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Macbook Locks! Fighting Dorm Room Theifs...

I remember back in my first year of college (which ended a whopping 6 weeks ago) that my roomate and I both had a bit of a war going on with our friends across the hall, constantly messing with eachothers laptops.

My roomate didnt lock his as much as I did and our friend would constantly pick it up and leave (along with other items from our room...dont worry we always got them back) But when the computers were locked down, we'd often come back to some *websites* on the screen that we certainly didnt leave up when we left...and that we would never go to on our own free will...use your imagination.

Moral of the story? Get a lock. Use passwords. win the war.

EDIT: 100th post. woo.
 
why do people on forums insist on correcting other peoples grammar and spelling mistakes. Hypocrites...

anyways, just get a gun, and sleep with your laptop. SIMPLE! hahaha
 
Check out ORBICULE UNDERCOVER
a great piece of software that will help you recover a stolen computer.
If it gets stolen and the thief connects to the internet the background software uses the camera to take a picture of the perp and send it to the Orbicule servers. It then Determines the the location of the computer based on the internet connection, So that the Police can locate the computer. :eek: :cool: :D
 
software likes these have been around for sometime. Mostly for the government owned computers. If the theif is smart, he would immediately reformat the system.
 
Don't forget the security lapses resulting from your WINDOWS......not THAT windows, the real windows. Many a locked room has been hacked into because the windows were not shut or locked, and amazing how many students leave their valuables in full view next to the window....!
 
That Orbicule program looks really cool but couldnt a thief just replace the HD? And Flash the firmware? I bet most thieves would just dump it if it gave them too much trouble. I wonder how many actually get returned. I guess combining this with Ialertu and a lock would deter tho.
 
Lock your door and make sure your roommate (if any) has an understanding that the stuff in your room are valuable. Make sure he/she locks the door whenever they left the room, etc. Any lock is not gonna keep away someone who really wants to steal your macbook. Sure it might be a deterrent, but just lock your door when you're not there, and they won't even be able to get near it. I didn't use any in my dorm, i still have my powerbook. Just gotta be careful and build trust with your friends. Look out for them, and they'll look out for you. :)
 
Roco said:
Maybe the reason of this is because English isn't our native language.

In my case my native language is Spanish. I know english, but not perfectly.
Click to expand...

That makes sense why you misspelt it. Spanish doesn't have nearly the number of weird words like english.

My two cents? A laptop lock and common sense should be enough to protect your macbook from ladrones.
 
X5-452 said:
Password lock it. Hide it when not in use. Lock your door. Most importantly, get iAlertU.
Click to expand...


Beware the macbook thief...

camera_panel2.png
 
Where I'm at, most people don't utilize laptop locks. But then again, it's a smaller campus where you can lay your stuff down in the library all day unattended and it won't be touched.

I think the lock will give you more a piece of mind then anything. Remember, you actually have to use it for it to work! But just be smart with your laptop, take it with you when you leave a public area, make friends, and just be smart about it. Also, as far as the TV, if you're worried about it being swiped, don't take it to college.
 
If someone is going to steal your stuff, and your door is locked, they've brought with them already more than enough resources to defeat any mechanical locks you have for your macbook. Brute force to rip the cable from the desk, or if you're dealing with a more advanced thief, small cutters or even just a screwdriver will defeat your lock.

Insure your goods, lock the door, backup your data remotely. Don't worry so much.
 
It's unlikely you're laptop will get stolen unless you are careless by not locking doors when you leave. The average student is NOT going to risk breaking into a persons dorm unless they know what you have and really, really want it. They wouldn't want to take the risk of getting caught and kicked out the university. The loss of tuition and the bad mark on your record wouldn't justify the theft. Just take reasonable precautions and don't leave stuff too much out in the open, and be sure to lock it up. Followup with having a decent insurance policy.
 
TDM21 said:
I don't know what college you will be attending, but a lock might be a bit much. If anything it will show how paranoid you are and friends will try to mess with your computer more. A password protected system will deter people more then a lock. Friends messing with the settings of your computer is much more common then computers actually disappearing.
Click to expand...

What might happen though:

Missing laptop + cheap flimsy useless lock broken = insurance pays
Missing laptop + no broken lock = insurance doesn't pay.
 
Conthemon said:
why do people on forums insist on correcting other peoples grammar and spelling mistakes. Hypocrites...
Click to expand...

For several reasons.

One, a forum like this attracts software developers. And as a software developer I have a severe allergy against spelling mistakes. Not just the spelling mistakes, but the careless attitude that it signifies which in my profession is a recipe for disaster.

Two, a forum like this attracts many readers who don't have English as their first language. They are very badly affected for two reasons: Because things can be very hard to understand (a French speaker might have real trouble figuring out what dorm room theifs are supposed to be), and because it makes their spelling worse (unless at some point you take the dictionary and check that the words wierd, psuedo, compatable and optomize don't actually exist). And using the wrong one of their - there - they're makes things really hard to read for a foreigner.

Three, many people take careless use of the language as a sign of severe disrespect for yourself and for the reader. If you can't be bothered to spell it right, why should I be bothered reading it? And if you don't know how to spell it, that doesn't exactly inspire confidence that you know what you are talking about.
 
I think alot of people who do get annoyed with typographical errors are a bit high-strung or they do have that huge ego trip when sitting at their computer. If anyone are allowed to get away with typo's without complaints from these online dictators of the dictionary, it's the dutch. Why? Because they know 4 languages and smoke marijuana :p
 
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