In this unfortunate post-9/11 climate of evil-doers lurking everywhere, security has become an underlying concern to the average citizen. It seems we can no longer peruse stuff. co.nz or The Press over breakfast without tut-tutting at the home-invasion stories and the endless ghastly reports about the War on Terror from the world's battlefronts. Inevitably, this atmosphere of barely contained fear turns our thoughts to protecting what is most dear to us: our homes, our possessions and the ones we love.
Fortunately, as a technology writer I don't have to worry about stuff like that and can instead focus on what is really important _ groovy things we can do with our computers. I want to show how to take any old webcam and turn it into something actually useful. Webcams are a typical gadget _ they seem a great idea at the time but, like that home gym or Abdominizer, they get used a few times and then sit around until sold on Trade Me. But whether you want to know what the babysitter is really doing while you are out, or which neighbourhood cat is coming in at night and "tagging" the washing basket, your dusty webcam can be transformed into a state-of-the-art security system. All you need apart from the webcam is a computer, some software and a reason (although that is optional _ you'll want to do it anyway, just for the "geek" of it).

The webcam:

Like all things in life, you get out what you put in. A $5 camera picked up from Trade Me or during the weekly "can't-be-bothered-to-find- the-box" sale at your nearest mall may not give the same results as a specifically designed higher-end camera from one of the trendier places. Try to get the best camera you can afford.

The computer:

Almost any computer will do. If the camera and supporting drivers/ software will install on it, you should be able to use it. Obviously, the better the computer the better the results will be. For storing lots of snapshots or movies, the bigger the hard drive the better.

The software:

There are many titles out there, all with similar options, and a quick Google should point you in the right direction. If you like playing around, the open-source (freeware) Dorgem (dorgem. sourceforge.net) might be to your liking. For an ultra-basic system, Timershot from Microsoft Power Toys (also free) will do.

For a more comprehensive solution, try the Web Camera Security System (www.securitycamsoft.com/webcamsys.htm) or Tincam (www.tincam.com). For those of you with Macs, Evocam (www.evological.com/evocam.html) looks like a good *read "only"* option.
Most titles I found boasted such features as live/remote preview, automatic picture/movie upload to the web, scheduled snapshots or movies and motion-triggered recording with date/time stamps, so you have lots of options.
Once your camera is up and running, it is a simple matter to install your chosen software, point your camera to it (an option within the software itself) and fiddle with the various settings to get what you want. You can take a snapshot every 30 seconds and view the photos from your drive some time later, or you can email them or upload them to the web for later viewing; a handy feature if the bad guys flog or trash your computer.
Movies can be done the same way, and can even be monitored remotely via the internet in real- time, although you will need considerable hard-drive space and plenty of bandwidth if you intend to upload or view them on the web via your broadband connection.
Perhaps the most useful feature to look for is the ability to set the system to start recording/taking snapshots when movement is detected within camera range, thus avoiding full hard drives and wasted bandwidth.

So there you have it, an ultra- groovy security system you "made" yourself. Of course, you could just go and buy a dedicated security camera system, but where's the "geek" in that?