Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with lock

Balcony Door Secret

Tube — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 22:02:16 -0800

Do theater balcony doors have secret unlocking mechanisms? Back in the 1980's, I went to a theater in Missoula Montana with my friend Mark. We walked up the stairs to the balcony area but we saw the doors were closed and locked. At this point something very strange occurred, so strange in fact that I begin to wonder if it's a false memory.

Mark told me that theater balcony doors often have secret bypass mechanisms, which allow those in the know to open the door without a key. Mark reached up to the top of the door and located what I remember to be a hidden wire, which he pulled and sure enough the door opened. We went inside and started watching the movie. I think the manager later saw us and told us to leave...

Mark was not a Montana native, and would have acquired this information somewhere else.

Is this a common practice, or is my memory on par with alien abduction accounts...?

Utility Company Security?? Who Manages?

dyerfr — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 09:05:46 -0800

Who runs physical plant security at utility companies?? Think: cell towers, eletrical utilities, water utlities, etc... any company that has remote locations... My company has a product that we'd use to provide secure access to these locations; it is a lock, but one that can provide access only at certain times to people who have been given the right code. We're looking at companies who have these remote areas and need to provide access to vendors, contractors, etc. but would prefer not to give out keys or 'static' codes for locks (and would also prefer not to have to go with the contractor to the site...)

I need a locking doorknob.

Verdandi — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 11:13:03 -0800

I need to install a key-locking doorknob on my bedroom door. What sort of options do I have, and can I do this myself? Since I still live at home for at least a bit longer, I decided I need a little more security so I can keep my possessions where they should be (my very slightly younger brother seems to have a problem with putting things back where they belong). So, since my bedroom door doesn't lock, I'd like to make it do so, from the outside and inside.

So, my question(s):
1) How easy is this to do? I'm pretty home improvement savvy, so I think I could handle anything as long as I have instructions.

2) Are any key-lock doorknobs better than others? Or are they all pretty much the same? I have access to pretty much every home improvement store, including a small professional locksmith.

Thanks a ton in advance :)

Car Door Lock Malfunction

forallmankind — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 09:52:35 -0800

When I lock my car with the remote, approx every 1 in 5 times the drivers door doesn't lock. I hear the mechanism activate, but I can see that the little lock handle on the inside of the door only moves halfway. Similar thing happens on unlock. What's going on here and who can fix this - my regular mechanic wasn't able to help. I had a few other electrical quirks (fuel guage inaccurate, lights not powering off after locking car) which have been resolved by replacing the battery, but the lock problem's still there.

Is this something worth trying to fix? It's a minor pain that I'd like resolved, but it ain't such a big deal as to drop $100s on. Who fixes things like this? And why does it happen intermittantly - that's what's driving me crazy!

03 Infiniti G35 Coupe, 77K miles.

Keyless entry

dance — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 13:58:11 -0800

What's the state of play in the home/office keyless entry world now? I am aware of this thread from 2005. I've had a long interest in biometrics, RFID and truth be told, locks in general. I would really like to kit out an interior door out with a biometric (fingerprint, in this case) lock! There are not that many different types (if the super-low-budget Chinese models available on eBay are not counted) available to choose from and information is scant. I understand, however, that the latest thinking on fingerprint locks is that models which scan a fingerprint which is drawn across a sensor are more secure. I am a little leary of the Mythbusters find that a supposedly secure (but unnamed) fingerprint lock could be easily fooled with a copy of the print - but it's true that my application is not top-security. This leads me to considering proximity readers/RFID/radio locks. I'm less excited about the way they work (the need to have the tag/card with you - whereas the fingerprint is always with you) but I imagine in the long run they are probably more reliable.

It seems that the web's most celebrated RFID/radio reader is the Mykey 2300 successor (can't find the original for sale anywhere) the AP501 and the best budget fingerprint reader is the iTouchless.

Does anyone have any experience of either of these two, or could offer an alternative recommendation, specific or broadly?

Much appreciated!

U-Lock Saw

jtajta — Fri, 23 May 2008 14:52:12 -0800

How do I liberate my bike from a U-lock? A few weeks ago, I locked my bike in front of my gym and went inside. I lost the key, somehow, and after contacting Kryptonite customer service for help, it seems as if I don't have the requisite paperwork to get them to make me a new key. Local locksmiths are asking somewhere in the neighborhood of $100 to come saw the lock off... I do, however, have access to lots of power tools, and am wondering if anyone has had to saw through a U-lock before and could offer advice. It's this lock.

