Buy a webcam. Plenty of brands available for less than £15. Includes software so that you can hook up to your computer via USB port

Hi,

An option is to use a cheap cctv camera. They start at around £20. Problem is, they use "video output" and not RF which is what your TV needs.

You can however use an ordinary TV and not a monitor by modulating the video signal. This is done in one of two ways:

1. Buy a cheap modulator from RS components, Maplins or Gardiner Security.

2. Use a TV with a scart input and solder the video signal conductors on to your own 21 pin scart plug. This is a 4 or 3 wire connection, the pins of which I can't remember off the top of my head, but if you choose to go down this road, I'll look it up for you.

If you struggle, particularly with your eyesight, let me know roughly which part of the country you're in and we'll fix you up with a CCTV engineering company's details close to you.

Roland Butter

City centre CCTV

i have soldered scart plugs and they aren't hugely difficult but the sure as hell aren't soldering for begginers either,

hardest connectors i've ever done are 6 pin mini dins

8 pin standard dins are pretty hard too.....

I haven't tried high density D connectors (as used for computer monitors) but they also look pretty nasty

I'd have thought a webcam would not get the close focus needed so a small CCTV cam may be better. Never tried though! I guess it depends on the lens it has in any case.

You'll also need to practice as you'll be looking at a screen rather than where your hands are. But surgeons manage...

But is a simple illuminated magnifying glass on an arm out of the question?

keep a line socket handy

helps keep the pins in place if the plastic softens a bit

the thing i dislike on scarts is the pins can move quite a bit even with the plastic solid.

From a mechanical POV, SCART has to be about the worst plug ever invented.

What were they thinking of?

Cheap, flimsy, poor grade plastics.

Compare them to proper RF connectors, XLRs, 10base2 Ethernet etc....

[quote author=sparkster  link=1104785914/0#7 date=1104831730]You'll also need to practice as you'll be looking at a screen rather than where your hands are. But surgeons manage...


[/quote]

That was actually where I got the idea from, as I had to have a sony camera up the nose and down the throat (cancer test) at hospital (doc wuddent let me keep the tape though)
If you think about it, you move your mouse and look at the screen and that is second nature after a while. I use a wacom tablet frequently-after a while you "draw" while looking at the monitor, filing shudd be a dodle. But when I think about it one of those jewellers welding mask type eyepieces is probably simpler and more versatile (a camera wud be good for teaching filing though). Thanks for all the advice anyways,
Mr S

WOW, that was amazing. I dont have hotdogs for fingers tho!

CPC do 3x lenses witha 22w fluorescent ring tube which comes on an angle-poise arm to clamp to the desk/bench.

order code LA0133183 at £29.78+VAT

Could be an easy option?