XRay Vision Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why can't I get an image in the XRay Vision window?
There are several factors that can affect this. The most important is the correct installation of the drivers for the X10 USB Video Capture Adapter (model VA11A). Make sure that you installed the correct version of XRay Vision for your version of windows from the XRV Download Center. Then, check in the Windows Device Manager (Start | Settings | Control Panel | System | Device Manager) under "Image Capture Devices." There should be a listing for X10 USB Live, and it should be working properly -- no exclamation mark, question mark or red "X" icons in from of the device listing. If this is the case, try disconnecting the USB Adapter, re-starting your computer and connecting the adapter before running XRay Vision. This should solve the problem.

If you don't have the correct lising in Device Manager, you should uninstall XRay Vision and then reinstall it. It's important that when the installation software prompts you to connect the USB Video Capture Adapter that you do so before pressing OK or next. When you connect the USB Adapter, a new window should open that installs the drivers. If it doesn't, and you've never used a USB device on your PC before, you should contact your PC's technical support for help in getting the USB ports working.

Important note for Windows 98 users: If Windows asks you to insert the Windows 98 CD-ROM when loading the drivers for the X10 USB Video Capture Adapter, you must insert this disk for the installation to work. If you don't install the requested files, XRay Vision may not work. If you skipped files during installation, unplug the VA11A and reinstall the software.

XRay Vision reboots my computer when it's running. What do I do?
This problem occurs when your computer's bus (the channels that data travels on) becomes overloaded. In most cases you can fix this by changing the configuration of your video card so that hardware acceleration of video is turned off. If you're not sure how to do this, contact support for your video card.

How do I save the picture on my PC?
There are two ways to do this: from the active log and using the automatic HTML save feature. If you are looking at pictures in the active log and want to save an individual picture, just double-click the image and then choose "Save As" from the menu in the new window. You will be able to save the image as a JPG or BMP file and name it whatever you like.

In addition, you can use the HTML save feature to save images as part of HTML page on your PC. Right-click in the main window and choose "Settings" and then "Internet and Dial-Up Settings." Select the "Export HTML" tab. For "Location" choose "Local" and then enter the folder where you want to save the picture. Then select the name of the file you want to use. Click "OK" to save these changes. Bring up the pop-up menu again and choose "Settings" and "Server Events" this time. Under the "Export HTML" tab you can choose how often you want to save the image to your PC.

How can I use XRay Vision as a web cam?
First, you need to set up the file transfer information for your web server. Right-click in the main window to bring up the XRV pop-up menu. Choose "Settings and then "Internet and Dial-Up Settings." Select the "Export HTML" tab. For "Location" choose "FTP" and then enter the information you use to send files to your web server. Then select the name of the file to be used (the one your will link to) and click "OK" to save these changes.

Next, bring up the pop-up menu again and choose "Settings" and "Server Events" this time. Under the "Export HTML" tab you can choose how often you want to save the image to your PC. If you want to make XRay Vision work like a typical web cam, you'll probably want to have the image uploaded every few minutes.

How do you hook up multiple cameras to the XRAY Vision software?
The best way is to set all the cameras and the receiver to the same channel (A-D), and use X10 appliance modules (AM486) to turn the cameras on and off. You'll need one appliance module for each camera, each set to a different Unit Code, and a controller to turn them on and off with. If you have a FireCracker computer interface (model CM17A) you can switch cameras automatically or manually within XRay Vision.

Plug one appliance module into a wall outlet for each camera you intend to use. Then, plug a camera power supply into each appliance module. Set the appliance modules to unique unit codes, i.e. A1, A2, or C7, C8, etc. Turn all cameras/senders on (not the appliance modules), turn the television on and turn the receiver on. Using the X10 Remote control, turn on one appliance module at a time.

In XRay Vision, right-click in the main window to bring up the pop-up menu, choose "Settings" and then "Cameras." In this window you can enter the X10 address (House and Unit code) of the installed cameras, and assign a name to use for them in the software. Once this is done you will be able to switch cameras from XRay Vision.