Slashdot Asks: Do You Label Your Tech Gear, and If So, How?

At last month's CES, I mislaid a microphone that I'd just bought: too many items in little black pouches, and that one disappeared on a patch of dark carpet when I got something else out of my bag. A few minutes later, when I realized this, I walked back to find (no shocker) that it had walked away, and the lost mic somehow never made it to the Lost & Found office. Dumb as I felt for having let it get away, the real sting is knowing that I didn't so much as have my name on it, which I like to think might have nudged a morally ambivalent finder into returning it. My question is this: How do you personalize, label, or mark your expensive tech goodies, so it's harder for them to be innocently or less-innocently taken away? Even at a LAN party, it's easy for items to get swapped around and confused. I've sometimes put my name or initials (in permanent ink) on any flat surface I can find that will fit it, but even the "permanent" ink of Sharpies seems to fade on many surfaces. Stickers degrade with heat, time, and bag jostling, but they certainly help. Is engraving the best permanent option? Have you used one of the physical tag services, like Boomerang, and has that ever actually come in handy for you? There's theft-deterrent (or at least post-theft tracking) software, as we've mentioned a few times on Slashdot, but many things aren't suited to it, like my lost mic. What do you do to keep your stuff yours?

Permnent Markers

[Immerman]

Stickers can easily peel off. Engraving is easy to overlook unless the lighting is right. High-contrast "permanent" ink sticks around. Yes it fades over time, but it only takes a few seconds per year to freshen it up.

For electronics I also try to put contact info somewhere obvious - My flash drives all have "IF YOU FIND THIS.txt" as one of the few files in the root folder, and my phones all have _Me as the very first entry on the contact list.

Lab Markers

[Anonymous Coward]

Sharpies are disallowed at my lab because the writing is so easily removed. They're expensive, but writing with a VWR lab marker [vwr.com] doesn't come off even when treated with most solvents.

WARNING Sticker:

[microcars]

"Contains Contaminated Body Fluids" usually keeps people from touching my stuff.

BoomerangIt doesn't offer anything anymore?

[Omega Hacker]

I was actually intrigued by BoomerangIt, until I noticed that a) "BoomerangIt Packs and Subscriptions are no longer available for purchase." and b) the cart indeed does not exist.

I'm a little fuzzy on how you a) start a business selling labels that promise long-term lookup&return, then b) stop selling new labels and thus getting new income, while c) still being required ("nominally") to provide the lookup&return service, without d) running out of money and imploding.

Am I missing something with either their site or their apparent lack of business model???

I label power supplies

[wiredlogic]

If I get a device that uses a generic unlabeled power supply I'll mark it with a silver Sharpie to remind me what it goes to.

Superficial Damage

[Demonantis]

Depends on the item, but stuff that looks like junk doesn't walk away. Don't break it just add a ding or two, use sand paper, or add duct tape make people less interested in grabbing stuff for some reason.

label it as best you can

[confused one]

Laptop(s), tablets and phone I travel with have Lojack (or equivalent) service installed. Best case scenario is I can find it, worst case is I can reach out and turn it into a brick. I put laminated business cards in packages. Zip tie laminated business cards to some items and my bags. There's also a laminated business card or two tucked into my laptop behind covers so I can prove ownership, down the road, even if it gets wiped. Cables, etc. of any value get labels. Tools and small items get run through my employer's laser engraver. Still, small items occasionally go missing, either misplaced or stolen. Had a beard trimmer disappear out of my bag once, who'd want a used beard trimmer? It's not a perfect world, just do the best you can.

Re: lacking answers here, ask roadie on a band for

[Anonymous Coward]

I work for a small touring company, mainly ballet's and some Choirs we use a Hi- tech solution, RFID tags and a scanner on everything, when it goes into the truck or a bag gets loaded its scanned (only takes a second and you can scan packed bags and it pick up everything) end of the night/gig the generated list is checked for missing items. WE haven't lost a thing in 3 years (broke a few but thats to be expected)