Self-Generating Flashlight

Have you seen them on the TV: the shaker flashlights that need no batteries? Lots of people want to buy one. Now here’s where that gets tricky.

I have combed thousands of booths at trade shows, specifically looking for the manufacturers of those very flashlights. These durable LED lights run by gently moving a magnet back and forth through a simple copper coil to create electricity. The longer you shake it, the more light you get. But this is gentle movement, so even those with arthritis should have little or no problem. The casings are clear so that you watch them work while you shake them. It’s cool retro-back to basics. Old cars used to have those coils for energy. The technology is not at all new, though applying them to everyday flashlights is. Do I love them? Yes and No.

I love the very few I’ve found that are dependable. I despise the majority I’ve found that are junk. Out of the several I have found, hefted, shaken and had sent to me as demos, there are only three that I would ever buy or recommend to my customers. But those three are really good products! You can view these on my Web site: www.bereadyinc.com. You can find other versions elsewhere, but you’d be wasting your money.

I’ve looked carefully, tested many, and found out for myself. Most require too much shaking for too little light, and some were already broken by the time they arrived at my office. I even found that some of the least dependable were selling for the highest price. No thanks!

At Be Ready, Inc., we have three inexpensive self-charging flashlights: the 12″, T’ and 5″. The 12″ and 5″ flashlights have double coils-the only ones I found that do- and are well-constructed for durability and dependability. But it’s the single coil, middle-sized flashlight that has my buyer’s heart. We have carried these self- generating flashlights for a year and a half and have never opened a box to demonstrate one to customer that it wasn’t already working without our ever even shaking it. I can shine that light up on the IS-foot high ceiling panels next to my fluorescent lights in the middle of the day and still see the light. Only 7″ long, this compact no-battery flashlight truly shines among the competition.
Word of caution: do not store self-generating flashlights or any magnets around your computer or appliances with computer chips. You’ll have to be careful where you store this one, but not having to ever have batteries for your flashlights again is worth it!

I’ve shared my best ideas; what are yours? Write me at Erica@bereadyinc.com. The best ideas will be shared in my newsletters and updates. Together we’ll keep families safe.

As the devastation and death toll from deadly Hurricane Katrina becomes more apparent, it is a grim reminder that we live in dangerous times.

Every year, millions of people around the world lose their lives or have them seriously disrupted because of floods, tsunamis, wildfires, earthquakes, blizzards and hurricanes.

In today’s troubled world, we face even greater threats from terrorism, civil unrest, explosions and the possibility of chemical, biological or even nuclear attack.

In the United States, the terrorist threat is not only from overseas groups; domestic terrorism has been with us for decades. Violence on the road and in our places of work and schools is another growing area of concern.

•In the last 25 years there has been more than 320 domestic terrorist incidents and suspected incidents – an average out of one every month over this period.

•Over a quarter of the U.S. population are children. In the last eight years more than 40 students, teachers and custodians have been shot dead at incidents in schools.

•More than 1.7 million people are the victims of violent crime while at work.

•There are 1,200 road rage related deaths every year with a further 40,000 people killed in traffic crashes and half a million hospitalized, “The threat is real and it is growing,” warns Is America Safe.com, a new website dedicated to protecting Americans and the Homeland from natural disasters and terrorist attacks.

Every year about 1.7 million people are victims of violent crime while working or on duty. About 75% of these incidents – around 1.3 million – are simple assaults while an additional. However, over 800 workplace homicides occur every year – more than two every day somewhere in the country.

“Not only are many Americans not safe at work, many bosses are doing little to protect their workers in the event of an emergency – whether from natural causes or man-made such as violence and terrorism,” says Is America Safe.com spokesperson Don Philpott,

“It is a disturbing thought that more than half the businesses in the United States do not have a crisis management plan – what to do in the event of an emergency - and many that do, do not keep it up to date. Even fewer businesses and organizations have a physical security plan to protect their building and people who work in it,” he says.

“How many of these buildings are safe from terrorist attack or natural disaster. And what about the nation’s 110 million households? How many families would know what to do in the event of another Katrina or other emergency,” says Philpott.

