Michael K Houser's Blog

Wiring Nightmare

Well it’s finally Friday and I hope you’re excited about the weekend like me! This is a Lakers “Gold” weekend so I better not see green anything.

Through the years of being in the security industry, with over 51,000 experience, I have seen it all from systems easily defeated in a burglary, systems that cause false alarms, to poorly designed systems where you would have more protection sitting in a diesel truck filled with explosives ramming into a nitro-glycerin factory.

How do I know about these systems? Simple, we are the “A” Team and our job is to go into your home and business and clean up this junk and provide a safe and secure environment that lasts for decades! Plus, most of our referrals are from clients who thought the experts really were experts. Well, enough about the A Team let’s talk about the worst install of an control panel:

As seen and witnessed from Electronic Eye:

1. Control panel installed at floor height. Great height to service a panel if you have a 6 inch installer!

2. Control Panel installed inside a unprotected garage (courtesy of a national alarm company known by 3 letters). So convenient for a burglar to easily defeat a system without ever having to break in. I also like the stickers on the panel that easily direct you to the brain of the system.

3. Control panel installed at back door with keypad attached (courtesy of the national alarm company that sells $99.00 systems). Again, I always love it when an alarm company makes its system easily available for a burglar to defeat without using tools and a ladder. It always nice for the entry alert on the keypad to lead you directly to brain of the system. Our window stickers provide better security than these poorly designed systems.

4. Control Panel installed in a home with over 80 openings, with all the wires ran directly back to the control panel. This would have been OK back in the Jurassic era of alarm systems, but in the 80’s they invented a device called a “zone expander”. This makes wiring a home easy by running wires to expanders that run back to the control panel. Nice and neat and extremely easy to troubleshoot. But this type of system requires intelligent design.

5. Control panel with masking tape slices inside. Back in 1994 we bought an alarm company where the standard for everything was using masking tape. Now don’t get me wrong I like masking tape, especially when I paint. But masking tape splices in alarm installations is like electing Jerry “moonbeam” Brown to balance the California budget. It won’t work and only creates a bigger gob of mess!

Coming next week, “worst installation location of an Infrared”.

OK – funny story, around 2005 Electronic Eye Security Inc. was looking for economical CCTV equipment to go with our entry level DVR line. Around this time we were installing a lot of camera and security systems for laundromats. I had designed an economical control/security system and software that could operate a laundromat without anybody having to be there and it had over 6 levels of protection. Because of the nature of the business (cash transactions), laundromats are burglarized very often, sometimes a couple of times in a week. To this day no crook as ever gotten away with much more than a gumball machine under my watch and that’s only because we don’t secure gum.

It was also at this time that I had given up all hope on local security distributors who were hiring derelicts to work behind the counter that did not know a mop handle from a security camera. So we decided to buy direct from a Chinese importer who had incredible low prices on equipment over the internet. Woo hoo! I ordered up samples and tested them out and thought, “Yes! These imitations will work perfect for our entry level systems.” Big Mistake!

I was excited as we closed around 3-4 CCTV deals the first week of offering these low price-busting cameras and accessories.

But this excitement soon evaporated after the first installation was completed. It started with camera connectors that would literally disintegrate upon contact, BNC connectors that would short out the video and camera lenses that developed cataracts around the lens within a day or two of installing. It wasn’t long before our installers were returning to the job site to replace these connectors and cameras, not once, not twice but three times a week. The cameras would work for about 2 or 3 days and after that the shoddy electronics would slowly stop working. Talk about a royal pain in the rear end and embarrassment!

Well, we took the high road and ended up replacing every connector and camera and chalked it up to a valuable lesson that has served us well through the years:

We only use equipment that can match our high standards of intelligent design, installation and guarantees. The rest of the “crap” can be purchased at Costco, Sam’s Club, eBay, Radio Shack etc.!

