Laptop Safety in Atlanta

[McZargald]

Hey teams,

Does anyone know if there is a precedent for laptops being stolen at the FIRST world festival? I'm trying to find out how safe it would be to bring mine and wondered if anybody had had theirs stolen before.

Thanks!
Micah

[PlatyPi Gunner]

As long as you keep it with you or with someone on your team you won't have a problem, our parent team had one stolen 2 years back at Peachtree, just don't leave it laying around.

[R.C.]

Team 1323 brings 3 laptops to Nationals, Long Beach, and UC Davis and has never had a problem with laptops being stolen.

[Josh Drake]

Originally Posted by rc_cola1323

Team 1323 brings 3 laptops to Nationals, Long Beach, and UC Davis and has never had a problem with laptops being stolen.

Agreed, as long as you keep an eye on it, there should be no problem. We had one walk off at VCU, but if you leave it on the sidewalk outside the venue, that's bound to happen.

[SuperJake]

The biggest problem I have seen is that someone from a different team could pick it up and try to return it (thinking that it was lost). It either ended up at Pit Admin, the team's pit, or returned after the competition. In light of this, make sure your laptop has your contact information on it as well as team information (At least your team number) so that it can be quickly returned to you by the many good samaritans in FIRST.

[Meredith Novak]

I had one stolen from our FLL pit at World Festival in 2006. It was packed up with all of our other stuff. They had instructed us to pack up our pit and leave everything there while we went to the closing ceremonies. Bad idea - they were not secured and the Dome had contract workers breaking the place down when we returned. Labeling doesn't help unless your laptop gets lost. Mine had a big Bomb Squad sticker on the case. We have never had a problem in the FRC or FTC pits.

[Kyle Love]

I have to deal with this question when giving tours of the residence hall that I live in (What if we leave our backpack at the table where were sitting, will it get stolen?). As I tell them, it's possible, but highly unlikely that your lap top will be stolen. I will be taking my lap top to the event, and I have no concern in my mind that it will be exactly where I left it.

[Justin Stiltner]

My team had one stolen, actually it was my laptop, while in Atlanta, at the competition Ive never had anything taken, however we were at dinner, my laptop bag was in the rear seat area of the truck with our trailer attached, the windows were well tinted, and the bag was black, in a dark interior, the guy smashed the back door glass and pulled it out, in plain view of the guard at a parking garage across the street. But of course " I dident see nothin man!" was the reply.

I guess the point is, at the competition not a lot to worry about, I have left my laptop unattended in the pit and nothing happened to it in the past, not a bad idea to have someone in the pit at all times anyway for visitors, judges etc. Just be really careful anywhere else!!!

[Andrew Schreiber]

The consensus seems to be not to worry about it at the event, I have to disagree with this. While I know most of the competitors at a FIRST event would not steal (even if this is wrong Im pretty happy with this delusion) we have to remember that our events are open to the public. Anyone can come in a look around. I would not leave any expensive equipment unattended for an extended period of time. This goes for anything, at any event.

[ScottOliveira]

Originally Posted by Andrew Schreiber

The consensus seems to be not to worry about it at the event, I have to disagree with this. While I know most of the competitors at a FIRST event would not steal (even if this is wrong Im pretty happy with this delusion) we have to remember that our events are open to the public. Anyone can come in a look around. I would not leave any expensive equipment unattended for an extended period of time. This goes for anything, at any event.

I have to agree with Andrew. While there is a good chance you wouldn't get things stolen, there is never a guarantee that someone unscrupulous won't come by and take valuables. The safest thing is to make sure that anything valuable is always with somebody. If you keep your laptop with you at all times, then you can be certain it won't get stolen.

[Akash Rastogi]

Lo/Jack that stuff man. All my laptops have lojack as a precaution because we travel with them a lot. Take the precautions guys.

[cbale2000]

We have never had a problem at the events, however if you do bring a laptop I would recommend not leaving it in the pits unattended (general common sense stuff).

However, be careful where you take/leave it outside of the event. We had one of our team members parents that drove down left a laptop in the back of a minivan in a supposedly "secure" parking garage while in a restaurant and came back to find the vehicle broken into and the laptop gone.

[thefro526]

I've left my laptop in our Pit before, in the stands, and out in the open at team stuff. I haven't had an issue. That being said, don't make it easy to steal. I wouldn't say leave you laptop open in Plain sight in your pit but you don't need to put it under lock and key. Usually you're ok if you throw something over it or put it under a table because most people aren't going to rummage through your stuff. Even then, it's always good to just give your pit neighbor a heads-up and they'll usually keep an eye out.

[IndySam]

I wouldn't leave my laptop unattended. But it's probably safer to leave it unattended at the dome than in your hotel room or car.

[NorviewsVeteran]

We never had any problem with laptops being stolen, but we did have an entire box of buttons vanish at VCU this year.


BTW, if anyone is in the possession of a shoebox-sized cardboard box full of 1793 buttons, please send them to us. Thanks.