Originally posted on February 6, 2013 @ 3:04 pm
Images via Economist
Every homeowner wishes for their home to be a safe haven for them and their possessions – it is only natural then that they seek peace of mind by taking precautions in protecting their home. Home security service providers have actually been present almost since the conception of this need, and many a home has been saved from break ins due to these companies.
However there may be some instances where a person must resort to his own cunning to stave off would-be intruders. There are many ways that a homeowner can improve the security of his home by himself – and with the recent advancements in computer technology and connectivity, you can now use your computers to add to your home security. Your laptop, for example can be used as a makeshift home security system in a pinch.
With your laptop, an integrated webcam, and some particular software, all you have to do is place your laptop where it can check on what you need to watch over, and you have a security system off your laptop – it’s as simple as that.
What most security software do is they use the webcam, which is of course, focused on a particular spot in your premises – say, a door or a window – and it will register any movements within that particular spot. You can then use this software to react to registered movements in a number of ways:
Sound an Alarm
Your laptop can function as an alarm system – sounding out a loud siren or warning alert to discourage the burglar from gaining further entry, or alerting anyone else nearby.
Record Images
You can also use your laptop to record instead of alert everyone in the vicinity. You can set it to take pictures or capture a video – even broadcast it for storage on a different machine or online in case the burglar takes your laptop.
Send out an Alert
Your laptop can also send out an alert to you or any other person you set it to send out a message to – the authorities perhaps? Or a private security detail?
Keep in mind that you can also program your laptop to do a combination of these things. Pretty nifty eh?
About the guest author:
Angela is a freelance blogger/computer whiz who gets all her home security information from www.HomeSecuritySystems.com