own opinion. I, myself love smiley's, (can't ya tell), pictures, colored texts and all the fun that comes with it. It would be pretty darn boring without any of these little dilly's. I haven't seen one forum that doesn't have all this. We had it on KFC also, maybe not to the extreme that we have here but it makes for fun. Ya gotta have fun, ya gotta have laughter and we are trying to have all this here, otherwise, I'd be gone too! Sorry some of you feel that way.  :paperbag: We can be serious and have a ball at the same time.

And Shaky is doing a darn good job too!  :notworthy:

The name should appear right above the avatar inside the gray box.

Is anyone else not seeing it?

Laughter is good for the soul Kapi. Lord knows I've done more laughing since I joined this group than I ever did before! We're just trying to have fun in this serious world! :yes:  Shaky always does a good job even if he's scolding us for something! ;)

I see the name and Avatar!

Shaky, you trying to tell us something with all those Palm trees?

I see the name of the poster.  Is that what you mean?  It is helpful.
Kapi in VT

Yes, I am.

Yes, that's what I mean.

Some place sunny, warm, with palm trees! Hmm

 :clap: :notworthy: :thumbsup:

Here's where we have Beauty and hopefully Archer, Lady Pefa and her mate, Charlotte Pefa and Brighton Pefas all stay and we have cameras, falcons and watchers all over the city!

Imagine??

Thank you Shaky, you turn ideas into reality.

Ooh, that would make a great tag line.

 :bow: :notworthy: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:
Shaky you rock!  :mbanana: bguitar :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

This is not really a new feature. It's more of a cosmetic change, but I though I'd post it here so you would know why the forum looks different.

What you're seeing is a sneak peek at part of a proposed change to the Rfalconcam site. It includes a banner with a new logo, a new color scheme, and a new page layout. 

The biggest change will be an eye-catching home page that isn't quite as cramped and cluttered as our current one.

I love that new banner!  :yes:

Wow! Was THAT a surprise this morning! Thought my vision had suddenly improved! Terrific banner... what else are you up to, Shaky? (I know... mind my own business!)

Last night around 10, my page suddenly went big, I mean real big. I tried to make it normal size but to no avail. I re-booted but that didn't work. Was going to use a system restore but I figured I'd do in the am. I shut it down and went to bed. Now I see maybe this is why after Bobbie's post. It's still pretty big but I do Love the eye catching Red and Blue, it gives the forum some personality. Really cool Shaky, thanks.

Actually, if I were to criticise, I too might mention the size... a tad daunting? Like the banner, tho.

The page is wider, but no wider than most popular web sites like Youtube and Facbook. The extra width will be needed for other pages on the site.

If it's too wide for your screen, you can use your browser's zoom feature to make it smaller. You can find it in Firefox under the View menu.

Yikes!  Needs a LOT of shrinking to be viewable!  I still don't have the whole width, but one more zoom out and the font is pixelated & too small to read (firefox).  This will take some getting used to...

Shaky-when is the re-sizing going to be rolled out over the whole site?

Sometime this week.

I am Loving  :heart: the new size and fonts!

I LOVE the new look, especially that you included the view of the city! Great job to everyone involved in bringing this together!  :thanx:  I'm not having any problem with size or page width on my little Acer laptop.  ;D

This is like 3 times my normal size. It's Ok, just have to get used to it. It was bigger earlier.

 :scaredblue:  Mine fits the whole page fine!  :wave:

I will find a happy medium at some point.  Shrinking this page until it fits makes the other pages unreadable.

I think it is only a matter of getting used to the new look. It is just that it's a surprise at first. Then again, I have quite a big screen on the new Big Mac, so no probs about fitting anything. Yay for me, huh?? I will check on Little Mac and see what goes there...

This is great! The visually impaired are loving it!

As am I  :happy:
The whole thing looks great, Thanks!
Carol
WV

I love the changes, especially the colorful sleek banner with our new logo plus a view of the city.

Dot in PA

What a surprise this morning when I signed on. The bright read and blue woke me up!  It's so big and bright.  I especially love the city skyline ... the TS building, Mercury.   Nice work to all involved.
Another nice feature that I just noticed are the links at the bottom.  Very user friendly!   :thumbsup:

Very interesting reading on the links below. Love the cams on NY Wild. Cool features for sure. THANKS!!

I love this new format!  I can read the text with no problem and everything fits just fine.  Thanks for all you do!

 :notworthy:
Lizz

It fits my screen just fine. But was slow loading. Maybe cause its all new?

I agree with the post about it loading slowly.  It loaded slowly at home.  BUT  it didn't fill up the screen and look as large as it did on my screen at work this morning  (sshhhhh!).   For some reason, it fills up more of my computer screen at work than it does on my laptop at home.    In fact there are inches of white on either side of this forum as I look at it, but at work, it seems to reach just beyond the edges of my screen --and looks huge!    At this laptop, it's at 100 percent.  Not larger.  Sorry, not a tech-ie, but "this much I know."   Never noticed a difference between home and work before. 

