ROANOKE RAIL CAM

[j610]

Its an 8 year old hewlett-packard . Very old technology . Its long overdue for replacement . I am going to get a new one this weekend . Been putting it off too long.   I also use avast and i will give the ccleaner a try . thanks.   RON

[Semper Vaporo]

Whatcha got now?  What kind of internet access?  What seems to be wrong? (Any guess?)  Maybe your present one is just bogged down with too much fluff that needs weeded out?  Do you have or have you run any "clean-up" type software?

I "regularly" (like every night before I shut down for the day) run a program named "CCleaner".  It is free and does a fine job of eliminating junk files that build up all day long.   (If you try this program be sure to understand some of the options of what it can throw away.  It can mess up some "automatic log-ons" if you let it.  I'd be happy to help you through it in PMs or e-mails if you want.)

I also just switch anti-malware systems back from a new one that was recommended to me.  The new one really slowed my PC down... it was taking MINUTES (plural!) to load some web pages!)  Dunno if it was all that much better at finding malware than the other one or if the other one is all that much worse.  I don't have much trouble with malware anyway, so I went back to the old program and everything sped up again.  I had switched to "AVG", was using and have gone back to "Avast!".

 

[j610]

Time for a new computer .    RON

[Semper Vaporo]

Worked for me several times today and I just checked it again and it was working.

[j610]

Is the vmt railcam down or is it my computer ?    RON

[j610]

I am beginning to see a lot of union pacific units lately . Any reason for the sudden increase .   RON

[Semper Vaporo]

j610

I am going to be in roanoke sunday and monday .I plan on going to the museum again and plan on still having some time for trainwatching . I was born in roanoke , but haven`t been back for a while .   RON

 

If you happen to walk past that monument at Roanoke Ave and S Jefferson St., wave REAL BIG at the hotel cam!  Or stop at the end of the Railwalk outside of the VMT at the guard rail and waive from there.  I watch both cams at random times for a few minutes each time throughout the day (sure miss a lot of the front of trains that way!), if I see you I will do a screen capture and post it here!  If you can plan somewhat accurately way ahead, post here about what time you might be there and I will try to be watching with the image capture program running.

 

[j610]

I am going to be in roanoke sunday and monday .I plan on going to the museum again and plan on still having some time for trainwatching . I was born in roanoke , but haven`t been back for a while .   RON

[Semper Vaporo]

Did'ja see the crazy railfans out there tonight?  If not, here ya go:

Okay, okay, so I'm jealous to actually be there.

 

[j610]

I agree , they are both great and I am glad we have access to them . But , human nature being as it is , we always want more .      RON

[RiversideBNSF]

I know sound would be a huge plus. But at least we have these two cams for starters and some good railfanning without leaving the house.

[Great Western]

Maybe it wasn't clear but the two cams are the hotel one and the VMT one.   

[j610]

I would also like to know where you found a choice of 2 cams on that link.    RON

[Semper Vaporo]

Great Western

I haven't seen the web cam (Hotel) for a couple of  weeks.  Using the link to the VMT cam gives the choice of two cams.  The VMT cam shows the trains much clearer, being nearer to the tracks, but had the delay which can freeze on my pc.

However as these cams are a delight to watch I should not complain.   

I have seen a red caboose often either trailed or on the point.  I have also seen the EPIC containers and am curious about their load and provenance.  One loco seen recently, in rather good shape as well, was a SOO loco.  Not seen that name on the cam before even if there are many Wisconsin Souther boxcars in consists.

 

 

Oops!  Ya lost me... Where do you get the "choice of two cams"?

 

[Great Western]

I haven't seen the web cam (Hotel) for a couple of  weeks.  Using the link to the VMT cam gives the choice of two cams.  The VMT cam shows the trains much clearer, being nearer to the tracks, but had the delay which can freeze on my pc.

However as these cams are a delight to watch I should not complain.   

I have seen a red caboose often either trailed or on the point.  I have also seen the EPIC containers and am curious about their load and provenance.  One loco seen recently, in rather good shape as well, was a SOO loco.  Not seen that name on the cam before even if there are many Wisconsin Souther boxcars in consists.

 

[j610]

I wish they would switch places with the two cameras . Sure would be nice to have the streaming video close to the tracks . A little bit of sound wouldn`t hurt either .   RON

[Modelcar]

Height of the VMT cam.....?  Looking at the view across the top of the "Epic double stacked containers".....My guess Is:  18 to 20' above grade.

