Q I'm looking to set up an live Internet streaming video and audio show. To produce it, I need to have several video-audio streams from remote locations running on my PC at the same time. What kind of a laptop should I purchase? What else do I need to think about?
RYAN ALPERSTEIN, St. Louis Park
A You can be your own broadcaster, but it's not cheap.
The computer is actually the least of your concerns; an off-the-shelf Windows 7 PC will do.
Likewise, the set-up isn't difficult. What you describe is really nothing more than a building security system in which the video from each camera appears in a different window on the PC screen.
But it gets pricey. Axis Communications bundles the video software with four cameras (see tinyurl.com/d48fk9c) for about $800 (see specific system requirements at tinyurl.com/cm7sb3u.) Or you could get just NCH Software's streaming program for $99 (see tinyurl.com/368qut.)
If you have your own website, you can do live streaming through an online provider such as StreamingVideoProvider (see tinyurl.com/yzntq54) for $77 a month. Livestream (see tinyurl.com/c7jbak2) costs $45 a month.).
Q I have a Compaq laptop that warns me I'm running out of space on my "D drive." What can I do?
