<p>Ok ok lets get this straightened out</p>
<p>Do thieves really just whip out their heaters whenever they spot isolated students with fancy laptops/phones/bikes??</p>
<p>If so what technology/hardware/martial arts techniques should we use/have to protect our itemes?</p>
<p>Some thieves aren't even targeting isolated students. People from my floor had their laptops robbed at gunpoint at Cafe Strada in broad daylight. They were sitting outside at a table during the lunch hour too.</p>
<p>Most people wouldn't carry a laptop in plain sight... you're easy pickings, especially at night.</p>
<p>Bikes get stolen when they're unattended and locked with cheapo locks.</p>
<p>Cell phones aren't targeted as much except by newbie thieves. Phones are blacklisted by all cell phone carriers once it's reported stolen so the street value is nearly worthless.</p>
<p>If they have a gun give up whatever they want. A laptop or cellphone isn't much use to you when you're dead.</p>
<p>Learn some Shaq Fu.</p>
<p>take out your compact missile launcher.</p>
<p>Stop drop what he asks for and then run?</p>
<p>yeah what Enthancc2 described seems like a scene from grand theft auto, I mean point blank in broad daylight?! Thats freaky</p>
<p>Do such events happen inside the campus? Do we have to be all covert with our stuff in like that one free speech cafe as well?!</p>
<p>is Berkeley really this dangerous? i thought it was full of hippies?</p>
<p>Robbed at gunpoint on campus!?!!</p>
<p>Berkeley has seen a surprising uprise in number of crimes near the campus area in the past year or so. But yes, that Cafe Strada story was pretty big last year. In fact I think it was around that time that at some point the police locked down a bunch of campus buildings while they were pursuing a suspect through campus. I had a friend studying in Dwinelle at the time and he kept texting me stuff like "OMG WE'RE LOCKED IN! WE'RE LES PHOQUED!"</p>
<p>haha. this thread makes berkeley sound really dangerous. it's not, just have common sense when using valuables in public, ie. strada (which is not technically on campus, in my opinion). someone above mentioned FSM, which i would say is safer as it is situated in the heart of campus and ultimately less likely for an outside thief to come in, as his escape plan would have no street access.</p>
<p>Berkeley has higher crime compared to other cities it's size. Check it out here: Berkeley</a> Crime Statistics (CA) - CityRating.com</p>
<p>Property crimes, and violent crimes are higher than the national avg. With Richmond and Oakland as neighboring cities crimes from those areas spill over into Berkeley.</p>
<p>The UC PD also has crime alerts warning of crimes that happened to students or near/on campus. University</a> of California, Berkeley - Police Department
Mostly all are robberies or assaults.</p>
<p>Last year was a particularly bad one in terms of crimes on campus, but that doesn't mean you have to walk around scared or armed.</p>
<p>Just be aware of your surroundings and try not to walk down lonely alleys late at night walking and talking on your cool flip phone.</p>
<p>^^ your post reminded me about this incident UC</a> Berkeley, Police Department, Crime Alert: 07-090907-61</p>
<p>Walking down a dark alley/loading dock and using your cellphone... not smart...</p>
<p>I know there is a something you can get that you can put on your computer that allows you to track it (forgot the name), but has anyone ever used it or do you rely on something else?</p>
<p>Crime?!?!?! HAH!</p>
<p>Just be smart and don't flash your bling-tronics all over the place or leave it lying out on the table when you go to the bathroom (even THAT is not really that unsafe for the most part) and you'll be fine. </p>
<p>It's like any other city, really. Just don't look like a mark, ya know? Be streetwise.</p>
<p>LoJack is what you're talking about, I think. LoJack is that thing on cars that'll notify the police if you report it stolen through a radio frequency or transmitter. They also have a version for laptops that uses the Internet. I don't know how effective it is though but I've heard of it.</p>
<p>I recently bought a laptop lock for when I go to sleep or am away and such. Do you (or does someone you know) use a laptop lock? How effective is it and is it even necessary?</p>
<p>Having a laptop lock is better than having no lock.</p>
<p>Looking at how LoJack for laptops is designed, I don't think it even compares to LoJack for cars. I suggest that you just put a big scary sticker on your laptop that warns that anti-theft systems are in use and write a simple app to make it appear active at all times. Make the only real feature of it disable the MBR after a few days of failing to activate a "dead man's switch".</p>
<p>
[quote]
Learn some Shaq Fu.
[/quote]
I seriously just forced my brother to bust the Super Nintendo out from the attic because of that.</p>
<p>Hmmm well I'm not that handy in making an app like that, and i don't know if a person would get their laptop back because of that... maybe if stolen by a student but probably not by a street thief ( speaking of which, do students steal stuff from each other?? i assume things are safe in your own room...)</p>
<p>Shaq fu, thats a game!! i thought it was a NBA allusion</p>