hi people!!
i'm after some advice for a software package which will run a cctv server programme that will run on linux- i know nothing about linux os but i am looking to change from windows due to the £140 i'm expected to pay to microsoft- every time i build a pc based cctv system.
it will be required to be able to run on a windows based lan and wan network as well.i am concerned with the operating system requiring a lot of plug-in patches to run the required hardware. can anyone recommend a list of components that are already supported by linux for a complete pc buildup? the system will consist of two hard drives, adsl modem ,512ddr memory,3 pci slots,tft monitor,dvd drive, floppy drive,anyone suggest a quality motherboard?, usb slots .sorry about the level of questions but i am really green with linux.
any help appreciated

I'm replying to this assuming you are taking about video capture, like in cctv security cameras.
I've been using the Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-350. The Linux driver is called "IVTV" and it allows you to capture streaming audio/video to a file from any of the card's inputs. In your/our case we'd be interested in the composite input I'm assuming, since cameras that support this format are easily available.
Basically it works pretty well if all you need to do is save the video to a .mpg file. The Hauppauge card can only capture one video source at a time. You can have more than one card however, one per pci slot.