I have been involved in the security industry since my father (an electrician by trade) installed intercom and local alarm systems back in the early 80’s. Back then alarm systems were pretty basic and most of them were only hooked up to an audible siren installed on the outside of the home. Most people who had an alarm system back in the 80’s were not well liked by their neighbors. Nothing can alienate you quicker from your neighbors than a blaring 110 decibel siren at 2:00 AM in the morning while you are away on vacation in Hawaii. The siren would keep up its howling warble sound until someone cut the wire to the bloody thing. By then the neighbor who figured out how to use wire cutters became an instant hero.

Thank goodness the security industry has grown to include changes like “swinger shutdown” which automatically shuts down an alarm siren after so many minutes. Also on the list of major improvements since the 80’s are better installation techniques like installing the siren inside the home instead of outside pointing at your neighbor’s house.

But the real issue remains: what happens if an alarm takes place at your home or business and you are not there?
An airline pilot has instrument gauges to monitor a flight, a car driver has instrument gauges to monitor the engine and a doctor has instrument gauges to monitor your health.
How about an instrument gauge that monitors your home or business anywhere you are, anytime you want?
Neil Peart drum roll please … let’s give a loud warm welcome to the next best friend of your home or business — no it’s not the cat — it’s “Virtual Connect”!

I have been using this product for my home for almost a year now and two things come to mind – Total Peace of Mind and Total Control of my Home.
I know when my alarm is on, who turns it off, if my dogs have water, if my dogs are OK, the temperature of the wine cellar and if there is an activation: Who, What, Where and When, all from my Blackberry Storm.
Total control and peace of mind of your home or business. Go Virtual!
So what is a Virtual Connect System?
A virtual connect system is simply a way to monitor and control devices of your home or business through a remote computer or web-based phone anytime anywhere!

How can it help you?
For residential users:
• View live video of your home
• View video clips and snapshots of alarm events
• Keep an eye on your pets
• Find out when the kids come home from school
• Cancel a false alarm dispatch
• Use the recorded video to apprehend home invaders
• Log in to see if the neighbor remembered to come by and feed the dogs while you’re on vacation
• Check in on the babysitter or caretaker
• Monitor access to medicine cabinets, gun cabinets or closets and be notified immediately of an alarm
• Find out immediately about a power outage
• Monitor for water seepage or flooding
• Monitor wine cellars for temperature change
• Control the temperature of your home before arriving
• Track and view guests, renters or maintenance personnel as they come and go
• And much more

GO Virtual

For Business users:
• Find out when someone arms or disarms the system
• Arm or disarm your system remotely
• Cancel False alarms prior to dispatch by viewing pre/post video or live video clips
• Reduce employee and customer theft
• Get better productivity out of your staff
• Use recorded video to help authorities apprehend burglars
• Monitor access and recorded video activity related to safes, cash drawers and inventory closets
• Create automated schedules to Arm/Disarm the system at set times each day
• Monitor temperature in server rooms
• And much more

To learn more Go Virtual and opt in to the box on the right. I will be following up with you later on this week about your exciting new best friend!

Talk to you soon,
Go Virtural
Michael Houser – The Security Genius

The Los Angeles Fire Department offers Halloween safety tips.

Before Halloween

* Plan costumes that are bright and reflective. Make sure that shoes fit well and that costumes are short enough to prevent tripping, entanglement or contact with flame.
* Consider adding reflective tape or striping to costumes and trick-or-treat bags for greater visibility.
* Secure emergency identification (name, address, phone number) discreetly within Halloween attire or on a bracelet.
* Because a mask can limit or block eyesight, consider non-toxic and hypoallergenic makeup or a decorative hat as a safe alternative.
* When shopping for costumes, wigs and accessories, purchase only those with a label indicating they are flame resistant.
* Think twice before using simulated knives, guns or swords. If such props must be used, be certain they do not appear authentic and are soft and flexible to prevent injury.
* Obtain flashlights with fresh batteries for all children and their escorts.
* Plan ahead to use only battery powered lanterns or chemical lightsticks in place of candles in decorations and costumes.
* This is also a great time to buy fresh batteries for your home Smoke Alarms.
* Teach children their home phone number and to how call 9-1-1 (or their local emergency number) if they have an emergency or become lost. Remind them that 9-1-1 can be dialed free from any phone.
* Review with your children the principle of “Stop-Drop-Roll”, should their clothes catch on fire.
* Openly discuss appropriate and inappropriate behavior at Halloween time.
* Consider purchasing individually packaged healthy food alternatives (or safe non-food treats) for those who visit your home.
* Take extra effort to eliminate tripping hazards on your porch and walkway. Check around your property for flower pots, low tree limbs, support wires or garden hoses that may prove hazardous to young children rushing from house to house.
* Learn or review CPR skills to aid someone who is choking or having a heart attack.
* Consider safe party guidelines when hosting an adult or office party.
Fun Alternatives