“Terrorism is not a new challenge and it is not going to go away any time soon so we have a duty to our families, friends and loved ones to ensure that the places where we live, work, learn and play are secure and that the people using them are safe,” he says.

Is America Safe.com has launched a series of practical handbooks on how to plan for and survive a major emergency whether it is a natural disaster like a hurricane or flooding, or a man-made incident, such as a terrorist attack.

“Our aim is not to alarm people but to prepare and protect them so that they have the tools they needed to survive, get on with their lives and preserve the freedoms that we all hold so dear,” he adds.

A man’s home is his castle, as the saying goes. But homes today don’t normally feature ramparts, drawbridges, moats and six-foot thick stone walls to keep out unwanted visitors. Today, a house alarm, and preferably a managed home security system, is needed to ensure your home’s security. Not only does installing a home security system improve the safety of your family and possessions, but it can also decrease your home insurance costs. The Top Ten House Alarm and Home Security Devices list highlights ten devices and features of home security systems that can make your house a safer place.

The Top Ten

10. Talking Devices help you to understand the status of your home and monitoring as well as program the system. Some security systems feature talking master control panels, key pads or remotes. The talking feature may not result in great conversation, but it will help you understand your system a little better.

9. Some home alarm systems include extras like Key Fobs and Remotes to control the system at a distance. Somewhat similar to a car’s key fob, home security key fobs include buttons to activate and deactivate the house alarm system. Some even include a “panic” button that activates the house alarm and alerts the proper authorities in the event of an emergency. Remote controls are similar and often larger. The features of remotes vary greatly and can include a full key pad, a talking feature and a panic button as well.

8. Yard Signs and House or Window Decals advertise your home’s protection. The Greenwich Study of Residential Security found that homes without alarms were 2.7 to 3.5 times more likely to be burglarized, and that the most effective deterrent was the alarm monitoring company’s yard sign (SIA Research Update, Security Industry Association, October 2001). Some choose to post the signs to deter possible break-ins without actually installing a home alarm system. While this effort will lower the odds of an attempted burglary, a yard sign alone cannot fully protect your home.

7. A Back-Up Power Supply is important in maintaining home security even during a power outage, when the risk of break-ins and looting is increased. Your home alarm should be effective even when your power is not. The easiest to maintain back-up power supplies use standard size batteries. Look for a model that uses rechargeable batteries to lower your maintenance costs.

6. Smoke Detectors add another layer of protection to your home, especially when they are integrated into the home alarm system. Not only do smoke detectors indicate a fire and give you time to escape safely, but when included in a home security package, they automatically notify the managing company and the fire department. Some systems even integrate the power supply to the smoke detectors. That means you don’t have to change the batteries ever!

5. Wireless Systems protect your home without adding extra cords to trip over or extensive installation of in-wall cords. In wireless house alarm systems, each sensor or keypad communicates with the master control panel via radio frequencies or existing wiring in your home. A burglar will never be able to disarm the system by snipping the wires. This ensures the system is fully integrated and monitoring all parts of your home without using up your outlets or creating an obstacle course of wires for you.

4. Extra Key Pads are also important. Exterior mounted key pads can provide secure keyless entry to your family. Some systems also offer remote control key pads which are lightweight and portable. A home alarm system that features a security code with a key pad increases the security of your home. A monitored system can also lock down entry after several repeated, failed attempts at entry which indicate a possible break-in attempt.

3. Key pads may not always be enough to keep burglars out. Sensors on Windows and Doors reduce the risk of a burglar entering undetected and are a key part of a home alarm system. Motion Detectors within the home also increase the level of security. The most sophisticated motion detectors include a feature to ignore pets’ movement to avoid constantly setting the alarm off inadvertently.

2. Installation, Monitoring, and Repair Services increase not only the level of safety but the convenience of keeping your home safe. A house alarm alone cannot notify the police or fire department in the event of an emergency. The most complete systems include buttons to notify police departments, fire departments and medical help instantly. Another advantage offered by the best monitoring companies is live customer support and full service installation and repair of the system by employees who have been background checked, licensed and drug tested to ensure your safety. Finally, some companies even offer relocation services to keep you secure even when you move.

