By Dan Cash CCTV • Design • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Entertainment • Older People • Tips and Tricks • WiFi • • 0 Comments

Smart Sensors Offer So Much More Than Security

sensors. alarms, automation, security, We talk a lot about “Home Automation” and then go on to speak about how we can control our home environment via our apps, computer, control panel or voice, but surely that’s negating the entire ethos of ‘Automated’? For a full automated home you need sensors. With a little time and patience when setting up you can let your sensors take care of many of the mundane tasks which you do every day. Tie them in with Smart or If This Then That (IFTTT) devices then the simplicity and elegance of a fully automated home is on the horizon.

There are a range of different sensors which detect one, several, or many of the following:

  • Temperature
  • Light
  • Moisture
  • Movement
  • Other specific Smart devices
  • Fire, smoke, and carbon monoxide

Read more

By Dan Cash CCTV • Design • General Information • Management • 0 Comments

Improving Security In Schools & Colleges

burglar alarms, cctv systemsSecurity in environments where children, young adults and the vulnerable is of paramount importance. Of course we in Britain face nothing like the security issues that our friends in the USA have, but yet it remains important that people in positions of responsibility over the young and those in need of additional consideration are able to secure their premises here in the UK.

Security systems in schools don’t only protect the children, school estates are often victim to vandalism and burglary while teachers and the children under their supervision can be victims of violence and accusations of malpractice, assault or violence, that’s why many schools are even considering hiring unarmed security guards to ensure the safety of the children.

The problem lies with the expectation of privacy in such an environment. There’s a misconception that the faces of children can’t be filmed in public without their consent and people think this extends to school property. The reality is that in spaces such as classrooms, hallways and corridors there is no reasonable ‘expectation of privacy’ so you could put cameras up, however, teachers and pupils don’t appreciate having cameras trained on them all day. Unfortunately, it’s in the classroom where misbehaviour occurs and recorded footage proving who was at fault would be beneficial. Read more

By Dan Cash CCTV • Construction • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Security • Uncategorized • • • • 0 Comments

What Are The Pros & Cons Of Professional Vs DIY Home Security Systems?

home security, security, business security, DIY, burglar alarm, intruder alarmRecent surveys have revealed that in up to 28% of broadband users have an active internet based security system, 24% also take advantage of a monitoring service. Most of these people are homeowners with children. And many of these people have chosen to go down the DIY path when it comes to installation.

The message put out by the manufacturers including Ring, Hive, Nest, et cetera is being picked up the consumer as a further 52% report as being “highly likely” to purchase a security system of their own, and install it themselves.

So what are the pros and cons of DIY burglar alarm and security system installations versus a professional installation service?

The first consideration is naturally the cost. Buying a system that you can take straight out of the box and put up yourself is clearly going to be cheaper than buying a system and then paying a professional to mount it for you.

Then there is the convenience. If you’re a DIYer and you have the skills and tools required you can buy a home security system, get it home, wire it in and have it up and running in an afternoon. You don’t have to make an appointment for someone to come and see your property, recommend a system, order it, and then come back and install the product. Read more

By Dan Cash Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Cinema • Home Entertainment • Tips and Tricks • • • 0 Comments

Adjusting Your TV For The Perfect Picture

Large flatscreen television mounted in the center of a wall with a black soundbar mounted underneathGetting the best picture from your television is a matter of personal preference, some people like a really saturated picture as it gives them a sense of really seeing something on television while others prefer a more muted picture where the colours are a little more gentle than in real life. But in either and any case, there are certain things to consider when setting up your picture and sound.

The theory is that your prime seating position is directly in front of your TV set, at a distance 150% of the width of the TV while the set should be mounted at a height where the bottom third of the screen is in line with your eyes when you sit in your favourite chair. In theory this will mean that the screen will fill your field of vision as fully as possible without you needing to move your head to see the full picture and you won’t have to raise your head to look up at the screen. Read more

By Dan Cash General Information • Home Cinema • Home Entertainment • • • 0 Comments

Watching Television In The Age Of Advertising & Fake News

Child watching television, ads, advert, advertising, TV, marketing, People, especially young people, are watching less and less broadcast television despite the ever increasing number of channels available on Freeview, Freesat and subscription charging satellite broadcasters such as Sky.

At first glance it’s easy to see why. Despite the vast number of channels the variety and content of what’s available to watch is uninspiring. If you don’t like reality TV in the form of Big Brother, Love Island, Made In Chelsea, Geordy Shore or The Only Way is Essex your viewing choices are actually rather limited. Your options for avoidance become narrower when the ‘personalities’ these shows throw up become loose in the wold, appearing on other shows. You’ll see them appearing on panel shows, news quizzes, even offering their considered opinions on daytime chat and current affairs programming, and, in an arch example of media eating itself, celebrity iterations of other reality television shows.

