There are some observers who look upon the presence of surveillance cameras in or around the house as something of a mistake -- as a mark of a suspicious mind, one bent on assuming the worst in humanity.
While that may be true in some cases, you may decide that your home security plan needs a level of surveillance.
Whether it's a domestic employee you can no longer trust or a neighbor you suspect of unfair play on your side of the fence, surveillance is probably your last option to set things straight in your home.
As for reviewing and managing the footage, that might be another story.
Here are five options for recording and storing footage from your home security surveillance system.
1.
The old fashioned way.
Before our days of computers and chips eliminating the presence of hard copies, there were discs and, once, tapes.
If you don't feel ready to tackle a modern solution, the good news is you can still do it on DVD or even VHS tapes.
However, it is certainly the most time-consuming and least effective method.
If you have no other choice and you only need your footage to last a few hours over the course of a few days, you have nothing to lose.
2.
Using your computer's hard drive.
This method will give your home security plan a surveillance wing with little effort whatsoever.
Once you have the camera in place and the software installed on your computer, you are ready to watch from any point where there is a strong internet connection.
If you need to record a good deal of footage, you'll find yourself using up your computer's storage rather quickly.
Opt for a camera that records only upon motion prompting.
3.
DVR surveillance.
DVR changed the way people record off of television and it does the same for home security surveillance.
With a gigantic amount of storage capacity in the best models, you can have a number of cameras filming and recording simultaneously.
However, you will pay a hefty price for such a system.
Weigh the pros and cons.
4.
Using web hosting.
If you've never used a web hosting program, the easiest way to explain is by considering it a security company where there are no guards watching.
Essentially, the service offers you the ability to watch your footage whenever you want (in some case, free of charge).
This option only works without recording.
5.
The best and brightest.
As with most pieces of technology, you can settle all of your home security surveillance needs with one device, which will come in as the most expensive solution.
You will get a hidden camera, motion-activated, with terrific storage potential on a memory card like those used in digital cameras.
Storage, recording and playback will all come easily with this brilliant little machine.