I'm still exploring the new links,  and they are wonderful, but one request -- Shaky - if I may be so bold...when you re-format the homepage, will there still be homage to  the Mariah and Kaver legacy?   Without them, so many of us would not be enthralled as we are with our Rochester falcons. I know they will not be forgotten, but for newcomers to the site, a history will be important.  Thank you for all you do.

question - did the feature in each thread that listed who was looking at it at that moment disappear or am I misremembering something (wouldn't be the first time, that's for sure)? When we did Aafke's bird ABCs I remember I used that.

used to be at the top of the page. (As it is on some other SMF forums I am on). So you pass the memory test.

Could have sworn I saw that still in place yesterday...maybe we're still in "Shaky moving stuff to see if we notice and if we don't it won't take up space anymore" mode? 

I figured my difficulty out last night.

BIG difference between my home & work machines.  Home has a lovely old but good resolution 17" CRT monitor-I can set the overall screen resolution higher, which shrinks the object size on the screen a bit, but they're still large enough to see & the new RFC format fits.  The other pages are smaller, but readable.  Work has a functional but poor resolution 15" LCD screen-if I tweak the resolution higher everything shrinks to so tiny & pixelated I can't read it-except the new RFC screen, which fits perfectly.  So I'll just have to zoom in & out at work until all the pages are formatted the same-then I can set the zoom for RFC and forget it.

It's back. I must have accidentally hit the Off switch.

Gotta say the new format/pics, etc. are fabulous!  Will take me a while to learn to "renavigate" but congrats to all for the website!
Vandrefalk

 :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

 :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy:

 :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Ditto on all of the above! The new LOOK is great, even my FAV, the archive viewer. Nice job Shaky. :bow:

Thanks for all of your hard work, Shaky!  I am LOVING the new look both here and over on Face Book!   :2thumbsup:

Check out the HOME page! Very cool look!

Ya beat me to it, Donna! Goooooooo, Shaky-Mon!

 :2thumbsup: Fantastic job! I salute you!!!  :bravo:

Beautiful!  Great job, Shaky!   :thumbsup:

Very nice.  We appreciate your hard work!!

I like it....Thank you very much.
:thanks2:

Greetings Carla

While Shaky did a huge amount of work on the new look of our website, there were many other team members that made this all possible.  Thanks team!  I think it looks great.   :thumbsup:

Thank you one and all. It's really nice!  

Our team has worked very hard to make rfalconcam a success. Thank you, everyone!

Yes indeed!  :thumbsup:

Our website is second to none thanks to everyone responsible for putting it together and keeping it running!   :bow:

Very impressive piece of work, Shaky! Love the new look! Thanks so much for your dedication to this website!
Dawn

Looking GOOD Rfalconcam team.
Thanks

Looking good Shaky  :2thumbsup:

I have a request, when  you have time. At the top of the pages the (I don't know what to call it) directory to tell you where you are Rfalconcam>Rochester Falcons> blah >blah blah. Could you put it at the bottom of the pages too? It used to be on both tops and bottoms and it still is on some pages but not all. I use that to get back to the home page or if that is to hard a button to get you back to the home page. As it is now I have to scroll to the top of the page to use the one up there. (yeah I'm lazy) If possible I thank you if not I'll get used to it.

It should on the bottom now.

To  Shaky and all the team members involved in reformatting this site -- thank you!  The  Home Page is awesome!  The entire Falcomcam is  a joy to peruse.
I've always been in awe of your dedication, but you outdid yourselves with this one.   
Please note I also include in this thanks -- the dedicated watchers on the street, and of course the stars of this site -- the PeFas!   ...those with us and those far and near, and  those in our  memories and thoughts. 

Ok, I give, what's  the TS News Stand? It's not clickable....yet! Hmm  :secret2:

Breathtaking!!!!!!!  Great work!!! :bow:

What Dawn says! Thank you, Shaky!

Slainte!

Bobbie

Thank you  :bow:

Our secret weapon.

Ahh!

Very well said Margaret.

Okay, who gets credit for taking that beautiful falcon picture on the home page when you first come to the website?

Lou

 

I bought it from a stock photo company for $10. I didn't want any of our falcons to suffer from the Rfalconcam version of the SI cover jinx.

You are on a roll tonight!  LMAO!

...and of which of our falcons is that a picture?  Personally, I am hoping it is a picture of Mariah!

Margaret - it is not Mariah unless someone blacked out the prominent white feathers that she had above the cere.

WOW!!  Just saw the rfalconcam intro.  Such power. Such force. Such info.  Kudos to the rfalconcam team. From now I'll copy this to my falcon friends.  Really, really great stuff.

Wow! I just looked at the Home Page and it's absolutely wonderful. I especially like the graphics and the easy links to the history, the glossary, the products, and all the rest of it.  You all did a great job!

Dot in PA

Maybe it's me but it seems that the quality of the image in the streaming video is not nearly as good as last year. Even the small view seems as if it is being recorded with a very cloudy lens. The still photos on the "Latest Pictures" page are excellent. I've got a newer, better computer this year so I'm at a loss to understand why I'm getting such a poor images on the streaming video.

