Issue 18 / January 2011

“After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved, science and art tend to coalesce in esthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists are always artists as well.” - Albert Enstein.

Albert Einstein (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German theoretical physicist who discovered the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics.

All the Best in 2011!

With another year behind us, I would like to extend our most sincere thanks for your continued support. Like every other year at Genetec, 2010 was filled with excitement, lots of hard work, and of course, some very memorable moments along the way. Some key highlights worth mentioning include the launch of our Channel Partner Program, the creation of our Major Account and Consultant (A&E) teams, the opening of our Singapore office, the release of the SV-16 Network Security Appliance, the launch of Security Center 4.0 with full LPR unification and our Professional Services. Some more highlights include our relentless growth which led to our new corporate image, and the acquisition of Sipelia. Looking ahead at 2011, we can ensure you that it will remain just as eventful. As perpetual innovators, more great services and products are planned for release this year. We cannot divulge too much information, but as usual, we will be pushing technological boundaries and leading with more great innovation.
Our aggressive international expansion in Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America will continue as we hire more talent and develop more alliances across the globe. Providing quality service and support is equally important to Genetec as is delivering exceptional products. Our aim is to better support our local integrators, distributors and ultimately the end users in these regions. We are eager and excited as we kick-off this New Year and fully appreciate your commitment to our organization. We certainly could not have made it this far without your support. All the best, Guy Chénard Vice-President Global Sales & Business Development at Genetec

New Plan Manager Feature in Omnicast – What Has
Everyone Talking ››

With the recent announcement about the acquisition of Sipelia, Genetec introduced Omnicast’s new Plan Manager feature. Plan Manager is an interactive map-based command and control feature. Operators can create and integrate interactive maps into their video surveillance system to efficiently manage their security environment including multi-site and multi-level maps, cameras, encoders, and other solutions.

Here are some of the functionalities that are garnering a lot of attention:

1. Plan Manager accepts exported vectorial PDF maps from Autocad and other CAD systems or raster maps such as JPG, BMP, TIFF, and allows integration with geographical information system (GIS).
2. As opposed to standard JPG or raster map- based systems, Plan Manager allows an operator to zoom into a map, from bird’s eye view down, to gather as much details in an image as required.
3. Cameras are displayed on the maps as colored icons, which indicate their location, status and the camera’s field of view, even with pan and tilt cameras.
4. Displaying video is as easy as clicking on a camera, alarm or any point on the map where you want to view the video.
5. Alarm management functionality quickly centers the map on the alarm zone when an event is triggered in Omnicast. Operators can then acknowledge the alarm in Omnicast or click directly on the flashing area.

Read the full Plan Manager feature focus ››

Multi-System Integration Options Explored – Q&A with Jimmy Palatsoukas, Senior Product Manager at Genetec ››

What integration methods are most common in the security industry?

The simplest approach to integration has always been through dry contacts and relays. Although simple to implement, this level of integration is limited, and involves manpower to wire all the electrical interconnections between systems. There is only so much you can communicate with relays.

Another level of integration is through a software development kit or SDK. At Genetec, we offer SDKs in our toolkits which allow for integration through software that circumvents the labour-intensive use of electrical wiring as the primary means of communication. With an SDK, all communications can be achieved through software or middleware. Information can be shared bi-directionally and installation involves deploying middleware created with the SDK. This ensures there is IP network connectivity between systems.

What trends are you seeing with integration methods?

Newer trends include integration through IT directories and driver development kits (DDKs). With the growing trend of IT and security systems convergence, integration through directories is gaining traction. Many organizations use a centralized directory to manage their computer users, security policies, and deploy software. Since these directories tend to be centralized, an organization can use this central repository to not only consolidate information but to also share information with other business and security systems.

Can you provide an example of IT directory integration?

Microsoft Active Directory can be used to synchronize computer user accounts with a video surveillance system’s operator accounts or an access control system’s cardholder accounts. With automated synchronization from the directory to these various security systems, an organization’s efficiency is naturally increased. Data entry is done centrally and only once, and system updates are sent to any system connected to the central repository, be it a security system or a business system such as a human resources management system or a student database.

You mentioned DDKs as an integration trend. Can you elaborate?

DDKs have been used historically by operating system (OS) manufacturers, such as Microsoft and Apple, to allow hardware manufacturers to add device drivers that can be used by applications running on their operating systems. A security product looking to integrate third party hardware systems will tend to naturally evolve to support DDKs. More importantly, a security product that supports hardware-specific DDKs (e.g. an intrusion panel DDK or a camera DDK) means that the level of integration is more extensive than going through a generic SDK.

*The content above is an abridged version of Jimmy’s monthly Ask the Expert column in SP&T News. Read the full column here. ››

Did You Know ››

“Genetec has been recently named a regional winner of the Canada’s 10 Most Admired Corporate Cultures of 2010 Program. We were selected amongst 276 eligible nominated organizations in 2010 and 98 finalists. Our company is a place for inspiration, creativity and personal accomplishment that is home to talented, hard-working people. Currently, there are 18 positions open at Genetec. If you want a challenging career within a dynamic and innovative organization, apply online.” – Joelle Couture, Manager, Talent Management

Contact us ››

At Genetec, we truly value the relationships we have with our customers and partners, and with that, greatly appreciate your input. If you would like to contribute ideas or have comments about the information contained herein, please do not hesitate to contact us by email at marketing@genetec.com. We hope that you have enjoyed reading our newsletter and we look forward to bringing you Beyond Innovation again soon!

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