* Find a special event or start one in your own neighborhood.
* Community centers, shopping malls and houses of worship may have organized festivities.
* Share the fun by arranging a visit to a Retirement Home or Senior Center.
* Create an alliance with college fraternities, sororities or service clubs for children’s face painting or a carnival.

Before Nightfall On Halloween

* A good meal prior to parties and trick-or-treating will discourage youngsters from filling up on Halloween treats.
* Consider fire safety when decorating. Do not overload electrical outlets with holiday lighting or special effects, and do not block exit doors.
* While children can help with the fun of designing a Jack O’ Lantern, leave the carving to adults.
* Always keep Jack O’ Lanterns and hot electric lamps far away from drapes, decorations, flammable materials or areas where children and pets will be standing or walking.
* Plan and review with your children the route and behavior which is acceptable to you.
* Do not permit children to bicycle, roller-blade or skateboard.
* Agree on a specific time when revelers must return home.
* Along with flashlights for all, older children and escorts should wear a wristwatch and carry coins for non-emergency phone calls.
* Confine, segregate or otherwise prepare household pets for an evening of frightful sights and sounds. Be sure that all dogs and cats are wearing collars and proper identification tags. Consult your veterinarian for further advice.
* Remind all household drivers to remain cautious and drive slowly throughout the community.
* Adult party goers should establish and reward a designated driver.

When Trick-Or-Treating

* A Parent or responsible Adult should always accompany young children on their neighborhood rounds.

Remind Trick-or-Treaters:

* By using a flashlight, they can see and be seen by others.
* Stay in a group, walk slowly and communicate where you are going.
* Only trick-or-treat in well known neighborhoods at homes that have a porch light on.
* Remain on well-lit streets and always use the sidewalk.
* If no sidewalk is available, walk at the farthest edge of the roadway facing traffic.
* Never cut across yards or use alleys.
* Never enter a stranger’s home or car for a treat.
* Obey all traffic and pedestrian regulations.
* Always walk. Never run across a street.
* Only cross the street as a group in established crosswalks (as recognized by local custom).
* Remove any mask or item that will limit eyesight before crossing a street, driveway or alley.
* Don’t assume the right of way. Motorists may have trouble seeing Trick-or-Treaters. Just because one car stops, doesn’t mean others will.
* Never consume unwrapped food items or open beverages that may be offered.
* No treats are to be eaten until they are thoroughly checked by an Adult at home.
* Law Enforcement authorities should be notified immediately of any suspicious or unlawful activity.

After Trick-Or-Treating

* Wait until children are home to sort and check treats. Though tampering is rare, a responsible Adult should closely examine all treats and throw away any spoiled, unwrapped or suspicious items.
* Try to apportion treats for the days following Halloween.
* Although sharing is encouraged, make sure items that can cause choking (such as hard candies), are given only to those of an appropriate age.

During the California gold rush R. U. Darby, a gold prospector, helped his uncle mine a vein of gold that his relative had discovered. It appeared at first that they had a prosperous find. Yet the vein soon disappeared, and Darby and his uncle searched frantically for the spot where it continued. Finally, they concluded their prospects were hopeless and sold their equipment to a junk dealer for a couple of hundred bucks.

The junk dealer consulted an engineer, who looked at the mine and did a little calculating. The engineer advised that the project failed because Darby and his Uncle were not familiar with “fault lines” in the earth’s core. The junk dealer quickly discovered the vein of gold just three feet from where Darby and his uncle had stopped digging and went on to make millions from the ore.

