Very frustrated/dissapointed in iCam

[Steve]

My kids keep turning it off.
There's an icon at the top of the screen.
Does not record video/audio.
The little green light comes on. (Do I really need to open my iMac and rip out the LED?)

You underestimate the youth of today- they are highly proficient in computing. My kid is 7 years old and he turned it off.

[SKJM Support]

There is currently no official method of hiding the iCamSource icon on your Mac.

An "unofficial" way would be to right-click the iCamSource application in your Applications folder, select Show Package Contents, then open the Contents > Resources folder and renaming or moving the iCamSourceStatus_Running.png file. Then, when you run the iCamSource and Start it, no icon will appear in the menu bar, although there will be a blank space still visible that you can click on to access the iCamSource.

[Steve]

Tell me something I don't know.

"There is currently no official way..."

So make an official way. Stand behind your product. Deliver quality. We paid for it. What do you want, more money?

[Stefan]

The iCamSource has never meant to be resistant to turning off or disabling from someone sitting in front of the computer.

The little green light comes on. (Do I really need to open my iMac and rip out the LED?)

The LED is not something that is controllable by software. When the camera is activated, the LED turns on. It's a hardware function that cannot be affected by any application running on the computer.

My kids keep turning it off.

Well, then tell them not to. Other than that there is not much else that we can do.

Even if we hid the icon or password-protected the iCamSource Preferences window, a user could still terminate the process in the Activity Monitor or through the Terminal. We could try to make the iCamSource "unkillable" similar to spyware, adware, or other viruses where there were multiple redundant processes running that automatically re-launched each other if any individual one was killed, but they could still log out the user, cover the camera with a piece of tape, or reboot / turn off / unplug the computer.

[OUAnthony]

Tell me something I don't know.

"There is currently no official way..."

So make an official way. Stand behind your product. Deliver quality. We paid for it. What do you want, more money?

As an iCam user and frequenter to these forums, I can say this Steve:

Stefan and Jay do stand behind their product. They are on here day-in and day-out helping people get their system set up. When a bug is discovered by users, they are VERY quick to fix the bug (assuming it's a bug with their program and not the end-user's system)...usually they release an update within 1-3 days. They also provide free updates to users who purchased iCam. Good luck finding that kind of quality and service from another company. And, they provide FREE troubleshooting help setting up more advanced networks to work with iCam...which is DAMN nice of them. Most companies would charge you an arm and a leg for that kind of help. Don't think so? Call Microsoft for help. Hell, call any software company for help.

If your 7 year old is that "proficient" in computing, maybe you should by them their own laptop...which will keep YOUR laptop/personal data more secure from viruses, etc. Furthermore, there aren't many laptops that have an option to disable the webcam LED light. The light is there so the user knows they're being watched and don't accidently do something or show something that would embarrass them. It's a security feature of sorts. Some IP cameras allow you to disable the LED light. My D-Link DCS-920 is running with the LED off.

Anyway, your attitude sucks. Seriously. They provided you with a quality program with a considerable number of features AND free support and updates for $5. They attempted to help you within the confines of what are technically possible on your system, but you obviously are NOT very proficient at computering or you'd know that most webcam LEDs can't be disabled. Come to think of it, maybe you should open your iMac and rip out the LED. If you were a computer "nerd", you would recognize the difficulties of writing a program that could turn off the LED of every webcam made...past, present, and future. That would be literally THOUSANDS of cameras, each wired differently and each using unique drivers. It's not even a feasible goal! Instead of being a jerk, maybe you could ask "Hey guys, I have a feature request. Would it be possible to have iCam enable/disable the LED light on the camera? If not, could you briefly explain?" Being decent to people goes a long way. Hmm, I have no kids, yet I feel like a father right now.

Stefan and Jay, the vast majority of us do appreciate your hard work on implementing feature requests and keeping the program up-to-date!

[Stefan]

Thanks, OUAnthony.

[minimin]

Tell me something I don't know.

"There is currently no official way..."

So make an official way. Stand behind your product. Deliver quality. We paid for it. What do you want, more money?

How incredibly rude!   
Ever taught manners?

The App on my Mac was free, and for my phone £3 - I can hardly see you needing a remortgage to pay for iCam!   

And for the level of support that I've got from the forum (even as a reader) is a great deal more that I've ever got from say Adobe or Avid, and I pay a hell of a lot more than £3 for their software.

[SeanJ]

My kids keep turning it off.

man alive, that says it all, the issue is not with his program at all. 

My kids keep turning the tv over:  Dear Sony.....

[OUAnthony]

If Sony would stand behind their product and deliver quality, maybe kids would stop turning them over. haha

I can't believe you guys revived this thread. And after re-reading my previous post on this thread, I can tell that I really needed some sleep. "by" instead of "buy" And my favorite..."computering" WTF?! lol