Windy webcams submission form updates and how long will it take to be checked.

thuanma

Most webcam assessments check are approximately around 50 pending webcam daily depending on number of request during this time, usually around between 200 - 300 back then before May 2024 during their limit availability times.

For webcam to be approved it’s view must show:

Both night and daylight images must show enough of what the weather looks like to be approved. First check during night are more likely to be rejected especially with night vision being switched on or the light nearby is on which shows the lack of the surrounding landscape/space, but a rare case they will delay the approval until the daylight hours is being checked however first check are more likely to be approved during daylight hours without nights being checked. Unfortunately tree blocking or other stuff blocking the view of what the weather looks like will not be approved.

Image cannot be loaded:

If the first check shows image cannot be loaded or offline during the time it’s being first checked, it will be manually review and rejected immediately in which required first check to be at different times for approval. It must be re-submitted it again. Some webcam that are offline during that time nightly hours when the college checks the webcam at the same time for 1 hour daily are locked out of being approved and resubmitting the same webcam over again will still be rejected.

Number of views:

Adding different languages view with same names views will most likely be translated to English rather than the language view you added after the webcam approval and will result in a repeated name view and often duplicate view are removed or merged.

Quality or image size:

In a rare case if the webcam view size is too small or not sufficient sometimes due to privacy reason which shows the lack of the weather conditions, it may be rejected however it’s most often approved. In which case the 2nd time will be approved.

Using the add new webcam form to update an already existing webcam:

In which case if a webcam on windy does requires image URL update due to the link being changed (sometimes few times a week), updating using the already existing webcam edit settings will take over a month or two to be approved or rejected while using the added new webcam form will take within 2 days to update an already existing webcam, you will still receive a rejection saying that it’s already been submitted but it will update an already existing webcam. However too many webcam submissions (like over 40+ webcam) will delay their time of approval of other users which is the problem depending on the colleges availability times. Unfortunately close up street/traffic roads, just sky without land, rotating cameras and too many webcam in a small radius area will not be affected and will be approved as new instead as the view must show both land and sky to update as you must update the already existing webcam by going to edit settings.

Webcams removal and disabled/deactivated:

Between mid 2022 until late 2023 or early 2024, most webcam has been automatically disabled/deactivated due to not enough landscape/space, indoors, advertising or inactive (blank picture), currently at this time, it can only be disabled/deactivated requested by users except for not up-to-date YouTube domains due to the streaming being offline for longer period of time and the image URL link redirect just shows list of archived live videos when offline.

Changing the upload interval times to 15 minutes permanent by request?:

It is no longer possible to change upload interval times to 15 minutes anymore. Previously back in December 2019 onwards, most newly webcam added are 1 hour upload interval by default however the settings can be changed to 15 minutes permanent by former windy admin Korina for most webcam between 2020 - 2022 by request from users to make it fair and reduce last 30 days, 12 months and lifetime snapshots being skipped. During this time after late 2022, it is no longer possible but maybe in future.

Anyways I will continue to monitor my email of the colleges availability times and other webcam activity stuff and may keep up-to-date with some changes. Will update or edit the topic if there is some changes and hope for the close and accurate answers as possible.

Karolina P

Hi @thuanma ,

I would appreciate it if you would review my feedback on your post below:

Regarding the processing queue:
We review added webcams manually and we have allocated a specific number of hours each day for this task based on the average number of webcams submitted. When there is an unusual number of additions such as hundreds of webcams added within a few days, it creates a backlog and delays the process.

On approval requirements:
When a camera is reviewed at night and the image is dark or unclear, we delay approval until we can see it in daylight. If a camera is rejected during the first check, it could be for one of the following reasons:

It is a duplicate
The camera was previously added but cannot be processed
It was rejected earlier for valid reasons
The camera is from a domain we cannot approve

If the image is offline or not loading during the first check, the camera will be rejected. We can only approve webcams that are consistently online 24/7.

Regarding language and naming conventions:
To make webcams accessible to a global audience, we standardize names in English and clean up unnecessary or duplicate information. This ensures names are relevant and easy to understand.

On quality and re-approval:
We prioritize webcams that show clear weather conditions and meet technical criteria. If a camera is rejected once, it does not mean it will automatically be approved later. However, for webcams that are borderline, manual approval sometimes allows a second chance at the discretion of the reviewer.

About updating existing webcams:
It is not entirely true that newly added webcams are processed faster than updates to existing ones. I mean, under normal circumstances, updates don’t take months, but delays can occur when there is a large queue as I mentioned before. Recently, we’ve been facing this challenge due to a high number of your additions.

We sent you an email asking for collaboration to optimize our time on both sides. It’s possible you didn’t receive it. Could you please check your spam folder?

On disabling or removing webcams:
Webcams that do not provide sufficient landscape or weather information are not approved. If we find such webcams active, we disable them. Webcams that remain offline for extended periods are automatically deactivated.

Regarding update intervals:
By default, new webcams are set to a 15 minute update interval. However, the actual frequency depends on the source. If the source does not provide updates within this interval, it may appear as if the interval is longer. We are working on optimiziation and top webcams will be updated often then 15 minutes in the future.

Next steps:
We would really appreciate it if you could reply to the e-mail we sent earlier so we can discuss your activity and submissions on Windy in more detail. This will help us work together more effectively.

Also, if you are using an automated process to submit webcams, we would kindly ask you to let us know. Submitting the same domain repeatedly with minimal changes slows down our ability to process your and other users' requests as well. Together, we can find a better solution.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

Best regards,
Karolína