We were asked to take some snaps and I decided that a few scripts would save us a lot of hassle.
We took the pictures for internal use so they didn't have to be 5000 pixles wide.
What we did was setup an intranet site on a PHP server that we could search the MIS database for a student by surname.
and click a button to take a snap of the student.
record the image in the correct format for the MIS to pick it up easily.
Well it went so well I thought we should share it. It is not an out of the box solution unless you use Facility CMIS but there is only a few bits to change to make it work with SIMS.
Just install it on your PHP server, insert your SQL details, and point it to an IP cam and you are pretty much ready to go.
what you need to do
Download the picsw software here
untar it onto your PHP server.
tweak the cmissql.inc
Change the remote_img variable to point to your ip webcam.
make sure the webservice has write permissions on the image folder and you are good to go.
Procedure for quick pic taking
Ask the student for the surname
do the search as the student steps into the marked out box.
confirm the students first name
Say cheese and click the camera icon.
you will see the captured image on the screen.
Easy!