[Semper Vaporo]

Yep, saw the caboose on VMT's cam  but it was too far away to get a good image of... so I got it with the Hotel's cam:

It is raining, so it is a dark, dull day... and the caboose is all wet. Still cannot read the number.

Here is an image of the EPIC containers:

And just for grins, I had been wondering just how high the VMT camera is mounted.  Watching pedestrians in the area indicated it was well above head height, but then this trash truck drove near:

Upper third of the image is the Windows Magnifier window showing a portion of the VMT cam view in the lower left section.  The large triangular object at the bottom is the top of the trash truck leaving from behind the VMT building.  The camera is higher than I thought!

[RichardLHight]

 

Semper Vaporo,

 

When I signed on the VTM camera I saw the old red caboose that you caught in your last post at the end of a short mixed freight waiting on the center track.  This train was headed up with what I think was a SD40 with the old green BN livery that appeared to be leased power coupled to a NS SD40

 

Switching to the Hotel cam I was able to see virtually the same pic as you have posted.  This makes at least three red cabooses in service.  One has the modern NS logo, one still carrying the old NW logo, and this one you caught that has no marking except the white band at the base of the body and the white tank under the caboose. 

 

I'm still hoping to see those Epic cars, but so far no luck.

 

 

 

[Semper Vaporo]

I know there are at least two cabeese that ply these rails... One is numbered "55555" (I think), is bright red and has the Stallion NS logo on both sides.  The other is a darker, dull red and has no logo (can't read the number).  Also the one without the logo has the rear side windows very near the ends, but the one with the logo has the rear one on one side (north side/hotel side as it has been on the track the times I have seen it) much farther from the end .

Caught the logo one from both cameras today... east bound... from the VMT cam:

And a few seconds later... Eastbound from the Hotel cam: (Note the rear side window position)

 Those few seconds between these shots were spent franticly trying to reset the Snipping Tool!

 

Here is the other caboose, from a couple of weeks ago:

 

 

As for those "EPIC" container cars.  I know which ones you are talking about.  I have seen them several times on the Hotel cam... going both directions.  I have also seen similar cars on the U.P. line where I live.  I have always thought they carry scrap metal of some sort, but I really don't know their use.  I do know the cars are in pairs with a single truck between them.  The outer ends always have two containers stacked and the inner ends of the pair only have one.  I assume this because each truck can support the weight of just 2 containers... The single truck between the cars carrying one container from each car and the outer truck carrying the two stacked containers on the end.

 

[j610]

Just saw some strange cars go by . They had EPIC on the side and appeared to be permanently connected in groups of two or three . Does anyone know the story on these ?    RON

[blue streak 1]

[quote user="Semper Vaporo"]

I forgot, I did get a daytime shot on the 3rd, but I mis-timed the keypress and the caboose was too far away.  I don't remember which way it was headed.

Tonight (this morning) I got a closer shot, but the color is all washed out.  It was on the "rear" as the train was headed East (away from the VMT Webcam, toward the Hotel Webcam).

 

Someday I'll get the timing right and get a clean shot during the daytime! 

 

[/quote

 If the time stamp is correct the shadows would indicate the first picture has the traing going away to the east?

[Semper Vaporo]

I believe the antennas are on the far ridge (Poor Mountain) as viewed from the Hotel Webcam.  Here is a Google Earth image where I have marked the two webcams (the yellow pushpins in the upper right corner) and about the middle of the antenna farm (the single pushpin in the lower left corner).  A distance of a little over 13 miles.

If you want to see photos of the antennas;

Run Google Earth and enable the new feature, "Panoramio" by enabling the "Photos" Layer (see the checkmark in the bottom list in the menu on the left).  (I have also enabled the "More/Transportation" Layer to see the RR routes [the black lines in the photo area]).

Notice the small blue squares.  Hovering the mouse arrow over some of the ones near the Antennas pushpin will show the call letters of the broadcast company for that antenna.  Click on them and you will see photos taken at that place.  Many of them include the antennas, and a couple are looking back toward Roanoke.  Double click on the square and it will take you to a slideshow type of display of the photos.

 

I knew that Windows Media Player (WMP) has a buffer, but the variance in the delay from one connection to the next is quite confusing.  This morning it was barely 1/2 second, (if that), but yesterday is was more like 20 seconds.  (Don'tcha jus lov the way cornpewters do things the same way every time!... snicker snicker snicker).

