Author Topic: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?  (Read 4650 times)

280plus

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Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« on: July 11, 2009, 10:11:22 PM »
Someone just knocked on our door and left a nasty note etc for our daughter and went screaming out of here. I want to catch these a-holes in the act. A small motion activated camera might work. We can't be spending big $ on surveillance stuff. Any ideas?
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PTK

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #1 on: July 11, 2009, 10:15:02 PM »
One of those hunting/wildlife cameras should do the trick.
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Jamisjockey

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #3 on: July 11, 2009, 10:20:39 PM »
A USB webcam and some appropriate software?
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280plus

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #4 on: July 11, 2009, 10:27:18 PM »
Thanks, I'll order me one up. We have an inkling who it mught be but naturally without any evidence thinking is no good. FYI, nobody ever knocks this late so I did have S&W in hand when I answered the door. They were long gone by the time I did though. All I caught were taillights.
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #5 on: July 11, 2009, 10:35:08 PM »
The problem with the hunting/scouting cameras is that it's easy for them to grab it and run when they see the flash.

I'd go with a cheap webcam

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=961121-0403-R&cat=VID
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280plus

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #6 on: July 11, 2009, 11:56:17 PM »
true, the plan is/was to put it between the inner door and locked storm door . . Makes it harder to grab and slows them down while they try but I wonder if the glare of the flash on the glass door would eff the pic up. OR I could put it up high out of reach. I did manage to connect with one who is associated with the group that harrasses her and told him if he and his friends knew anythong about it it had better stop. He gave me a kind of somber, "Alllriiiight..." so I'm thinking I hit the nail on the head. They were having a party just down the road so me and S&W took a ride down there and he happened to be outside. We shall see. The web cam is a great idea but how long can the cable be? All the computers are at least 30' from the door. I'm also thinking of putting some floods out there on a motion detector too. At the very least they'll crap themselves when the lights come on.  :laugh:
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Regolith

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #7 on: July 12, 2009, 12:24:57 AM »
Don't they have trail cams that utlize infrared light?

I'm pretty sure I saw some in my recent Cabelas' catalog...
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #8 on: July 12, 2009, 03:26:41 AM »
A passive USB cable can total 16 feet.  Also, 16 foot active extensions are available from Newegg.com.  Or you can go the USB-to-CAT5 converter route.  They can go 100 feet or more.
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My wife often says to me, "You are evil and must be destroyed." She may be right.

Liberals believe one should never let reason, logic and facts get in the way of a good emotional argument.

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #9 on: July 12, 2009, 07:21:21 AM »
Thanks, I'll look into it. I have to go to staples today anyways and the big ol Cabela's store isn't that far either. The more I think about it the more I'm sure it had something to do with the cretins down the street. Get this, the knock on the door and leave a half eaten store bought platter of deviled eggs (the kind with the palstic tray and clear cover) And on it is taped a note that says "Happy Thanksgiving Bitch" along with references to her being sexually involved with horses. Hmmm, party just down the road, uneaten party food, kids known to have made sex with horse references before. Would you go out of your way to deliver this or would it be that you were right down the road and it was convenient? yea, you know=|
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #10 on: July 12, 2009, 01:44:45 PM »
Whatever you get, make sure it's something you can afford to lose to those creeps.  Try to find a location for the camera that is up in a corner under an eve, or maybe behind an attic vent, someplace that a visitor's eye is unlikely to fall.  Out of convenient reach if possible.
Look for a camera with a longer lense if possible.  Then your placement options open up.
If there really was intelligent life on other planets, we'd be sending them foreign aid.

Conservatives see George Orwell's "1984" as a cautionary tale.  Progressives view it as a "how to" manual.

My wife often says to me, "You are evil and must be destroyed." She may be right.

Liberals believe one should never let reason, logic and facts get in the way of a good emotional argument.

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #11 on: July 12, 2009, 03:59:35 PM »
Yea, point taken. If I go the webcam route, which is the more complicated option in my case, I'll hide it right in the fake flowery wreath the wife keeps on the door. Haven't decided yet.

I have half a mind to get ahold of the local kid who I KNOW has bothered her in the past and point out to him that he's 18 now and hence I wouldn't be subject to risk of injury anymore should I slip and crack his jaw. Then I'll put him in charge saying something like,"So if any of this happens again I'll be looking for YOU to answer for it, so you best keep your friends in line." ;)
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crt360

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #12 on: July 13, 2009, 03:42:13 AM »
This dude's 18, going to parties where deviled eggs are served and leaving prank notes on girls' doorsteps?  Is he mentally challenged?  It sounds like something a 12 year old might do.  Nothing wrong with deviled eggs, but the only things I recall being served at parties when I was 18 were beer, punch and weed.
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #13 on: July 13, 2009, 04:03:06 AM »
This dude's 18, going to parties where deviled eggs are served and leaving prank notes on girls' doorsteps?  Is he mentally challenged?  It sounds like something a 12 year old might do.  Nothing wrong with deviled eggs, but the only things I recall being served at parties when I was 18 were beer, punch and weed.

