I love technology!

For some time now I have been slowly but methodically been planned to put webcams in my place to keep track of things. I suppose this desire and planning traces its origins back to an attempted break-in several years ago and as I have been accumulating "stuff" (OK, OK, I'm guilty of being a vulgar materialist and capitalist... I admit it... now move on) I felt a need to keep track of my domicile. I can't get an alarm put into my place (long, way long story not suitable for this blog) so I started to formulate a solution. Automation! Yup that was the key. 

Last summer I upgraded my home system and started to use a Mac Mini with Insteon Modules and Indigo automation software to fool people into thinking I was home when I wasn't and to be able to have the lights turned on when night came and I might be late coming home (I was taking classes at the local community college at night and the winter semester gets pretty dark at 9 p.m.). Then the summers would allow me to turn off and on fans and the cooling system which wasn't centralized and that was a big help. Later on, with the system up and running, I came home from work and heard more than my dog in the house... yeah... I stood still and thought, "What the hell is going on?" I opened the door, confronted two German shepherds that had broken through the back fence and followed my dog into the house through the dog door! The confrontation was pretty easy as I had picked up a big wooden sword near the door (don't ask) and the dogs probably thought, " Holy Shuzzbud - get the frack outta Dogde!!!" and were pretty much gone in 20 seconds. My dog was OK, freaked out, but OK and that was cool... but the place was trashed with mud and all the dog food containers were ripped and spewed crap all over the house. After spending hours cleaning the devastation, I thought, "I won't get caught off-guard again!" and thus came a plan.... web cams.

After much research and many emails to Ben and Spencer at Bensoftware.com, I got Security Spy (THE premier security software for the Mac... and NO F@#*€‹·°king way am I using  PC unless I have no choice... more on that later). Serendipity is a great thing as well as Fry's is dumping their stock of Airlink101 network cameras and I got mine for $99 instead of $250! Today I install the last one until I upgrade to 8 cams instead of just 4 on Security Spy (click the link and check it out!) and have the ability to check out the house on my cell phone (way too cool as well)... It's good to be a geek!

Then, I get up this morning, start watching the MSNBC newsfeed and come across the story of a woman who is watching her house get burglarized (Yeah, check it out!). She calls 911, tells that that she's watching her house be burglarized before her eyes, the police surround the house and haul away 4 would-be burglars one of whom happens to be her next door neighbor (now that's slime if ever I've heard of one). I have no doubts now... never again... I love technology!