1. The classic Master Control Panel is vital to any home alarm system. The central hub of the system, the control panel is usually wall-mounted in an easily accessible place. The panel receives information from all other sensors and key pads, computes it, and transmits relevant information to the monitoring company. If you choose to arm the system from the panel when you leave the house, the master control panel also receives the disarm code when you return home. Some can even be disarmed by telephone!

Of course, this list is not comprehensive, and the needs of every home and homeowner are different. For more tips on choosing the right home alarm system and features to protect your house, I recommend visiting alarmoneinc.com.

You need to know how to protect yourself, since your security department or any consultant may not be truly aware of these threats and therefore not dependable. Since September 11th, a number of businesses entered the security field with little to no knowledge of the trade itself; only of its profit potential. Even outfits that have been around for some time and well-established have not been able to stay current with the latest innovations.

Realistically, viewing your threat level has to be considered since everyone should expect some sort of impending privacy issue no matter how small. Thanks largely to the Internet you can arm yourself with much of the knowledge and equipment that the so-called experts use. If a respected agent of computer crimes for the Secret Service in NYC had his T-Mobile Sidekick hacked, who knows what else happens out there to others in any business.

Realistically, viewing your threat level has to be considered since everyone should expect some sort of impending privacy issue no matter how small. Thanks largely to the Internet you can arm yourself with much of the knowledge and equipment that the so-called experts use. If a respected agent of computer crimes for the Secret Service in NYC had his T-Mobile Sidekick hacked, who knows what else happens out there to others in any business.

We’ll start acoustic ducting evaluation is the inspection of air ducts, baseboard heaters, coffee rooms, lounges, bathrooms or any way the architecture of a building can transfer sound. A simple example is to put your ear to a wall and listen.

Basically anything that requires the use of the naked ear is called an acoustic bug. Softer surfaces can help muffle sounds but there are more efficient means out there. So be aware that the way an office site is designed can act as a conduit for conversations. Also, be aware of any changes can have adverse affects. Simply playing music can do wonders for masking conversations.

Inspection of telephone equipment and wiring is called line analysis. This is trickier than it seems since sometimes a possible weakness has an actual purpose to the telecommunication system. Especially if it requires constant maintenance and software upgrades.

All instruments should be opened and inspected. Ideally they should be compared with a known safe phone or device. If you’re not sure, just remove that piece of loose components and wiring and see if the phone still works. The wiring can be modified in a switch within the handset that essentially turns it into a microphone. If you bypass this hook switch, you can listen in from anywhere on the landline. Technical equipment won’t be able to detect this. Time Domain Reflectometry is the sending of a pulse down a telephone line. If there is some sort of disruption; a wall outlet or wiretap; a portion of the pulse will be sent back to the device called a Time Domain Reflectometer (TDR). Then the time difference between the reflection and the continuous run is measured. This helps in determining the distance to the anomaly.

These devices can perform all sorts of diagnostics including mapping a wire network. That can be useful in locating a hidden phone. Hidden phones have several obvious uses such as making long distance phone calls to being placed in an office across the street to receive betting requests by bookies; a practice called back strapping. If you open up the modular jacks where you connect your phone, you’ll usually see four wires. In most cases only two wires are connected; commonly known as ring and tip. If you see all four connected, be aware that is not usually consistent for most wiring situations, especially in homes. The other two wires could be used for a bugging device.

For instance, the microphone you use in a voice recorder can be cut in half. Connect the mike head to one set of unused wires anywhere on the phone wire. Then, so long as there are no breaks in the wire, connect the other end to the jack that connects to your recorder. Now place your recorder to be VOX (voice) activated and now you have an extremely reliable bug. By the way, this should be manually inspected for since using a specialized bug detector may see nothing wrong or inconsistent. A bug such as this that connects to a wire is called a direct tap.