By the way, I fully recognize that this looks pretty sketchy, but all I can do is assure you that it's my bike, it's been sitting in front of my gym for weeks, and well, the bike really isn't worth that much to begin with...

Thanks!

Bowlers in Bolivia and Peru

tellurian — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 21:30:01 -0800

There are two different stories about how bowler hats came to Bolivia and Peru. I'm looking for some original sources for the stories that bowler hats are "worn by Quechua and Aymara women in Peru and Bolivia since the 1920's when supposedly a shipment of bowler hats was sent from Europe to Bolivia via Peru for use by Europeans who were working on the construction of the railroad. The hats were found to be too small and were distributed to locals." -OR- It is a result of an over-order and an enterprising salesman who supposedly convinced them that the wearing of the hats would increase their fertility.

How can I break into an empty filing cabinet?

paddingtonb — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 10:56:26 -0800

How can I break into an (empty) filing cabinet? We have an old Hon 4 drawer filing cabinet like this
and a staff member wants to take it home to store tools in. It's locked, and we can't find the key. He doesn't want it unless I can get it unlocked, and I want it out of here!

I tried all the suggestions, including Adam Savage's, in this thread, to no avail. I think the lock construction is different on these guys, but I couldn't get the pin to budge.

I have all the tools you might find around an office including metal letter openers, paper clips, and we also have a small tool-kit. Any thoughts?

Welcome to our website. Our hours of operation are 2:00pm to 2:05pm.

lekvar — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 13:35:31 -0800

In the movie Paprika by Satoshi Kon one of the tropes was a website that would show specific content at a specific time. While I'm sure this is possible, is it easily implementable? Better yet, is there an downloadable script or somesuch that I can use on my website? Can a page be time-locked?

I've lost my keys, am stuck inside, and not sure what to do.

iamkimiam — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 16:03:28 -0800

I seem to have lost my keys. I wish it were just that simple. Yesterday evening I came home from work. I went to unlock my inside door, only to find that the tumbler that was progressively getting looser, had finally tumbled. I called my landlord, the emergency line for the property management, and two locksmiths. I was eventually able to get one locksmith to come out. He sprayed and toggled some stuff, and wrote up a bill for $90 (I will be submitting the bill to my landlord for reimbursement). The locksmith left.

I then stepped outside to empty the garbage. I am *pretty* sure I didn't bring my keys with me. I attempted to go back inside, only to discover that my fixed door lock now automatically locks when the door shuts. I was locked out again, this time entirely my fault.

I spent a half an hour with my upstairs neighbors, where we schemed plans to shimmy down the bathroom chute. Called the landlord and the property management co. again. No avail. Eventually my upstairs neighbor found 1 spare key in the basement. He unlocked my door and let me in.

Stupidly, I went and did other things, assuming that I had left my keys indoors the whole time.

Now, today, I have been attempting to leave my apartment for the last three hours, but I cannot find my dang keys! Naturally, I think I've looked everywhere.

I'm not sure at this point what I should do. My landlord and the property management company still hasn't called me back–which is very typical of them. I don't want to bug my upstairs neighbor again (for the key they found yesterday)–partly because I'm embarrassed and also because the relationship between them and myself has been stressful since I've moved in (2 months ago).

None of this matters however, because the keychain contains 5 keys to the building, only ONE of which lets you in from the outside (and that one is actually a "credit card" that needs to be programmed–my landlord also charges a hefty fee for replacement...not that I can seem to get a hold of him anyway).

Seriously, what is my smartest option here? I can't seem to think clearly and I feel very trapped.

Do I really have to cut through the lock?

sailoreagle — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:50:26 -0800

Bicycle was locked outside (it's against the rules to bring it inside the apartment where I live). It rained, and the bicycle wasn't used for some time, and now the lock won't budge (it rusted, I think): key goes in, but doesn't turn. I tried WD-40 but it didn't work. Before I cut through the lock, are there any other solutions I could try?

Help me get to the garden! How can I unlock the patio doors?

handee — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 03:14:41 -0800

In our new house, I can't work out how to get out of the double glazed sliding patio doors. They are locked, and I think I have the key (well, I have a key), but they just won't open. What am I missing? I have always lived in older houses, so am new to the world of double glazing and window locks and patio doors, so I expect I am missing something simple - but here is all the information I have:

These are large sliding double-glazed glass doors. About half way up the left edge of the left door (where it fits the wall) is a fixed sliding door handle (does not turn) with a small lever attached. This lever goes from about -45 degrees to +45 degrees from the horizontal. Below this, at the base of the door, is a metal box with a lock and a small plastic knob which turns but doesn't seem to do anything.

