Since the first pocket sized cell phone was put on the market, people been stealing them. And if you’re like me and have a habit of misplacing your gadgets and just generally worried about their security, iHound can help you. Portable application iHound aims to make it easy to locate your items and report their theft if they’ve fallen into the wrong hands. iHound works with a wide variety of devices including thumb drives, iPods, and many PDA cell phones. iHound is a great piece of software that you can install on those precious devices that will let you know if your lost device has been plugged into another computer, and gives you the computer name, IP address and a Google map image of it’s present location.

To accomplish this magical feat, iHound places a small “MyPasswords” file that looks like a text document in the device’s root folder. If that file is opened, the iHound website can report the approximate location, IP address, computer name, and more as well as print a formatted police report.

You can also use the iHound to protect other devices like digital cameras, USB drives and MP3 players. All you need to do is configure iHound for your device and download an install the iHound application on your device. The best part is that the basic version of iHound is free and lets you track upto 3 devices.

The real question is what can you do with the information iHound gives you? Do you run right down to the coffee shop on the map and accost everyone in the shop, checking to see if they’re listening to YOUR iPod. If you’re coffee shop is anything like mine, then everyone in the silly coffee shop has headphones jammed in their ears and their portable music player tucked safely away in a pocket. “Excuse me, iHound says you have my iPod?” Right, that’s gonna work.

I wonder if they have ever considered putting the iHound on the so called Centennial Light Bulb? You’ve heard of the Centennial Light Bulb right? It’s a light bulb that has been burning continuously for over 107 years! The bulb is located in a fire house in Livermore, California. Originally lit in 1901 it is a carbon filament in an airtight sealed bulb. The bulb draws only 4 watts of juice. The firefighters in the Livermore fire house guard their centennial light bulb with a surge protector and have a diesel generator and a battery as backups. To them, the centennial light bulb is the embodiment of their always-on-duty ethic. The bulb was manufactured by the Shelby Electric Co. of Shelby, Ohio, the bulb soon outlived its maker, which closed in 1914.

I guess it’s too bad they didn’t have the iHound back in the Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom days. Just think Indy could have installed the iHound software on all those little trinkets he found and wouldn’t have to run all over the world chasing them down…of course that would have made for a short movie, let alone a four movie series. Yeah, I guess it wouldn’t have been such a good idea to have the iHound around for the Indiana Jones And the Temple of Doom after all.

Well, anyway, if you have a gadget in your pocket or purse, and honestly, who doesn’t, then you should check out the iHound software. Remember, iHound is free for up to three devices and will help you locate and recover (maybe) your beloved little gadget should it ever be lost or stolen. Yep, the iHound certainly sounds like a great deal and something we should invest just a little bit of time to check out. By the way, if the cell phone company can track where my phone is, why would I need the iHound on my phone? HHmmm…