Punch? You had punch at your parties? 
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PTK

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #14 on: July 13, 2009, 05:40:17 AM »
Punch? You had punch at your parties? 

The punch was probably flammable.  :O  =D
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #15 on: July 13, 2009, 05:44:10 AM »
What's a deviled egg?
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #17 on: July 13, 2009, 06:13:23 AM »
This dude's 18, going to parties where deviled eggs are served and leaving prank notes on girls' doorsteps?  Is he mentally challenged?  It sounds like something a 12 year old might do.  Nothing wrong with deviled eggs, but the only things I recall being served at parties when I was 18 were beer, punch and weed.
Party ws at his house right down the road and there was lot's of girls so I figure they had something to do with the bringing of eggs. The paper the note was on was quite girly, lavender with puppies, and the handwritng looked femalely. So chances are it was females doing the dirty work but my daughter tells me he and his friends have yelled nasty stuff at her from his windows whenever she walked by. It was the first time I'd heard that part. They keep things from me at times because they worry about how I might react. Why? I have no idea, I'm relatively stable in demeanor and have never so much as raised a finger in regards to violent actions. I was just getting my @$$ chewed out yesterday by a friend because I'm too easy going and the "rock stars" I'm promoting are trying to walk all over me. In reality I just give everbody a lot of rope but when they take too much I have no problem yanking it back.

Anyhoo, although I have no proof this is where the deed originated I do know they've harrassed her in the past so what goes around comes around. She's been the class whipping girl since grade school. The poor kid has been through hell and really stood up to it very well for years. She's ADHD and was quite the handful growing up and the kids naturally took to screwing with her. Girls especially. Girls can be very mean. Well, kid days are over, these are adult days now so no more walking on eggs and calling the police or talking to school officials because we were dealing with kids. We can take the more direct approach now.  So far, it seems to have worked. I didn't make even so much as a threat. I just said, "Somebody's harrassing my daughter and it had better stop." So far, so good. =D
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #18 on: July 13, 2009, 06:38:06 AM »
We can't be spending big $ on surveillance stuff. Any ideas?

Check with your insurance company; they might offer a discount for a decent surveillance setup that would offset the cost.  A good setup with four cameras and network monitoring can be had for $400-600 if you install it yourself.  Avoid the ones that use your computer as the quad/DVR for long-term monitoring, as it can be a big drain on resources, fills up hard disk space, and is more likely to be shut down from time to time than a standalone unit.

Interestingly, I was looking at this earlier: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs04/r249.pdf

Note that visible cameras have a much higher deterrence rating for burglars than neighborhood watch groups or stronger doors.  Presumably, the same would hold for vandalism and harrassment.  The bonus to a good camera/DVR system is that if they steal the camera, you've then got a recording of the theft, and any damage they did in removing it.


280plus

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #19 on: July 13, 2009, 09:39:20 AM »
Interesting. Thanks for that!  =D
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crt360

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #20 on: July 13, 2009, 04:07:31 PM »
The punch was probably flammable.  :O  =D

Indeed.  A friend of mine found out the painful way.  She caught her punch cup hand on fire while lighting a cigarette.

280, I can see it coming from a teen girl.  They're mean like that and draw battle lines between each other over the pettiest crap.  It's funny how lots of women think the world would be a peaceful place if they ran it.  The truth is, they'd melt it in a nuclear instant just because "that bitch" leader from the other country gave them some "attitude."  :laugh:  Of course, LS would just toss a few shoes and get back to business.  :angel:
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #21 on: July 13, 2009, 04:37:36 PM »
The punch was probably flammable.  :O  =D

Oh, the trash can parties of college....

Everyone brings a 5th of their favorite cheap booze, dump into a trashcan and add some HiC or Hawaiian Punch.

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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #22 on: July 13, 2009, 05:13:43 PM »
Oh, the trash can parties of college....

Everyone brings a 5th of their favorite cheap booze, dump into a trashcan and add some HiC or Hawaiian Punch.



My first trash can party was in the Navy Lodge at NAS Millington.  Yeah, we got kicked out.  Damn near got some NJP that night, but that's a story for a campfire and a beer.
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Re: Small inexpesnsive motion camera?
« Reply #23 on: July 13, 2009, 05:55:27 PM »
Damn, wishin' I was young enough to have a trash can party. Sounds like some kinda fun! We did have "Mojo" over in the PI. Close to the trash can idea. Tatses like fruit punch and kicks you in the back of the head.  :laugh:
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