HTINews - Letters to the Editor

Submit your letters by Email to news@hometoys.com. Please include "Letter to the Editor" as the subject and make sure you give us your name and home town. If you don't want your Email address included with the letter then indicate that in the message.

John Bray <jbray@flinet.com>

I've enjoyed your HTINEWS series. It's to the point without all the fancy graphics and filler. We're all technicians and we like it to be of technical nature. Thanks....

Glad you like the HTINews John. I like to think that you don't have to be a technician to enjoy the publication but at the same time I'm determined to keep the content interesting, educational and most of all useful. The internet is full of fancy "filler" as you call it. I think there's a fine balance between content and attractiveness. Each issue I try to add a bit to the look and feel of the HTINews (this keeps me interested as well).

Bob Hetherington, Editor

Keith Young <kyoung@cyberspc.mb.ca>

Thank god I've found your site!!! I've been trying to find out about Home Automation using the Internet for about a month or so now... I realize that you are probably fairly busy with keeping the site maintained, et al... but I was hoping you could help me with something... I am a Communication Engineering student, and as my final project I wanted to make an "X-10 like" network... Are there any resources available that would explain: a) How the modules communicate... b) Any sort of circuit design.. c) What type of non-proprietary chips are used to modulate the signals, and demodulate.. d) Is the signal AM of FM based?

I hope you can help!!! Thanks for your time!!!
Keith.

Hi Keith,
Glad you like the site. Your best place to start is the X10 faq (ftp://ftp.scruz.net/users/cichlid/public/x10faq). In addition there is some technical info at the X10 site (http://www.x10.com/x10tech.htm) and of course you'll find more if you follow some of the links in my link library.

Good hunting and have fun.

Bill Eason <beason@pathcom.com>

Really enjoy viewing your newsy website. I've been interested in home automation for 20 years and have had my home set up for that long. The idea of downloading this newsletter is great as there is so much to read that it takes up too much valuable online time.

Keep up the GOOD work .. Cheers .. Bill

Bill King <bking@n-link.com >

Incredible site! I am interested in knowing (I am retrofitting my home shortly with X10) which of the controllers is the BEST. i.e. most powerful, etc. I would like to have someone help me design the functions in my home. I live in Killeen Texas. Can you refer me to someone?

Thanks Bill, glad you like the site.

There are 2 ways to go with an X-10 controller:

1. Dedicated Controller ie JDS Time Commander / Stargate / HomeVision / ActiveHome You program these units with your PC and then leave them to operate the system as stand alone black boxes (ie you can shut off the PC and they still control the house)

2. PC based controller ie Cyberhouse, HomeAtion, Lynx etc. You plug control modules into the serial port of a PC and use the software to program the system. The PC stays on to control the system.

Picking the "best" controller is tough because it depends on what you plan to do with the system. For X10 only, an Activehome is an inexpensive option but it doesn't give you much flexibility down the road or allow IR or hard wired functionality.

The dedicated controllers are a good option and each has specific strengths and weaknesses again depending on your needs.

Lately I've been intrigued by the possibilities of Cyberhouse. It allows you to build up your system using serial port plug ins from other vendors and integrate them with the front end software system. This gives you the opportunity to use the power of your PC to integrate house systems with telephony, security, internet etc. The only drawback is that the PC must be on at all times however it's not that bad if you have an old 486 to use as a dedicated house controller. The other advantage is that the software is easily upgraded as new products (ie CEBUS) come to market.

So, now you're really confused. It's worse than deciding on which new car to buy. I recommend that you sit down and write up a wish list for your system and then pick the controller that best fits your requirements.

Sorry, I don't know of a designer in your neck of the woods. Perhaps once you've decided on the scope of the project and the type of controller you feel comfortable with you could contact the manufacturer for a recommendation.

Editors Note: In the very near future, our Home Automation Directory will be able to help those of you like Bill who need to find someone in their local area to help out.

Arun Mittal <amittal@leland.Stanford.EDU >

Thanks for the info. There's a lot of good stuff at your site. I'm curious to know ... which standard do you think is a better bet X-10,CEBUS, or Lon. From the little I've read in the past week, Lon plans to make neuron ICs to be implanted in products and they plan to have them at fairly low costs also. Also, do you think x-10 will add the capabilities that these other companies are implementing including co-ax support, etc... Sorry for all the questions, but I'm just getting into HA. Once again thanks.

Hi Arun, You've asked the question of the year. As far as X10 expanding their scope, I doubt it as they seem happy to keep selling the same old stuff and the protocol is unsuited for any other medium. CEBUS vs Lonworks is a hard call. I compare it to Apple vs IBM in the old days of the PC. CEBUS is an open protocol and once accepted I think it will be king however Lonworks seems to be the first to market and will therefore grab a share. Neither one is really affordable for the average homeowner at this time.

In the meantime you can buy X10 stuff and play with it (it's cheap) while waiting for the marketplace to decide.

Have fun.

HTINews Home