Social Media Gets Serious About PSIM

As the fast pace of technological innovation is changing the industry, security professionals are flocking to information sources such as webinars, industry events, in-person training and, yes, social media. LinkedIn groups have provided a setting for discussions on security game changers, one of which is physical security information management (PSIM). The PSIM Group has 2,491 members who actively network with one another and discuss best practices and technology developments in this space. Become part of the dialogue by logging into LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) and searching for the PSIM Group.

Light e-Reading

Zebra Technologies, Lincolnshire, Ill., a manufacturer of bar code, kiosk, card and RFID printers as well as real-time location solutions, combined an interactive product catalog with resources such as white papers and case studies in an eBook. The online reference material is broken up by vertical market — each section describing how individual tagging solutions work within a system. Aside from very sharp graphics, the eBook’s best feature is its portability, as it is viewable on Web-enabled mobile devices as well. Check out Zebra’s eBook at www.zebra.com/ebook.

Show, Don’t Tell

Why tell customers the reasons they need a security system when you can show them? WH Security of Rockford, Minn., produced a series of testimonial videos featuring customers whose security systems helped them in a crisis, including a home fire, a flood and an accident that left an elderly woman immobilized. The videos are brief and to-the-point and feature real customers in their own homes, sharing their own stories. On its website, WH Security offers three months of free monitoring to customers who agree to share their stories with the company. Another video shows a dramatization of a security system at work during a burglary attempt. Watch the videos at www.wh-security.com/security-system-company/testimonials.html.

App Delivers IP Camera Stills

With the recent integration of Basler IP cameras into the WiseVue application, it is now possible to view images from Basler cameras on a mobile device running Apple’s iOS operating system. A demo is available by downloading the free WiseVue application from the Apple store that allows access to a test Basler IP camera. The demo consists of two images and a video icon that will play a live video stream at 30 frames per second on your iPhone or iPad. WiseVue is an iPhone / iPad / iPod Touch application used to view IP cameras through WiseCast. A combination of WiseCast and WiseVue makes it possible to view live images and video on a mobile device from IP cameras set for MPEG-4 or H.264 streaming. WiseVue brings video surveillance technology from the desktop to mobile devices allowing users to monitor security 24/7/365.