This story (which is illustrated in the classic Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill) points out how important battles in life are often won by persistence. It reminds us that we can give up on a goal too easily and are sometimes much closer to hitting our mark than we realize.

Recently Greg Reid and Sharon Lechter released a book named “Three Feet From Gold” and held a seminar in Anaheim last weekend at The Grove. The event was fantastic and feature several speakers who had overcame similar events as R.U Darby in their life.

LA Fitness has redefined the word “Hot” in its health club located at Vally View and Chapman in the city of Garden Grove.   Don’t worry about sweating, soon as you get past the front door it will feel like you walked into a sauna.   Bring your portable fan and a water bottle to keep from dehydrating.

Hey LA Fitness if your going to cut back on the A/C   how about cutting back my membership fees?

Vallejo police are seeking the go-ahead to further crack down on false security alarm calls.

The City Council on Tuesday will hear a report about proposed amendments to strengthen a July 2007 ordinance that was meant to reduce unnecessary false calls to police.

In a report released this week for the Vallejo City Council, Police Chief Robert Nichelini said that ordinance’s provisions have curbed the more than 6,000 annual average false alarms by only 9 percent in the past two years.

Though the police department averages $340,000 a year in fines due for false alarm calls, less than $140,000 has been successfully collected, according to the department report.

Those who do not pay the false alarm fines are put on a police “no response” list.

With modifications to the city law, alarm system owners would be required to register and receive a permit from the city. This would allow the department to identify the owner and know whom to bill after receiving the false alarm call, the report states.

The department is also proposing the hiring of a firm to manage the billing, noticing and warning duties related to the ordinance.

BY JESSICA A. YORK

BROOMFIELD, Colo.- August 10, 2009 – ClickBank officials will continue to work with affiliate marketers in states that are enacting new laws to tax the marketers’ sales, while Amazon and Overstock.com, among others, have been moving swiftly to halt their business relationships with affiliate marketers in various states because of the new tax implications.

In late June, Amazon terminated its marketing affiliate program in North Carolina after a new law took effect that will tax affiliate sales, and on July 1, Overstock.com notified affiliates in Hawaii, North Carolina and Rhode Island that it would immediately cease doing business with them because of similar new tax laws.

But ClickBank, a major online retailer, says it has no intention of terminating relationships with affiliates in certain locations or discontinuing its longstanding policy of collecting and remitting taxes to the appropriate tax authorities in various domestic and international jurisdictions.

“We will continue to honor sales agreements with affiliates in the U.S. and abroad, despite new taxes that are being levied against them for sales and marketing efforts,” said Dush Ramachandran, vice president of sales, marketing and business development for ClickBank.

“One of the benefits of being a ClickBank affiliate is that you can operate wherever you live,” said Ramachandran. “We don’t want to place limits on that now. Our affiliates deserve the opportunity to earn income regardless of where they live, and ClickBank will continue to support them in their efforts to do so.”

New state tax laws aim to collect sales tax revenues from affiliates whose marketing activities lead to ecommerce sales. The key issue is whether the affiliates have a physical presence in a state that taxes ecommerce activities. The state of New York was the first to enact such tax laws, and more states are following suit.

How often do you wake up feeling overwhelmed? Twice a week? Four times a week? Every day? As awful as it sounds, that’s really not uncommon for a small business owner. But, rather than finding a way to relieve their stress, most small business owners simply dive into their work hoping one day they’ll surface.
If that’s what you’re doing… STOP! Manual operations are a thing of the past. Why not maximize your time by automating your business? With automation software, you can:
• Create and automatically execute marketing campaigns
• Implement email autoresponders
• Process credit card payments automatically
• Automatically distribute leads to your salespeople
• Set up automated reminders and notifications
• Automate recurring billing programs
• Automate work flow
• And so much more!
Look, it would be great if there were more of you to go around. But there isn’t. There is only you, and you’ve got a business to run and grow. Why not put your mundane, time-consuming tasks on auto-pilot?
Find a system that keeps on working… even when you can’t or don’t want to! Discover the power of automation, and you’ll discover ways to simplify your business and significantly increase your revenue!

Clate Mask

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