 

[kolechovski]

Hey, which of the 2 ridges is that antenna farm on that twinkles at night?  the close one or the far one?  A reminder that screenshots can be taken of the VMT cam with the Printscreen key (no extrernal camera is needed), and then pasting the image taken into MS Paint, or any other picture editor.  The live feed from the hotel can be grabbed by SnippingTool if you have a recent version of Windows.  If not, and it opens in WMP, then the external camera will be needed.

The sun is shining on teh camera now, and it seems spidey's web has been wiped, along with the window.  The window does have a couple smudges, but it would never stay clean for long.  The loco's exhaust will always make that certain.  Still, much better!  As for the delay, don't forget WMP also has "buffering", which contributes to the delay.  I bet much of the lag comes from WMP itself, though the hotel's stream can be a few seconds behind on its own.  Still, very little of an issue, but just remembering that "live" is more like "a few seconds ago".  And keep grabbing those wonderful screenshots!  I'd post some I got if I got the chance.

[Modelcar]

Semper Vaporo

I forgot, I did get a daytime shot on the 3rd, but I mis-timed the keypress and the caboose was too far away.  I don't remember which way it was headed.

Tonight (this morning) I got a closer shot, but the color is all washed out.  It was on the "rear" as the train was headed East (away from the VMT Webcam, toward the Hotel Webcam).

 

Someday I'll get the timing right and get a clean shot during the daytime! 

 

I think both shots are credible....Of course we can see the day shot colors much better.

Item: Last night {Firday}, at about 10:45 i had just clicked over to the "hotel cam" and a WB auto carrier, double stack train was just coming into view, and then the caboose poped into view  WB, on a backing train.  The WB train soon hid it but I did get a look at it for a short time.

 

[RichardLHight]

Are you kidding?  I'm amazed that you were able to catch that red rascal, considering you had less than a second's notice that the caboose was coming into view!  It's been my understanding that cabooses are now used to carry railroad police to protect valuable cargo from roadside thieves.

 

The caboose you've caught at least twice, as well as the other catch that occurred on the RRC were the newer car that carries the current NS horse head logo and white roof.  The one I've seen on the road has been much older with oxidized red paint and the old white NW identification.  Each time I've seen it, it was bringing up the rear of a tank car and three box cars being towed by what I recall was an old weather beaten high nose GP7 carrying the NW logo. 

 

Could it be a ghost train that rides the rails in search of it's past glory?  Something to consider!  I wonder if anyone knows how to contact a PR type at NS that might give us a heads up on that train?    

[Semper Vaporo]

I forgot, I did get a daytime shot on the 3rd, but I mis-timed the keypress and the caboose was too far away.  I don't remember which way it was headed.

Tonight (this morning) I got a closer shot, but the color is all washed out.  It was on the "rear" as the train was headed East (away from the VMT Webcam, toward the Hotel Webcam).

 

Someday I'll get the timing right and get a clean shot during the daytime! 

 

[RichardLHight]

Dang fellows!  I was switching back forth between the new VMT and RRC without seeing anything happening.  A few minuets later at 8:50 ET I went back to the RRC to check on our flickering lights and to my surprise I see a boxcar with two black tank cars with that elusive caboose heading south east from the right to the left on the screen.  If only I had gone back to the new camera location, it could have given me a close up of that little train

[RichardLHight]

Good evening gentlemen, I logged onto the RCC last Saturday at PM to see a string of mismatched passenger cars including a couple of dome cars, one which was closest to the camera.  At about 3:20 a large number of people began coming from the left side of the screen and entered the dome car.  When the train began to move, ten cars passed the camera and that was that.

 

I noticed a wisp of what I suspect was spider web that was fluttering near that monument and it sure looked like smoke coming from the top of the monument,

 

Did anyone notice that the new vmt camera has a pause button on it.  It's that small blue oval at the center bottom of the screen.  I bought a small camera tripod from the local Dollar Tree that allows me to take screen shots, id only I knew what to do with them then!

 

I'm sorry that the twinkling light mystery has been solved.  It was fun to speculate on the source. Oh well   

[Semper Vaporo]

I watch both cameras simultaneously at times.  The Hotel cam is delayed compared to the VMT one.  I watch the VMT cam for the end of train, or some very unique car, to pass under the pedestrian bridge between them, as indicated by the shadow of the bridge on the car.  Then start my on-screen stopwatch and switch to the Hotel cam.  I then stop the timer when the same event is at the shadow.  It can be anywhere from 3 or 4 seconds difference to well over 15 seconds.

I still have not managed to get a screen capture, using the VMT cam, of one of the cabeese.  Came close a couple of times, but fumble fingered the keystroke to copy the screen!