Local server kits blueprint

Kit contains:

1. Local Server Box
2. Industrial-strength wireless router
3. Audio-visual configured laptop w/ cables and adaptors
4. Digital projector
5. Dedicated Internet connection
6. Additional Wireless broadcast capacity

1. Local Server Box -- a small heavy-duty server box with extensive (1 to 2 TB) hardrive space, processing power and memory, and multiple ethernet ports.
- can be placed in any existing LAN and will automatically contact main site and autoconfigure
- serves static content from Isuma.tv website (video, audio, images, other files)
- downloads new content from main site
- receives video files from users, transcodes video and send to main site
- creates a regularly updated static offline version of the the full site

Avantech UNO-3272-3S51 $1 610 per unit
2 x 1TB 2.5" Hard drive $134 per unit
1 powersupply $88 per unit

Total: $1966 per kit

STATUS: Received one from Advantech. 6 more currently on order from Arrow.

2. Wireless router -- added to LAN with the Local Server box
- configured to serve only Isuma.tv site
- open access
- maximum possibile range

Basic wireless router: Cisco RV 120W Wireless-N $150 per unit

Total: $150 per kit

STATUS: Received one from Access Info-Tech.

3. Audio-visual configured laptop w/ cables and adaptors -- added to the LAN with the Local server box, receiving video from the Local server. Can be used to play video/audio out to an RF modulator (cable TV connection) or to a digital projector. Can also be used to receive video and upload to local server, or to receive audio and broadcast to main site as internet radio. Can also be used for LiveTV broadcasts.
- laptop with full sound and video, in and out
- necessary video adapters, rf modulator
- video and audio cables
- software for internet radio streaming (shoutcast, icecast)
- wirecast for live streaming and video mixing

Apple MacBook $1049
Mini DisplayPort to DVI adaptor $34

STATUS: Received from Access Info-Tech. However, this particular adapter only outputs digital DVI, and so cannot be used with the below  DVI to composite adapter.

DVI to Video adaptor $25

STATUS: Received one form Access Info-Tech. However, it is only compatible with previous generation MacBook and MacBook Pro systems (the ones with full-size DVI ports) and will not work with the modern MacBook we have selected.
 

RF Modulator $20

STATUS: Received from Access Info-Tech. But I'm not sure why we need this. Every cable TV station has composite and s-video inputs to their video mixers already.

Total: $1128 per kit

Rather than a couple of connector adapters and an RF modulator, what we really need is a broadcast-quality scan converter.

For example, we could get:

Apple mini DisplayPort to VGA converter, $34

Kramer VP-501xl for $395

which would produce high-quality composite and SVideo signals suitable for a cable TV station.

We also have the alternative of the BrightEye Mitto, which doesn't have an SVideo output, but we could fit it with an SDI to SVideo converter (although that would increase the cost).

Since the BrightEye Mitto accepts DVI, we could use the already-purchased mini DisplayPort to DVI adapter. We would still need a DVI-D cable in that case. We would also need to confirm that the Mitto accepts DVI-D.

Prices forthcoming.

4. Digital projector
- Are we sending one with each kit? It's not in the funding proposal.

5. Dedicated Internet connection
- Should we arrange this ahead of time for each community or arrange it on site, depending on the situation?

6. Additional wireless broadcast capacity -- we can approach this on two levels: (a) Adding a high-powered outdoor accesspoint attached to the local server or (b) creating an outdoor mesh attached to one or a series of local servers that will cover an almost unlimited area (up to an entire city, for example).

(a) This is an outdoor bridge/antenna that can cover a range of up to 13 km. However, connectivity is limited by the connecting computer! -- most laptops cannot make connections more than 200 to 300 meters. But a computer with it's own highpowered antenna could make a connection from some distance away, so a network in a building far from the local server could be connected to the local server, though it might make sense for that network to have it's own local server and independent network connection.

Cisco Aironet 1300 Series - $900 per unit

STATUS: Received one unit from Access Info-Tech. This gives us the ability to test it as an access point, but not a bridge.

(b) A mesh network sets up a series of access points all connected to the local server. The mesh can be extended to cover an entire town and could be set up very 300m to 600m so there will always be an access point near by for wireless devices to connect to. However, this option is very expensive! Individual mesh access point cost in the range of $3000 each, plus controller ($3000 - $6000). We could set up a small mesh network with two access points for around $10000, and grow it from there.

Cisco Aironet 1520 Series $3000 per unit
Cisco Wireless LAN controllers $3000 to $6000 per unit