Tired of living in fear? Ready to protect your home and family? Want to keep your place of business safe? Then you’re ready for a video surveillance system.
Video surveillance systems are used both at home and in commercial establishments to monitor the movement of people. Also known as closed circuit TV (CCTV), they are used to monitor pathways and insecure areas around homes and to prevent break-ins and intrusions.
A video surveillance system is made up of the following components:
Monitors. These are used to display video information processed by the cameras placed strategically in and around the house. Monitors have better video resolution than standard television receivers. The resolution of a black-and-white CCTV monitor, ranges from 700-1000 lines, whereas color monitors have a resolution of 350-400 lines.
Cameras. These are placed at strategic locations to monitor the movement of suspicious or unknown persons. They send this information to the monitors.
Coaxial cabling. This is used to transport video information from the cameras to the monitors.
Switchers. These are used to hook two or more cameras to a monitor. Advanced switchers allow you to hook up alarm inputs, so that the corresponding camera is targeted and locked when the alarm is activated.
The camera. This is the most important component in any video surveillance system. Great care should be taken when buying it. Some of the points to keep in mind when buying a camera are:
* How many cameras are needed in order to effectively monitor the exterior and interior of a home?
* Is there a need for both visual and audio inputs?
* Should the cameras take black-and-white or color images?
* Should the cameras be wired or wireless?
The placement and installation of cameras is also important. The following points should be kept in mind before installing a camera:
* The farther back the camera is placed, the larger the area it views will be. However, the clarity will be proportionately reduced.
* There should be no blind spots caused by boundaries, trees, poles etc.
* The height at which the camera is placed should be such that it is not easily accessible from the ground.
A user has several options when selecting a home video surveillance system. He or she can have the security cameras connected to a PC, a TV, and/or a VCR. The camera can be wireless or wired. The user also has the option to use spy (hidden) cameras.
The user can install the video surveillance system him- or herself, or can hire a video surveillance and monitoring service to carry out the task.
Christopher Thomas
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/elements-of-a-video-surveillance-system-93970.html
Burglary is one the rise. Almost three-fourths of all crime today is property crime, involving theft, burglary, and vandalism. And much of that is crime against homes and homeowners. Local authorities and police have their jobs cut out for them. Though they work hard to end crime in your area, it can’t really be stopped.
No matter what, burglars and vandals will find a way to succeed at their job: taking or destroying your possessions. When they’re not on someone else’s property, they’re looking for opportunities, studying home layouts and vulnerabilities, and noting family habits and schedules. In fact, statistics tell us that a U.S. home gets robbed every 15 seconds! And while some burglars and vandals do eventually get caught and arrested, most of them seem to disappear into the shadows.
You can take precautions to avoid becoming the next 15-second victim. A combination of common-sense security measures and equipment can protect your home and family from crime. Here are some ideas that may help you take a bite out of crime.
* Mark your Property
Everything of value that you own should be protected with a number or symbol that makes it easy to identify as yours. While marking property can’t prevent its theft, it can help you retrieve stolen property before it’s sold on the black market. Engravers, micro dots, laser and UV pens are great tools to use to mark your property. Most burglars do study their target victims, and knowing you mark your property may prevent burglary.
* Secure your House
It may sound funny, but many homeowners forget to lock doors and windows. An easy, simple solution to prevent burglary, make it a habit to secure your windows and doors before you leave the house. Make sure the exterior of the house is well-lit and free of obstructions and places for burglars and vandals to hide. Let people know when you’ll be gone for several days, and ask your neighbors to keep a sharp eye out for strangers on your property. These simple steps will go a long way to protect your property and prevent burglary and vandalism.
* Get a Burglar Alarm
A simple alarm that sounds when an unauthorized person tries to enter your house is a good first step in preventing burglary and vandalism. The piercing scream of an alarm is enough to discourage even the boldest burglar or vandal. Police report that burglar alarms prevent over half of all attempted home burglaries. A variety of alarms are available on the market, and prices start low.
* Install a Home Security System
A great tool to prevent burglary is the home security system. A burglar who knows you have a security system will likely skip your house next time he goes out for a quick break-in. If he isn’t aware of your system, the alarm will sound and hopefully frighten him away. Home security systems include burglar alarms, but they also have a number of other features to protect your life and property. They may incorporate fire alarms, carbon monoxide monitors, and “panic buttons” that allow you to sound an alert in case of an emergency. They can alert your local police or emergency service directly or go through a 24-hour security monitoring service.