The other general type is called an inductive tap. This is when an instrument is outside a wire but can still distinguish what’s transacting over a wire. They are harder to detect since they don’t draw power from the line such a standard telephone would. These are referred to as snuffle bugs. A simple probe used in hunting wire signals has a speaker, which can display sounds. By accident one day I was working on an apartment intercom system while using a probe. I could hear conversations throughout the building quite clearly just through the intercom boxes mounted on walls from the master unit in the basement.

If you’re using wireless headsets or cordless phones, the radio signals can be intercepted. A cordless phone acts like a radio, but depending on the frequency and a few other factors, can make interception extremely difficult. With some manufacturers, you can buy the same model as your neighbors or the office and have it join their phone system. Double check Caller ID boxes to see if they also record numbers dialed besides obviously those being received. If you’re using VOIP (Voice Over IP), remember that calls can be recorded in a fashion identical to intercepting data between two computers.

These packets of data can reassemble an audio file. Obviously electronic devices possess semiconductor components such as diodes, resistors and such. The method to hunt for these components is called Non-Linear Junction Detection (NLJD). The NLJD unit emits a radio signal while listening for the return signal from an electronic device. This becomes very useful when a bug is embedded in a picture frame or wall. The eavesdropping device doesn’t have to be active for it to be discovered. If a device is active and transmitting wirelessly (or even on a wire), you can detect it with a Radio Frequency Spectrum Analyzer. Depending on the detection device used, you can determine whether voice, data or video is being sent, and possibly listen to the data. Try to use different size antennas or buy one that collapses. Different frequencies can be detected more efficiently by using various sizes. The use of filters with antennas can also help pinpoint devices on specific frequencies.

Electronics such as computers, FAX machines and especially CRT monitors can radiate electromagnetic signals or pulses that can be received by other equipment. This is known TEMPEST. One way to complicate the surveillance of this is to use certain fonts and line walls or equipment with different gauges of copper mesh wire. You can further enhance this posture by using special paints, which block radio transmissions.

Radio waves will look for a leak or break, so be careful of defensive applications. One-way window tints can help in blocking signals. Since an electronic device could generate some heat they can be detected in another way. The use of a thermal imagery device can detect and actually see minute amounts of heat radiated for your viewing. You can hide the heat signatures by using creams or neoprene. Technology exists to collect information from blinking LEDs of modems, routers, print servers and similar devices. You can only see some general blinking but with the use of properly tuned optics, filters, oscilloscopes and good timing you can discern much more. One of the LEDs on your keyboard can be altered to blink while you are typing in a fashion similar to Morse Code. You can also use a tap in the keyboard that sends out radio waves again similar to Morse Code and no anti- virus software will ever be able to find it. Even when a CRT computer monitor is facing a wall the light can be in a sense read by its flickering emanations from some distance. A good defensive measure is to buy new LCD flat panel types.

Another approach to attacking FAX machines is to simply record the noises it makes and play it back to another machine. I used to do this for a client so they could keep a record of all the faxes they made and received. There are creative and potentially illegal defenses against wiretappers and Peeping Toms. One is to transmit an extremely high pitch down the wire, thereby rupturing the listener’s eardrums. I knew someone who once sent a powerful electrical spike down his phone wire thereby destroying his divorced wife’s recorder.

By the way, this leads to another topic-expect the device to be discovered someday. Don’t leave your fingerprints on it. He found it and had it dusted, thereby producing some prints. My friend used this as leverage against the Private Investigator that planted it. Advice to Private Investigators, a word to the wise: if you do this part-time, hire someone who does this full-time. This P.I. lost his license and almost went to jail. The lawyer who recommended him got into a lot of trouble as well. He received some unwanted attention from the Feds because of his telephone dealings went across state lines and also happened to involve the Post Office.

There is another budding field related to this topic called Protective Intelligence. Currently there are only a few experts who do this kind of work.

A laser or an infrared beam can be used at a considerable distance from a target building. Conversational sounds can vibrate unto solid objects such as windows. The beam’s reflection varies in relation to the movement to the window, which is received and converted back into something audible. To mask the sounds, you could attach a vibrating device (basically an altered electric razor) to the window.