If you are in the position that you want to watch something on broadcast TV you reach the second obstacle to enjoying a television show: the adverts. There has to be a saturation point where advertising is so frequent that viewers simply won’t watch any more and on most of the commercial stations that point seems to have been reached. Read more

By Dan Cash General Information • Home Cinema • Home Entertainment • Tips and Tricks • • 0 Comments

Esports At The Olympics? Why Not!?

The International Olympics Committee is currently considering whether to include esports in the future Olympic Games.

By 2020, and if not then by 2024, we may be able to see video games played at an international competitive level, or we may not. The IOC says it needs more time and information before it can make a decision on whether they can be included. The IOC said that while some games are not “compatible with the Olympic values” they also recognise that “competitive gaming entails physical activity which can be compared to that required in more traditional sports”.

Now, purists and traditionalists will naturally say that computer games are clearly not sports as they don’t require the skill, training, aptitude or physical prowess that’s required by IRL sports whereas anyone who’s ever played or watched a tournament of esports will tell you that’s clearly not the case. Huge numbers of solid hours are required to learn how to play games at a competitive level, requiring skill, dedication and whatever else is needed to get to international competition level. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • CCTV • Design • Do It Yourself • General Information • Tips and Tricks • • • • 0 Comments

Take Everything A Smart Home Provides To Work

Modern meeting roof with large television, webcam and meeting table and chairs.Is your company jumping aboard the Smart revolution and giving you Alexa and Google Smart Home Assistant on your desk?

If you’re like me and need a quiet office in order to work you probably won’t appreciate the addition of a Smart Assistant right off, but they do have their advantages. However, they take commitment. Reading the installation ‘managing devices’ instructions for Alexa for Business would make a sensible person run away screaming, but I guess that’s what IT support are for.

However, if you survive that, the advantages of having an assistant there on your desk are many.

One of the most common uses for a Smart Assistant in our office is spelling. Rather than taking a stab in word and right-clicking when it comes up with a red line, we have people yelling things such as “Alexa, spell bureaucracy!” across the room. And as if to point out the fault of relying on Word to pick up your slack, it suggested ‘plutocracy’ when I tried and failed to spell bureaucracy. Read more

By Dan Cash CCTV • Do It Yourself • General Information • Home Entertainment • Older People • Tips and Tricks • Uncategorized • • 0 Comments

Smart Advantages Make Life Easier For People With Disabilities.

As we age we have to accept that we generally start to lose our faculties. It’s natural and accepted that our hearing will go, our eyesight will become weak and our cognitive skills will also be less sharp from our middle age onwards, compared to our youth. Spectacles and hearing aids are no longer the cumbersome, unattractive ‘utility over aesthetic’ devices they once were. Now they not only serve their primary function of helping your see and hear, they look stylish (or are virtually invisible) and actively improve on what nature gave us. 

My case in point here is Smart hearing aids and Smart glasses. I recently went to stay with family and noticed my uncle has Smart hearing aids. I’m not certain he’s got the hang of them yet as he was watching TV very low and told us off for talking too loud while we were watching England snatch victory from certain defeat at the hands of New Zealand. Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • WiFi • • 0 Comments

Your Business Best Practice For Data Security

Meeting room and table with chairs facing a large television and webcamBusiness security is so much more than just fitting security shutters to the windows and a sturdy lock on the door. Of course keeping unwanted visitors out, protecting premises against vandalism and graffiti are all important considerations, however, there’s much more to consider than a comprehensive CCTV system and functioning burglar alarm. We’re talking data security.

The risks business face are so much more than simply premises and inventory. Everyone who comes through the doors, staff, customers, and visitors have to be protected as does all the company’s sensitive data. Security screens and alarms keep burglars out, staff and security keep visitors safe from harm and also protect property, but what about data? Read more

By Dan Cash Business Security • General Information • Home Security • Tips and Tricks • WiFi 0 Comments

What You Need To Know About Fraud And Cyber Security In Summer

girl phone beach internet accessIt’s been a long time coming but the summer is here again and for thousands of us that means a fortnight in the sun, or, for the less lucky, few days in a rainy caravan park or unsanitary holiday camp.

But from the very best to the outstandingly mediocre, there’s something which all holiday destinations have in common: free wifi.

Who doesn’t love free wifi? You can keep up with you email, if you have a smart home you can keep tabs on what’s happening indoors and out, and you can look up all the local excursions, places of interest, restaurant and tourist attraction reviews.

All Fine And Dandy, Or So It Seems

The first rule of the hospitality industry is ‘anticipate a guest’s needs and fulfil them before they realise that’s what they want’ and for all of us now these days that means having wifi you can connect to without the hassle of finding the right network or faffing with passwords. But that in itself is problematic. Read more