More elaborate and expensive systems incorporate cameras and video monitoring equipment that allows to you keep round-the-clock watch on your family and home. A video monitoring system also allows you to record visual images, and this can be very effective in post-burglary law enforcement efforts. You have a record of the burglar or vandal that police can use to track them down and arrest them. You also have evidence that can be used in court to prosecute them.
Home security systems have made great leaps in technology over the past decade, and today you can even get systems that allow you to program and control other home functions. You can tie in your lights, heating system, home entertainment center, and kitchen appliances to not only make your live more convenient and save time but to make it appear that your house is occupied when your family is out of town.
Wireless technology has entered the home security market, and you can get wireless monitored home security systems that have all the benefits of older types AND the ease-of-installation and maintenance of wireless technology.
With a good home security system, you can go beyond simple protection measures and continuously monitor your yard, your garage, and the interior of your home. You can make permanent video records of attempted and successful break-ins. You can even turn your coffee pot on in the morning!
* Use a Professional Security Monitoring Service
Even if you have the top-of-the-line home security system with all of the bells and whistles, it won’t be any good at preventing burglary if you can’t monitor it 24 hours a day. Professional security companies like ADT or Brinks offer that service for a reasonable
monthly fee. They have professional monitors attending to your system all day, seven days a week, and they can alert law enforcement and emergency services when your system sounds the alert.
No matter what you decide to do to protect your home and family, you should be sure to cover these basic areas. Millions of U.S. homeowners have invested or plan to invest in security and surveillance systems. You should be one of them if you want to fight crime and prevent burglary.
You get the added bonus of peace of mind knowing your home and family are safe and secure from the crime rampant in our society today. No one can predict the future, but it’s certain that you will be a safer, saner homeowner if you take the time to learn all you can about home security. As an educated consumer, you can assess your home’s vulnerabilities and plan for a security system that will prevent burglaries and meet your security needs.
Abhishek Agarwal
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-security-articles/buglary-prevention-5-best-ways-to-secure-your-home-753863.html
Bluetooth Technology
What is Bluetooth?
Bluetooth technology is a type of the wireless technology that eliminates the need for the number of inconvenient cables and devices that are used to connect the computers, mobile phones, digital cameras, handheld devices and new digital appliances. Bluetooth enables the users to connect to a wide variety of telecommunication and computing devices easily, without cables.
It makes rapid ad hoc connections, automatic unconscious connections between two or more digital devices. Bluetooth provides the opportunity of using the mobile data in different applications. Bluetooth makes wireless communication between the two devices in a localized area of a room of office or home very easily. Bluetooth technology uses radio-based links and all the connections between the devices and invisible and instantaneous.
By Bluetooth technology your laptop can send print request to a printer in your next room. Bluetooth is actually a standard for wireless communication between the devices in a relatively small area and it is therefore works fine in the personal area network (PAN) using radio frequency.
Any two devices that follow the Bluetooth standard can communicate with each other. A number of the Bluetooth devices like digital camera, mobile phone and handheld pc can form a network. You can send emails to your mobile phones from your laptop without any physical connect between your laptop and your mobile phones.
Features of Bluetooth technology
• Bluetooth technology uses radio waves for communication in 2.4 GHz
• It supports multipoint communication not just point to point.
• Bluetooth works in a small area of 10-15 meters.
• Bluetooth offers speed of 1-2 Mbps.
• Bluetooth chipsets are less expensive though more expensive than IrDA.
How Bluetooth Technology Works
Bluetooth is a high speed wireless link technology that uses the radio waves. It is designed to connect the mobile phones, laptops, hand held devices and portable equipments with almost no work by the end users. Unlike infrared Bluetooth does not require line of sight between the connecting units. Bluetooth technology is a modified form of the current Wireless LAN technology and it’s more acceptable for its relative small size and low cost.
