> From:    Hugh Vandervoort <[log in to unmask]>

> A friend of mine wishes to set up a remote weather station (At his
favorite
> winsurfing beach) and have the real-time results posted to a web page. He
> wants wind speed and direction, primarily, and possibly temperature and
> barometric pressure. What are the hardware requirements, and the best way to
> retrieve/post this info?

> From:    Dave Gillett <[log in to unmask]>

>   I think there are two basic approaches that can be taken to connecting the
> instruments to a PC:
>
> 1.  Digital
>   Locate instruments that provide a serial or parallel port for connection.
> See
>
> http://www.alphalink.com.au/~derekw/ane/anemain.htm
>
> for an example.
>
> 2.  Analog
>   The electrical signal from the instruments must go through some sort of A2D
> (Analog-to-Digital) conversion.  Boards to do this can be fairly expensive,
> but an old analog joystick port may be usable and can be found cheaply.
>
>   On the web server, a CGI script, ASP page or other "dynamic" HTML construct
> allows current values to be retrieved and presented in the context of a
> template page.

There are plenty of companies who will sell you equipment to make the
conversion from analog to digital.  Search for "data-logging" equipment
and see the likes of:
  http://www.natinst.com
  http://www.datel.com
  http://www.keithley.com
  http://www.hp.com

But before you run off and start spending money, I suggest that you
call the local representatives of your weather bureau (that would be
Environment Canada here), or the Department of Meteorology at your local
University.  Another place to inquire would be at a local airport.

If you can get together with some meteorologists, they should be a fund
of knowledge, standards, and helpful hints.  My qualification as a
"weatherman" comes from my days as a Boy Scout - too many years ago -
but trends in windspeed, barometric pressure, etc. are as significant
(if not more so) as the current values.  If your computer can access
a robust "data logger" type weather station via the Internet, your
home page could collect data at intervals and show trends.  For
example, a slow drop in barometric pressure (over days) indicates
an oncoming storm low.  A sudden drop (within an hour) warns of a
violent squall (thunderstorm) coming soon.

There is no sense in "re-inventing the wheel", and they probably have,
or would be interested in helping you set up, a station near where you
would like to have one.  If you can use standard equipment that they
have on hand, and share the data generated, so much the better.

Boyd Ramsay

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