In general, "no." Like everyone with a web site, I can tell from the summaries of the server log where people come from – domain, time zone, type of browser, etc. You appear on these logs as a number that looks like this:205.188.195.xxx. This is an IP (Internet Protocol) Address. An IP Address identifies every device connected to the Internet. Every time you log into your ISP, you are assigned an IP address. If you have a cable modem, you usually keep the same IP address. Most business users also have permanent or static IP Address.

The most that I’ve ever had is 165 in one day. Most weekdays are 20 to 30, weekends are a little slower (I get a lot of visitors who are at work). The trend is actually downward since there are many more web cams than when I started. From a hundred or so personal cams (aimed at a person, not a freeway or office) when I started, there are now millions. (I could bump the numbers back up with a little nudity as many people do (see next question J ) or by redoing my search engine listings.)

Like most web-cammers, sometimes I forget that the cams are on.

Mostly because I like to redo my computers and networks just for the fun of it (can we say "geek"). If I get distracted with something else, it can be some time before I get all the cables reconnected.

When it was up and running, the cable to the bird cam ran across the floor in the family room. That was okay until Rooty the chewy puppy arrived. I have to reroute it through the ceiling in the garage, which I just have not done. I also wanted to stop feeding the birds on the concrete for a while, until the duck and geese (i.e., flying pigs) stopped coming up from the lake. There were about 50 geese in the backyard today (1/20/2002). You can imagine what that would be like if they all descended upon the driveway. Geese are interesting, but very messy visitors. (No, we don’t shoot the geese. The city is very fussy about that.)

About 1% of the emails that I receive from web surfers are less than polite.

To some of you, it seems as if I’m never on the cams. This is especially true of people who visit in the morning. I usually turn the cams on about noon Central Standard Time (-6 hours Universal Time). I am most likely to be on the office cam in the evening or after midnight.

The cams are interesting because they only show a small portion of my house and life. What you do not see is not any more interesting than what you do see, I just don’t have enough cams for all the rooms.

I’m home so much because this is where I work. To be creative, whether it be for graphics or for a business plan, I need quiet. That is why I tend to do the computer stuff after midnight when most of the rest of the nearby world is sleeping.

(1) Look at me. No one is THAT lonely. (2) I had burglars three times when I lived in Texas. That teaches you to keep nothing of value in the house. (3) I used to write a political humor column for a newspaper. I made lots of people very angry. That teaches you a great deal about personal security.

Rooty the dog is almost never alone. When I’m not here, someone else usually is. When I am home, Rooty is usually under whichever desk that I’m at. Under a desk is a hard place to put a camera because of the poor lighting.

The Birds Cam will probably not be back.  You have to feed them on the concrete for them to show up (see above).  If you point the camera at their feeders in the tree, all you see is tree.  This is the underlying basis of camouflage.

The Lake Cams are simply turned off until I get the cables reconnected.

In Austin for years (South Interregional at Woodlawn). Two years in Alpine in the mountains of West Texas. One year in Odessa (heart of the West Texas oil patch). One year in Dallas. And, one year in Tyler.

I remember the dinosaurs, but I’m still younger than any of the people who played teenagers on Dawson’s Creek.

The poor puppy had maybe 35 names over three weeks. Nothing fit. He likes to pull plants out of the ground, however, and run around with their roots in his mouth. Hence, Rooty.