The current circuits are contained on a circuit board of 0.9 cm square and a much smaller single chip version is in development and soon it will be in use. The cost of the Bluetooth device is expected to fall rapidly. Bluetooth chip has to be equipped in many devices. In Bluetooth technology, small and inexpensive transceivers have been placed in the digital devices. The radio waves operate at 2.45 Ghz band on the Bluetooth devices. Bluetooth supports the data speed up to 721 Kbps and 3 voice channels. The Bluetooth chip can either be built into the devices or it can be uses as an adapter. In computer it can be used with the USB port. Each Bluetooth device has a 48 bit address from the IEEE 802 standards and the Bluetooth connections can be either point to point or multipoint. Bluetooth range is 10 meter but it can be extended up to 100 meters by increasing the power.
Bluetooth devices are protected from the external interference because they change their frequency up to 1600 times in a second. Bluetooth radio technology provides the bridge between the existing data network. Bluetooth guarantees security at the bit level and the authentication is controlled by the end user by using 128 bit key. An important face of the Bluetooth technology is that it instantly forms a network when two or more devices come closer in the range of each other.
Bluetooth Technology Benefits
Bluetooth technology is a convenient choice of communication in a wire free, short range environment. Bluetooth is a globally available standard for connecting the devices like mobile phones, digital cameras, laptops, MP3 Players, cars, stereo headsets etc. Bluetooth enable devices do not need to install any drivers. The key benefits of the Bluetooth wireless technology are its built-in-security, low cost, easy of use, robustness, and ad hoc networking capabilities.
The Bluetooth wireless technology is available globally. Many manufactures from the different companies are busy to implement the technology in their products. Bluetooth technology operates in the 2.4 Ghz, one of the unlicensed, industrial and scientific radio band. Bluetooth technology is a free of charge service but your mobile phones set should support the GSM and CDMA technology.
Today mobile phones have built in capabilities and Bluetooth functionalities in them. Bluetooth technology is available in the different range of the devices like mobile phones, automobiles, medical devices, industries and enterprises etc.
Due to the key features of the Bluetooth technology like low power consumption, low cost and wireless features make it more popular. Bluetooth technology does not require any fixed infrastructure and it is very simple to install and setup.
No wires are required to connect the Bluetooth devices. You can connect to other Bluetooth enabled devices anytime if they come in your range. Bluetooth wireless technology is widely supported and is secure wireless standard today. Bluetooth devices has built-in security features such as 128 bit encryption and pin code authentication when Bluetooth devices identify themselves they use the pin code when they first time connect.
Bushra Bashir
www.networktutorials.info
Bushra Bashir
http://www.articlesbase.com/networking-articles/bluetooth-technology-94151.html
You love your pets. I know I sure do. My dog is a very important part of my family and I hate having to leave him alone all day while I’m at work. That is why I installed what I call the ‘PetCam’ - a web enabled IP camera that allows me to check in on my dog from any location via the world wide web. And guess what, it turns out that Fido is quite busy while I’m away - and he has an incredible internal clock - he gets very agitated about an hour before I return home from work - who knew!
Installation of a web enabled Pet Cam is actually quite easy to do. The first thing you need is high speed Internet. Sending video over the web requires both speed and a healthy bandwidth allocation from your internet service provider, so make sure to check with your ISP on any existing bandwidth caps. Both Cable and DSL Internet services are idea for this application.
Next, you will need a router to which you will connect your internet camera. If you want the freedom of a wireless IP camera (recommended), a wireless router will be required. Most IP cameras come with a CAT5 Ethernet connection, but who wants cables running all over the house! This article assumes that you already have a router installed and functioning with a high speed Internet service.
Now comes the fun part - selecting the right camera for the job. Because we are looking at transmitting video over the Internet, the best choice is an Internet IP camera. Do not mistake these cameras for a webcam. Although they might look similar, Internet cameras are a small computers with a built in web server. Unlike a webcam, they are independent entities that do not require a computer to function. They are the ultimate independent contractor!
Keep in mind that most Internet IP cameras work with CMOS video sensors, therefore even if night vision is offered, it probably won’t work very well - these cameras are meant for daytime applications.
I strongly recommend the Linksys WVC54GCA and DLINK DCS950G Internet Cameras - both are great entry level IP cameras that will get the job done and can be purchased at a reasonable cost (between $100 to $125 US dollars). More advanced (and expensive) models add features such as Pan and Zoom - nice to have features, but not must haves.
If you already have a DLINK or Linksys router, it may be a good idea to stick with the same manufacturer for your Internet Camera as the included documentation will provide more specific router configuration information.