Of course if the window is open, then a laser can target another object instead of the window. A beam of light or laser can be directed to go through a window onto a solid object thereby nullifying such defensive measures again. Generally you really can’t detect such attacks unless the laser, infrared or light beam is being used that moment. Certain materials can be used to detect IR emissions, as well as the use of passive night vision gear. Certain fabrics or even a curtain may actually show the spot where a beam of light or laser is being focused. Unless the room is dusty or you have an artificial can smoke, you can follow the beam up to a point and guesstimate it’s location. One type of optical bug is an infrared transmitter. When placed in the area of interest for transmission of the conversation to an infrared receiver which will then translate the conversation into an audible format.

Many of these same procedures used can be applied to locating hidden cameras. A relatively new device uses a series of lasers to seek out optics. This was originally intended to locate snipers by bodyguards.

I have listed the techniques, counter-measures and then the counter to the counter-measures to prevent any false sense of security. Usually constant vigilance is your best weapon besides knowing what to look for. Even if you find a “bug sweeper” with good credentials, certifications and experience, ask them detailed questions. Not just to test them but also for your own peace-of-mind. This makes our job easier and we appreciate greatly when dealing with knowledgeable customers.

When darkness falls all the foxes come out to hunt. Unfortunately, the same thing happens in the human species. Every criminal bash-artist, robber, general thief, hold up merchant, car thief, house breaker, home invader, burglar, mugger, rapist and general recidivist crook also comes out to hunt. Sad, but true.

After dark you certainly need to have your “radar” turned on. Those who would do you harm or want to damage or steal your property prefer to operate anonymously. Darkness is their unfair advantage over you. Darkness is their ally.

Here are some safety issues that you should consider when day turns to night:

Emergency is a situation that poses an instant threat to human life or possessions though this description may be different in some areas. Deliberate bogus reports of an emergency are usually prosecuted as an offense. One should call for help any time there is a danger for life or public order. The emergency telephone number is a special case in the country’s telephone number sketch.

The emergency telephone number differs from country to country. It is typically a three-digit number (though not always), so that it can be easily remembered and dialed quickly. Some countries have a different emergency number for each of the different emergency services; these often differ only by the last digit. The three main and best known emergency call services are firebrigade, police and ambulance. Other available services include coastguards, mountain rescue and cave rescue (where locally applicable). Some situations such as a major car accident or a terrorist attack will require multiple and/or expert services but the first point of call for coverage such incidents from the general public is still the 9-9-9 system. The number is operated by British Telecom for the Home Office. The operator may also be able to offer help over the phone until the emergency service staff arrive. 9-9-9 is the United Kingdom ’s Emergency telephone number along with the EU standard 1-1-2 . Either number can be used but people always refer to 9-9-9. If you are using a mobile phone which is out of range, dial 112. This will connect you directly to emergency services even if you do not have network coverage.

Use of emergency number is always intended to be used only in an emergency. For usual and non-urgent enquiries one should use the normal telephone for the particular emergency service. These are normally listed in the local telephone directory. In the United Kingdom , for example, the number 0845 46 47 can also be dialed for NHS Direct, a non-emergency medical service. Routine and non-urgent calls as well as trick or nonconformist calls to emergency services numbers waste the time of both dispatchers and emergency responders and can cause danger to lives. False reports of emergencies are often put on trial as crimes.

Regional Emergency Numbers

Some of the worldwide emergency telephone number for emergency help are as:

“911” in North America
”999″ or “112” in the United Kingdom
“112″ in Europe
“000” in Australia
“111” in New Zealand
“119″ in parts of Asia

One may also dial the operator (often by dialing “0″) and state clearly that it is an emergency. Within the European Union and on GSM mobile phone networks 112 can be used in count to any local emergency number.

Did you know that fire is the third leading cause of accidental deaths in the United States, yet most people ignore it. More than 150 workplace fires occur every day. So many of theses untimely deaths could have been prevented if they only had a plan.

The number one tip any family can have is, make sure all family members know what to do in the event of a fire. In a fire, timing is very critical. Don’t waste time getting dressed, don’t search for pets or valuables. Just get out! Set up a way for everyone to sound a family alarm. Screaming, pounding on walls, yelling “fire”!

