What Is Security?

Anyone who has ever lived in a small town or “in the country” has probably known people who never lock their doors. City residents, on the other hand, are highly security-conscious, double- or triple-locking doors, installing window gates, relying on doormen or intercom systems and peepholes to identify visitors or strangers who appear on their doorsteps. And more and more over the past 40 years, suburbanites and even residents of high-security, upscale gated communities have tended to follow city residents’ habits rather than the old ways of their “country cousins.”

There are good reasons for both the difference in people’s understanding of “security” and the gradual adoption of more stringent measures for maintaining a sense of safety.

Read full article HERE.

x-10 Technology – The Low-key Protocol

by Andrew Reed

Last December we described the Superna Home Automation system in the context of its convenience and ease of operation for homeowners and apartment dwellers. Now, for those who are neither techno-geeks or -phobes, but just interested and curious potential customers, here’s a somewhat closer look at the x10 protocol that’s one of the industry standards for operating automated systems.

x10 is a communications protocol. Unlike familiar protocols like TCP/IP that are used in sophisticated computer communications, however, x10 uses only one-tenth of one percent – 1/1000 – of the bandwidth needed for a dial-up connection. The system simply piggy-backs on the 60 mHz power of standard home wiring by sending a 120 mHz signal along the same electric lines. That limitation is also a benefit: x10 commands are slow, low-power, and very simple: “turn the radio off,” for example.

Read full article by clicking here: http://www.vertexsecurity.com/news.php?id=41