So how do we get this remarkable little device to broadcast video to the Internet. The first thing we need to do is configure the new internet camera. This usually involves establishing a wired connection to the camera from your router. You then load the installation software onto your computer and proceed with the setup as specified by the documentation.
The first thing the software will do is detect the new camera and have you specify a unique IP address for the device - try to avoid using DHCP, as a static IP address is preferable. If you are using a wireless camera, you will need to configure the wireless settings for the camera, including any security passwords for WEP or WPA. Additionally, you will need to identify and document the port number used by the camera to communicate with the outside world (some cameras let you choose the port).
If your internet service does not provide a static IP address, you will need to open an account with a dynamic DNS service provider such as DynDNS.com. This service provides you with a free domain name which will automatically detect any changes to your home IP address. Most cameras will have a configuration page where you can enter your dynamic DNS settings.
All that is left is to do is open a port on your router, a process referred to as port forwarding. This will allow the camera to communicate with the outside world in a secure fashion.
This may all sound a bit complex, but it is actually quite easy to do if you are even mildly tech savvy. If you need assistance, a quick call to your local Nerds on Wheels service should have you up and running in no time at all.
Andy J Thompson
http://www.articlesbase.com/computers-articles/how-to-stream-video-to-the-internet-956998.html
The constant need for protection made manufacturers in the security systems industry to promote high-tech quality products in order to ensure the client’s needs. They developed alarm systems that are equipped with motion-sensors or impact sensors that make a loud sound if somebody gets too close to the automobile or to the house. Computers and the Internet have made it even possible to keep a vigilent eye on your home/car while away even in another country.
The high incidence of car jacking and auto theft made specialists realise that too many cars do not have the necessary equipment to prevent car theft. So in order to decrease the rate of stealing, they decided to install these utilities in future cars. By installing an auto security system on a car, the issue of safety was resolved and people now have many options to choose from: audible or inaudible security systems, ignition systems immobilizers and even steering wheel locks to enhance protection. More and more people are ready do find out more about the use of an auto security system and the Internet is a good place to keep informed.
Cars have always been an important part of our life. Unfortunately, they are a prosperous target for thieves and are stolen quite easily. Statistics show that an alarming number of drivers have the necessary utilities for protection but do not activate them. It is essential to be informed about the importance of an auto security system and its main features. A good auto security system comes with unique features such as: keyless entry system, clone safe-code hopping, dome light supervision not to mention that some even have an interactive display that confirms instantly all the commands.
People do not feel the need to protect their vehicles but also their homes. It is vital to choose a good neighborhood, with a low criminality rate, with peaceful neighbors and a lot of quiet around. But things are not as easy as they sound and one might feel the need to protect himself and his family. You can easily browse for the ideal home security system and decide what best fits your need and budget.
The most important part of a home security system is the camera. It is one of the main components and the prices are very convenient not to mention they are very easy to install. A home security system equipped with a good camera can do a lot for your house. You can use it to see who is at the door before opening, you can keep an eye on driveways to watch vehicles and equipment and most importantly you can check on any trespassers.
When you decide to browse for a home security system, you will discover that there is a wide variety of security cameras available. You may choose a black and white camera for you home security system given the fact that it provides sharper pictures and are less expensive. But, depending on your preferences you should know that there are on the market advanced color security cameras just perfect for a home security system.
Remember when you install your home security system that cameras placed outside the house should be shielded from weather; this is why many manufacturers recommend security cameras equipped with autosettings to adjust with changing weather (heat, rain, snow, darkness or brightness).
There are many other options for a home security system. For example you have to choose between wired or wireless security cameras. You also have to consider the lens size when you purchase cameras for your home security system. Bear in mind that a wide angle lens can cover a wide area but does not show details of intruders, while a narrow angle lens can highlight details but cannot show a large area. If you decide to go for cheaper cameras for your home security system, you must know that they have fixed lens while expensive ones may allow options.
Do not forget that a security camera can add very well to your home security system if it is placed carrefully on strategic locations and used in combination with other security equipment such as: the control panel or the brain of an alarm system, motion detectors and many other things. When you search for the perfect home security system consider the proposed use but also the cost factor.
Amelie Mag
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-security-articles/the-perfect-homeauto-security-system-75119.html