If a fire happens in your home, you have to get out fast! Prepare for a fire emergency by sitting down with your family and agreeing on an escape plan. Be sure that everyone knows at least two escape exits, the doors and windows from every room. Decide on a meeting place outside where everyone will meet after they escape the fire. Have your entire household practice your escape plan at least twice a year.

Smoke detectors can alert you to a fire in your home in time for you to escape the blaze, it’s esp. useful when the family is asleep. Install smoke detectors on every floor of your home, including the basement. Test detectors every month, following the manufacturer’s directions, and replace batteries once a year, or whenever a detector “chirps” to signal low battery power. Make sure your alarm works at all times! A non functional smoke detector can’t save your life or your family’s. Replace detectors that are more than a years old. Careless smoking is the leading cause of fire deaths in North America. Smoking in bed or when you are drowsy can be extremely dangerous. Provide smokers with ashtrays and soak butts with water before discarding them. Before going to bed or leaving home after a smoker has been smoking, check around and make sure there aren’t any lit buds.

Never leave cooking unattended. Keep cooking areas clear of combustibles. Turn pot handles inward on the stove where you can’t bump them and children can’t grab them and burn themselves. If grease catches fire in a pan, slide a lid over the pan to smother the flames and turn off the heat. Leave the lid on until cool. For more safety tips and products visit www.safetyrus.com

Isn’t technology a wonderful thing? I thought this as I received the text to my mobile phone telling me that my home security camera had detected movement. Someone or something was where they shouldn’t be at the rear of my house and I was 2000 miles away on vacation – yet I still knew they were there. Fortunately the text wasn’t followed up by another from one of the sensors on my windows telling me that someone was breaking in and it was urgent I did something about it.

A quick call to my neighbour and the drama was over, must have been that big old moggy over the back on his nightly prowl.

Just imagine the peace of mind knowing that my castle was safe and was being looked over by technology and that my worldly possessions weren’t strewn all over the back yard as some bad people made their hurried get-away and it was all down to technology.

Just a month earlier I had installed an add-on to my home security system that allowed me to monitor the state of various things around my home from anywhere in the world, either over the world wide web or by alert to my mobile phone. Even better still, I can logon to the internet in some friendly internet café, wherever I am, and set things up. I can setup lights to come on and off at will, I can turn the central heating on for a snug and warm return, I can even make a cup of tea (should any burglar want one whilst the police arrive) by controlling my trusty tea maker and all from anywhere in the world!

I am sure I am not breaking new ground here, this is not technology to revolutionise space travel or to solve the African drought problem but it certainly answers a need for me, the peace and mind of knowing my possessions are safe.

I got the idea to monitor my home remotely when, in the course of my work, I came across a little device that monitors anything from anywhere.

That’s probably a sweeping statement and needs to be qualified slightly, it might struggle to monitor wind speed on Mars and send the results to Venus but you know what I mean.

When I came across it first, it was monitoring a whole host of things in remote water pumping stations, interesting things like bearing vibration and motor temperature, water leaks and intruder alarm. It was sending information back to a central location in collaboration with dozens of it’s brothers and sisters in their remote pumping stations, all sending back information to the one central location – fantastic!

Of course it was the intruder alarm bit that sparked my imagination (I don’t have many vibrating bearings in my home). As I researched into it further I found that this remarkable little device (or one of its kinfolk) really could monitor ANYTHING and send the information ANYWHERE. I found that this technology was in use in areas that I had never imagined could benefit from remote monitoring or control, and for a variety of reasons. Reasons ranging from holding down costs to just plain peace of mind. It is used in healthcare to monitor vaccine temperatures in doctors surgeries, environmental monitoring in computer rooms, monitoring experiments in laboratories, in fact it’s uses are limited only by your imagination, if you’ve ever wanted to keep and eye on whats going on with ANYTHING from ANYWHERE in the world, you can.

So you see, in my case, in my humble “home security” application of this wonderful technology, Big Brother IS watching and I AM Big Brother, watching over my home wherever I am, give it a try, I can recommend the peace of mind.