[wasabibunny]

Is anyone using the Home Watch service by 3 or Instant watch service by csl1010? It's where you can watch in real time a camera placed in your home or office. I would like to get the service but don't want to sign a 12/18 month contract. Do any other mobile providers offer this service?

Any insights would be helpful!

[Skyhook]

why dont you just set up wireless cam set up on your pc at home that you can access via ip remote access ?

If you are willing to leave your home pc on connected to the internet.

The program below is free, you just need a pc running and a cam set up in the location you want to view, and you will be able to access it externally on your browser as long as you know your pc's IP, that the software will associate to it..

Keep Tabs on Your Home with a Low-cost Web Cam

[Boris]

Skyhook
So what happens when you go away then have a brown out OR your windows update reboots the PC after an auto update?
You need to manually open your broadband connection.

[jgl]

Originally Posted by Boris

Skyhook
So what happens when you go away then have a brown out OR your windows update reboots the PC after an auto update?
You need to manually open your broadband connection.

Oh come now... Windows never reboots or fails randomly

[Boris]

Now your trying to get a cheap joke out of something I was trying to be serious about.

Never said anything about random BRB moments. XP is pretty stable now anyway so that joke sort of falls flat.

My point was , we have brownouts ( normally building related ) and XP auto update often initiates an auto reboot ( this weeks being a point in case ). So - for any homebrew system being advocated, how do you get round it?

There are cheap DIY options for lots of things but sometimes you have to think beyond the price.

[Skyhook]

Just use a UPS (uninterpretable power supply), Which will engage offline the moment it detects any power dysfunction that will effect your PC network, that will sort any power fluctuations or brown outs. If you are on Netvigator Wi Fi account, you'll still be broadcasting the camera/s.

[jgl]

Originally Posted by Boris

Now your trying to get a cheap joke out of something I was trying to be serious about.

Yeah, it was a cheap joke and XP tends to be stable, but a UPS or a script + disabling windows updates reboots were pretty blindingly obvious workarounds...

Depending on the level of reliability needed, a DIY solution could be perfect.

[Skyhook]

JGL is right, if your network did reboot, because the power outage lasted longer than the 45 minutes - 1 hour that a UPS will remain running, just run a simple executable file ie script to launch the cam application upon reboot. If you are running a wireless network, it will automatically log on to the internet anyway.

Nothing hard about that...

[Boris]

True . nothing hard about anything if you know / have the time / confidence to do it.

Would I trust my home security to a DIY fix? Debatable - if I got a break in or a fire - who you gonna call - Ghostbusters ??

Cheap ain't so cheap then.

[wasabibunny]

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately I won't be placing my laptop in my baby's room so I don't think it's a feasible option for me. It's a pain in the ass because I most likely won't be staying in HK for another year and all these mobile service providers make you sign 12/18 month contracts and you have to buy all the equipment for a few grand.