I have a big bunch of keys, and one of these keys, when inserted into the lock, turns about a quarter turn. I have tried both states of the lever with both states of the key (up-vertical, down-vertical; up-turned, down-turned). No luck.

On the right hand door (at the base) is a small box with a light on it. When I touched this box, the light went from green to flashing orange (this, I assume, is something to do with the burglar alarm). The box with the flashing lights does not seem to have any other features. There do not seem to be any other locks or bolts, but I'm not entirely sure what I am looking for. We do not (yet) have a contact number for the people who have just moved out. I know the doors do open, as they were open when I viewed the property.

Any ideas?

My baby (car) has a secret (compartment)

xo — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 15:47:36 -0800

My hatchback car (Honda Fit) doesn't have a separately-locking trunk or glovebox. Can I add a lock-box or secret compartment somewhere inside the car for stashing a few items, for those times I must turn over my keys (parking garage, valet)? Ideally I'd only be securing/concealing 3 deck-of-cards-sized items: iPod, GPS, EZPass. There are no official Honda accessories that do this, nor can I find any Fit-fanatic mods that have addressed it.

HP PAvillion ISSUES***LOCKED OUT

eve28 — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 13:28:27 -0800

My HP Pavillion dv4000 is not allowing me to log into the computer. It did this once before saying i lost my password and i had to have my ex do some trickery and it was fine. Now it is doing it all over again. This time I did not have a password..it has just locked me out completely. I have tried putting in the recovery disk and system restore and stuff, but it is still asking for a password. The thing is the first time it happened a couple of months back i never forgot my password, i changed it and it was fine for 2 days...and then boom, it just crashes or something...

Now it is doing the same thing, i even went into the "f10" menu thing and tried some stuff, but nothing worked.

Anywho, there have been serious issues with this computer from day one, and now COMP USA is or have all ready closed down there doors in SoCal...
Thanks anyone who helps with this issue.

How can we unlock a house that isn't ours?

tatiana wishbone — Wed, 09 May 2007 21:16:50 -0800

My boyfriend just locked his keys inside his boss's house. Boss's house key is on the key ring that is inside the house. Boss is on vacation out of the country and is unreachable. Boyfriend's wallet and phone are also locked in the house, and so is the boss's cat. Please help us. He checked all the windows and doors, and the house is completely locked. Will a locksmith unlock the front door to house that isn't ours? How would a locksmith know the house isn't ours if we tell him that it is, in fact, ours? Any helpful suggestions?

Random windows lockups

samw — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 18:52:22 -0800

Windows XP: my wife's computer locks up a few times a day, but there are no other symptoms. What could be wrong? My wife's computer (Windows XP Pro SP2) has started randomly locking up a few times per day. Nothing has been changed on the system recently. There aren't any other symptoms to give me a hint about what's going wrong. Google and the MS KB aren't much help with such a generic sounding issue.

Any ideas on where to start?

Where to buy an electric door strike?

Sonic_Molson — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 10:45:42 -0800

Where can I buy an electric door strike near Burlington, Ontario? I'm looking for an electric door strike, but I have not had much luck locally. The best I found was at a lock store for $225 CAD.

Online I was able to find these as cheap as $25. I'm willing to pay a lot more than $25, but not quite ready to pay $225. The $100 CAD range would be perfect.

I'd really prefer to find this somewhere in Burlington, or even Hamilton/Oakville. At last resort I would go buy this online if someone was able to recommend to me a site with a good reputation.

Apartment Security: How can I make my particular set of door and windows more secure, on a budget?

sparrows — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 15:25:04 -0800

Apartment Security: How can I make my particular set of door and windows more secure, on a budget? Details inside re. my existing setup. DOOR:
The front door of my NYC rental apartment is painted metal and seems to be hollow. Its hinges are attached straight into the plaster wall (no door frame). It has a peephole and one lock: a deadbolt with a latch on the inside and a standard (non-Medeco) keyhole on the outside. This deadbolt was not installed by me; my super claims only I have the key but I should assume otherwise for safety/logic's sake.

BUILDING:
Anyone can get into the building, since everyone here lets strangers through the lobby door behind them (I can't change this; it's totally pervasive behavior in a 100+ person building).