It's true DoggyMom, it's not as clear as last year. Maybe Shaky can explain why. :gum:

MAK, I have to agree that the pics - even the still cam views, are not as clear as they were.  It seems to have worsened in the past few weeks. I  think the pics were clearer this winter -- both at home and at work.  I thought it was my eyes!    The pics  (or maybe it my eyes) are lacking the sharpness they previously had.   

Main Camera video is not as sharp as the other cameras because it's from the camera's viewfinder.

However, to say it's not as "clear" as last year is a mistake because we didn't have video from Main camera last year.

The 2nd stream displays 4 cameras simultaneously. Each camera has only a quarter of the window so it naturally doesn't contain as much detail as it would if it occupied the whole thing.

The only way to get sharper images from the 4 cameras is have 1 camera per stream. We have 5 cameras and 2 streams. Increasing the number of streams is impractical. We already broadcast more streams than most wildlife webcams. Decreasing the number of cameras could result in missing an important viewing angle. Sequentially switching cameras periodically is not an option because it was disliked by so many viewers last year. ("The cameras are switching too quickly." "The cameras are switching too slowly.")

I find that hard to believe. Please post some examples.

Don't forget you can click to make the screens bigger on Live stream. Nice feature.

(http://rfalconcam.com/gallery/processed/Camera2_Thumbnail/20110313/Camera2_Thumbnail_20110313-094500.jpg) (http://rfalconcam.com/gallery/processed/Camera2/20110313/Camera2_20110313-094500.jpg)   (http://rfalconcam.com/gallery/processed/Camera2_Thumbnail/20110413/Camera2_Thumbnail_20110413-094500.jpg) (http://rfalconcam.com/gallery/processed/Camera2/20110413/Camera2_20110413-094500.jpg)

The only one that seems a tad off to me is cam 2, but I think it's because it's focused more on the pebbles than the bird.  It wasn't apparent when we were just watching gravel, but now that they're incubating the birds seem a bit "soft" on the focus.  It was blurry the other day when it was overexposed, but that part of it is OK now. 

Cam 1 & 4 will necessarily be affected by the weather

Camera 2 is a lot sharper than it was last year. See the picture attached to Donna's post from March 2010. (her 2000th post, btw)

http://rfalconcam.com/forum/index.php?topic=1096.msg9229#msg9229 (http://rfalconcam.com/forum/index.php?topic=1096.msg9229#msg9229)

Oh, that's for sure...MUCH better than the old cams~

Big difference in quality for sure.

 2000th post.... peanuts!

This website is awesome and a true benefit to the birding community as well as the community at large.  The still photographs that get posted are amazing.   :thumbsup:

I wonder if there should be a separate category in the Forum for the posting of the photos?  I'm never really clear where to look for pictures.  They, or their links, seem to be spread over several categories.  Just wondering.

Way to go on your 1st post gr0tt0. All photos posted from the cams are under "Rochester Falcon Discussion" on the main page. Each category like RM and Tiago, Quest and all offspring is under  "Rochester Falcon Offspring" I think it would cause more confusion to put all the pics in one category. Over time, you will certainly find your way around and be a pro at this. Thanks for posting.

Well, we sort of have a thread for pictures, but it seems to function more as a general discussion thread with pictures.  There is another thread called Keepers for special photos, but I don't know that it's actually used much.

Congrats on your first post, gr0tt0!

Now that 2012 is here, I thought it would be a good time to review our accomplishments for 2011.

• 24/7 streaming video from 5 cameras
  
  
• More viewing options for streaming video (all on one page or in separate, resizable windows)
  
  
• A 3rd video stream added for special events
  
  
• Temperature readings added to streaming video
  
  
• Embedded videos (YouTube, Ustream, etc.) in Forum posts
  
  
• Embedded Google Maps in Forum posts
  
  
• Automatic inclusion of member names, avatars, and signatures into Forum posts sent to Kfalconcam
  
  
• Easier to use FalconWatch blog
  
  
• Public access to the controls of Camera 1
  
  
• An expanded tilt range for Camera 1 that allows zoomed-in views of the tops of Downtown structures
  
  
• A nightly time-lapse pan of Camera 1
  
  
• Pictures from our cameras with banners on the sides that don't obstruct image content
  
  
• Improved falcon family trees
  
  
• Glossary of Rfalconcam terms
  
  
• A fresh new look to the site
  
  

In addition, many changes were made behind the scenes.

• Site moved to a new server resulting in a cost reduction of 75%
  
  
• Improvements to image processing
  
  
• Automatic uploads of Dailies to YouTube
  
  
• Improved spam protection for the Forum
  
  
• Computer equipment at Times Square Building moved to a climate-controlled environment
  
  
• Various bits of Hardware upgraded at Times Square Building to improve reliability
  
  
• New sponsors
  
  
• ROC'ed The Day for the lion's share of $6,500
  
  

 :ditto:

Ur da bomb Shaky! (http://i395.photobucket.com/albums/pp31/Yanglow/animation/kiss.gif)

YIKES!!

And moovelous

 :2funny: