4 ms·

Why are the camera lights controlled by software? I would rather they come on when the camera gets powered up, ie. controlled by hardware.

by chiph 13y ago

jgrahamc 13y ago
I would like that too, but my solution is to not trust the camera and have a sticker over it which I can remove when I want. There work well because they have a sticky portion and a part that has no adhesive: http://www.post-it.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Post_It/Global/Products/Product-Catalog/~/Post-it-Flags-Value-Pack-Primary-Colors-1-in-and-1-2-in-wide-240-Pk-BONUS?N=4327+3294647218&rt=rud http://www.post-it.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Post_It/Global/Pr... The view from my camera with the sticker on is: http://i.imgur.com/y0OKxqO.jpg http://i.imgur.com/y0OKxqO.jpg
- jcromartie 13y ago
  At least on MacBook Pro computers, you can use a thin magnetic strip to cover the camera. My friend was making these by hand, and never got around to the kickstarter :)
  - addandsubtract 13y ago
    AFAIK, MacBook cameras can't be used without the light turning on. [0] [0] http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/26590/are-there-privacy-concerns-with-the-built-in-isight-camera-and-led-indicator http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/26590/are-there-pri...
- mattcanhack 13y ago
  I also do this except I'm using a bandaid, it works well and is good conversation starter.
- euroclydon 13y ago
  My solution is to be a moderately unattractive male with facial hair, lead a boring life, and keep my clothes on when in front of my computer (although the later is probably a mitigating factor).
  - jarman 13y ago
    Does being overweight male with excessive facial and body hair, wearing nothing but underpants counts as black ICE?
- sequoia 13y ago
  Some companies hand these out at tech events: http://digiclean.com/ http://digiclean.com/ I got one from constant contact & upon reading this story cut it into strips to cover built-in webcams. Has the same stick/come off properties of the 3m stuff I think & it's fully opaque.

Why are the camera lights controlled by software? I would rather they come on when the camera gets powered up, ie. controlled by hardware.

by chiph 13y ago

Why are the camera lights controlled by software? I would rather they come on when the camera gets powered up, ie. controlled by hardware.

jgrahamc 13y ago

I would like that too, but my solution is to not trust the camera and have a sticker over it which I can remove when I want. There work well because they have a sticky portion and a part that has no adhesive: http://www.post-it.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Post_It/Global/Products/Product-Catalog/~/Post-it-Flags-Value-Pack-Primary-Colors-1-in-and-1-2-in-wide-240-Pk-BONUS?N=4327+3294647218&rt=rud http://www.post-it.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Post_It/Global/Pr... The view from my camera with the sticker on is: http://i.imgur.com/y0OKxqO.jpg http://i.imgur.com/y0OKxqO.jpg

jcromartie 13y ago
At least on MacBook Pro computers, you can use a thin magnetic strip to cover the camera. My friend was making these by hand, and never got around to the kickstarter :)
- addandsubtract 13y ago
  AFAIK, MacBook cameras can't be used without the light turning on. [0] [0] http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/26590/are-there-privacy-concerns-with-the-built-in-isight-camera-and-led-indicator http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/26590/are-there-pri...
mattcanhack 13y ago
I also do this except I'm using a bandaid, it works well and is good conversation starter.
euroclydon 13y ago
My solution is to be a moderately unattractive male with facial hair, lead a boring life, and keep my clothes on when in front of my computer (although the later is probably a mitigating factor).
- jarman 13y ago
  Does being overweight male with excessive facial and body hair, wearing nothing but underpants counts as black ICE?
sequoia 13y ago
Some companies hand these out at tech events: http://digiclean.com/ http://digiclean.com/ I got one from constant contact & upon reading this story cut it into strips to cover built-in webcams. Has the same stick/come off properties of the 3m stuff I think & it's fully opaque.