WINDOWS:
My apt's other access points are three metal-frame, double-pane windows -- two regular size and a small one in the bathroom. All three windows share one long fire escape with other apts. All three face a well-lit, busy street; are several floors above street level; and are 5 feet or less from my head when I sleep. The two regular windows have standard latches but nothing else; the bathroom window has the same latch plus horizontal child-safety bars (usually meant to keep kids from falling out the window, but these are rusted enough that they'd take intense effort to unscrew from the window frame). Also, I probably will want to install an air conditioner in one of the windows.

POSSIBLE IMPROVEMENTS I SHOULD MAKE?
1) When I'm inside the apt, I can latch or block the door such that no key can open it from the outside;
2) The door has an external lock (ideally a Medeco or other non-bumpable kind) to which no one but me could have a key;
3) The windows have something more than latches but less than metal grates/bars.

Should I do these things and/or other things? How should I do them?

If possible, please include your guesses about what the things you recommend might cost -- and whether I could buy & install them without hiring a pro (my friends have good tools including drills and a Dremel with a huge range of bits). Thanks!

u lock or u don't lock?

Hat Maui — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 22:28:45 -0800

can you bring a bike lock (u-lock style) on a plane in your carryon? i've checked TSA, google, etc. anyone had any experience with this?

jhnrfjhrhuio54w89wefw

Armitage Shanks — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 08:43:19 -0800

I'm looking for an OS X utility that will capture and discard all keyboard and mouse input until I tell it to stop. Typical use case: I want to play a movie without the cat or baby interrupting it by banging on / walking on the keyboard. Bonus points if it also prevents the screen saver kicking in.

Motorcycle Security

ijoshua — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 10:43:17 -0800

What’s the best way to secure a parked motorcycle? I’m planning on buying my first motorcycle within a few days. At my home, there is a small garage/shed building, where I plan to store it. Securing the doors to this building is not an option.

I have my lawn mower also stored in this building, secured by a long steel cable looped through the mower’s frame and around one of the building’s supporting posts, locked with a Master combination lock.

While this may be a viable solution for immobilizing the bike at home, it would be a little unwieldy for use elsewhere. Are motorcycle-specific locks worth the money? The ones I've seen cost in the range of $50 and up.

How to lock Firefox in fullscreen mode?

deansfurniture5 — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 17:30:00 -0800

How can I lock Firefox open in fullscreen mode so that unless you do some hotkey, no one can get at anything else (including Ctrl-Alt-Del and Alt-Tab) Alright, so I'm creating a "kiosk" type of thing for my uncle's store, and I'm basically just creating a web page to run locally on his machine. What I want to do is be able to have Firefox run on Fullscreen (F11) mode, but I'm worried someone's going to just minimize the window and poke around Windows. Any suggestions?

To keep it simple for my uncle, the solution has to be Windows based.

Is he having a (door lock) laugh?

pettins — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 10:22:06 -0800

Is it possible to fix or replace a door lock on a ten year old aluminium main front door that has now jammed? A good neighbour of ours has just been told by an insurance claim related lock-smith that she will need to spend around £1000 to get a new door after replacing the lock on her old door.

He noticed that the normal handle controlled catch (not the actual lock) was sticking...something our neighbour had seen previously and that this could lead to her not being able to get back into the house at some future point.

As it was a ten year old aluminium door she will, apparently, need to replace it with a new uPVC door.

This doesn't sound right to us - Is there another approach she could use?

Lockdown!

weaponsgradecarp — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 18:01:40 -0800

PadLockFilter: My tech teachers in school both have these really soft-edged "mickey mouse" keys (they have two holes in the head of the key, like mickey's ears) that open pretty much any key padlock (all Masters, and some other generics). Are these availiable to the general public? Because if you are only locking things casually it seems really handy to have a key that opens all the padlocks you have...

Also, they have some keys that open combo locks (the little keyhole on the back)
I'd love to get one of these to open a combo lock when I lose the combo...
I query the hive mind!

My Bluetooth Dongle seems to lock up XP SP2

govtrust — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 10:45:28 -0800

My Bluetooth dongle locks up XP SP2. The device is KINAMAX BT-USB USB 2.0. The computer is a Compaq Presario 6000. I have tried installing useing the newest BlueSoleil drivers 2.3 and disabling the windows drivers. Once they are installed it pairs its self with my plantronics 320 headseat but the computer will intermittently freeze up. No error messages.