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WHAT WE NEED IS ...!
A new column for the HTINews ... What We Need Is ...! Send your needs to bobh@hometoys.com and we'll see what we can find or at least use this column to let those manufacturers and software engineers know what it is that we the consumers want to buy and use. Please let me know if these things are available, coming soon, good idea or just plain crazy. I'll keep the threads going as long as the feedback keeps coming in.
Bob,
What we need is a wall switch that was engineered for human
use. My family puts up with the Home Automation projects I do for
the most part, but the wall switches are a constant source of
irritation.
The dimmers from Leviton and HomePro don't have a good positive
feel and often have to be pressed several times in just the right
spot to make them work. You really can't just go into a room and
tap the switch - you have to "try" to turn on the
light. A light switch should be "tapped", not pressed
(but, it should respond with a good on or off if it is pressed).
You get near the switch, you touch it, and you get tactile feed
back that you "hit" the switch, and the light comes on.
If I were writing the functional spec for a switch, that would
about cover it. Current X10 switches don't meet the spec.
I end up using mostly relay switches for that reason (the relays
are too loud as well). But, they still don't act like real
switches - up for on, down for off. Because of this, I am
concerned about the resale value of the home unless I go through
and replace all of the switches again when I sell - or sell to
another gadget guy.
That's unfortunate. It means that as long as these switches don't
work the way "regular" people expect, they won't be
adopted widespread by "regular" people. This would seem
to be a big factor in the growth of this industry - the wall
switches don't feel right. What a shame. It would seem like a
pretty simple problem, especially for Leviton who makes all of
the worlds real switches.
On the other hand, I have found enough actual uses for automation
that the family "puts up with" the switches. It is a
big enough annoyance though that I do expect to pay to upgrade
all switches as soon a good one becomes available.
I do understand that for about $120 I can get a switch that
claims to have a true toggle action. Of course, it also has 8
programmable scenes and speaks twelve languages. I don't think
that is the solution either. I don't need a switch to act like an
8 button controller and I would gladly sacrifice the "soft
start" feature (which the family also hates - they claim
that a light should come on when it is turned on, not "start
thinking about coming on").
What we need is a $30 (or under) wall switch that feels like a
switch, has a true toggle action, and turns on or off every time
you tap it. Oh, and just so we get the spec right, it also
responds to X10 commands
Bob Puckett bpuckett@symantec.com
I couldn't agree with you more Bob ... I too hear many complaints about the current crop of wall switches. I've heard a rumor that Leviton is working on some new ones but can't substantiate it at this time. I guess this is a challenge X-10 manufacturers ... We want better switches!!!
What I need is . . .
(I'd imagine someone already has this, it sems so obvious to me
!)
Remote control TV camera in house - triggers alarm - sends me
email at work - sends me live video on internet of whoever is
entering my house.
I'm sure someone has this as a system - please let me know
Best wishes, Patrick ralph_patrick@tandem.com
Most of this is possible with many of the home controllers available today (ie Stargate, HomeVision, CyberHouse). What's required is an installer or consultant or techie to set up the system and program it for you. What would be nice is for some of these manufacturers to package "software modules" which could be downloaded from the internet, wired according to a schematic, loaded into your system and away we go. How about it guys?
What we need is an attachment means of connecting controllers
to our parallel ports (similar to the "piggy back"
connectors used for scanners, etc.) rather than to our serial
ports.
Most systems contain only two serial ports and they are used for
a mouse and a modem. Connecting a controller to the parallel port
would eliminate the hassle of having to connect/disconnect cables
every time the controller requires modification or the purchase
of an expensive serial port card.
Is such a device (similar to the CP290) available?
I have an additional requirement: I have installed three
motion/IR sensor controlled 300 Watt lights on my garage to
provide back yard lighting when a visitor arrives or when we
leave the house. These lights are controlled/reset from our home
by the use of a Leviton 20 amp "X-10" switch.
Unfortunately, during windy periods, the sensors on one of these
lights (Regent Lighting units) intermittently, sometime
continuously, turns on due to the motion of leaves on trees some
60 feet away. Regardless of how I set the sensivity controls of
this unit the problem continues. I have replaced the concerned
unit several time to no avail.
Is there a HA sensor/controller available that will allow these
"nuisance trips" to be detected and ignored? The only
alternative so far appears to be that of removing the sensor from
that unit and controlling it from one of the two other units that
don't exhibit the problem.
Thank you and regards,
Bill Harnell [bharne@adss.on.ca
]
OK, as far as the parallel port idea ... I haven't seen anything like it but I think (hope) we'll be seeing products that conform to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) Plug and Play standard. Using USB, up to 127 peripherals can be daisy chained from one serial port. Another solution of course is to add a card with extra serial ports.
Nearly all motion sensors can be adjusted for sensitivity but it sounds like more of a location problem that you're dealing with. Perhaps the sensor in question is seeing a reflective surface causing over sensitivity.
Anyone else have an idea?
