Weston Super Saint

Of course Your secret's safe with us.

It's of no advantage whatsoever - the machine always wins If caught though, you're out!! Anyone prepared to use one would probably steal the purse from your granny given the chance.

Someone's been dumped

Spending the whole weekend wiring fruit machines up to the National Grid

The machines are not ours and we have no keys to empty them. The company responsible for them empty them weekly - I have arranged for the day of emptying to be changed - but it would be good to see they're faces when they break in and get nothing!! I have also requested the security on the machines be 'beefed up', but to be fair, I requested that last week after we got broken into then! You can probably imagine I wasn't the most polite person phoning them this morning having lost my precious beauty sleep only to find out they haven't even bothered to log my extra security request!! The machine 'doors' are made from chipboard and are designed to fall apart when forced open. I have one concern that making them impenetrable might make the thieves want to take something else, or worse still come up stairs to see me! Good job my new found hobby of American Baseball requires me to keep a metal bat by the door :shock: On the other hand they might just think we're not such an easy target and leave us alone - it appears they are only after the cash anyway.

1) Truck loads 2) Yes, since it hasn't cost anything yet, but that's not the point, the point is I'd like to catch them. I'd also like 10 minutes in a locked room with them but I doubt I'd be allowed.

If I could get to see them, I'd just take a picture of them

Unfortunately burglars have more rights than I do

Depends where you put the signs

Only 2 reasons why not : 1. I would never be able to turn the alarms on thus invalidating the insurance, either that or lock the dogs in an area where they would be no use anyway. 2. Not sure the EHO would be happy to have dogs roaming in a food area.

They come in through the windows each time - I have now screwed 3 windows shut, but this does not deter them, they just move to the next window in the line. We already have a comprehensive burglar alarm that is linked to a monitoring station, and the minute the break in is 'confirmed' - more than one sensor is tripped - the alarm monitoring station ring the police and they attend - there has been a number of exactly the same crimes in the area and the police are as ****ed off as the rest of us!!! Unfortunately these guys know what they are doing and are in and out within about 30 seconds or so, taking the notes from the fruit machine with them. Given that the alarm beeps for 30 seconds - to allow legitimate users time to get in and turn it off before it is activated properly - they are gone before I even know they are there. Also factor in it takes another 30 seconds or so at 4 in the morning to recognise the noise is the alarm and then get out of bed and look out the window to a now empty car park, and you can imagine all we have to go on is a couple of partial Stan Smith trainer prints!!! If the CCTV doesn't put them off, then at the very least a camera that is well hidden might actually catch a picture of who the burglar is - not to mention one could be set up to monitor the car park and maybe catch a reg number or car description.... So, there really are no more measures that can realistically be taken to stop them entering - let's face it a determined burglar will overcome most obstacles - so we're left with trying to identify them once they are here!!

Having been broken into again last night - sleeping on Friday mornings seems to be a thing of the past for me - I want to get some sort of CCTV to try and catch the little toe rags who are doing this. Now, the company I work for would rather not pay as they haven't really lost any money yet, so my solution needs to be cheap like the budgie. I am looking for some sort of camera that can be bolted down, is either mains fed, or has it's own power supply, but crucially, MUST record onto it's own memory / memory card which can then but copied onto a computer - where I want to put it will not be accessible for cables etc, and we have no monitor or video to record on to... If anyone knows of such a product that will be reasonably cheap, let me know....

http://www.mobiles.co.uk/

LOL @ auditors giving a monkeys how much a company charges for their products.

Ssssshhhhh don't spoil a good conspiracy theory.

Nokia 100

I agree with you. It IS much harder than it was, and unfortunately it's only going to get harder still before it gets better. But like BAJ has stated, it's times like these when small businesses will either flourish or fail. If you can ride this out and make a few quid then the other side is going to look like a bed of roses!! It's also worth bearing in mind that people with a trade are much better placed during a recession as people will always take the cheaper option of getting things repaired rather than buying new to replace. You've already said you have enough work to last you until February, so use the time until then to gain more contracts, I guarantee that software engineers will be in demand as computers go tits up and people want them to work again. Failing that can you not look for another job working for someone else during the rough times, become a wage slave again, but at least you'll have regular hours and a regular wage. If nothing else it will serve to increase your contacts for the time you go it alone again.

Better 'perks' too

We agree on something!

I'll offer you three of Mrs Miggins's finest pies.

You just happened to 'stumble upon' that website right?

I found a mouldy cucumber the other day with an IQ of 128.

You could take a hat and a fake moustache and at the interval swap chairs and pretend to be someone else.

I thought the pikey with the bell was b-anned?