Home Automation Today!

The HTINews is our Bi-Monthly Online Magazine featuring the most up to date Home Automation news available. Here you'll find feature articles, product ads and reviews, interesting columns and interviews as well as press releases announcing the latest technologies available from those companies pioneering the Home Automation industry.

Past issues are available and we've compiled libraries of all the feature articles and product reviews for easy reference.

Dec/98 - New Product Reviews:

• The PC Remote is a nifty little device that plugs into your parallel port and controls your Infra Red devices.
• The Casio PhoneMate adds an email link to the list of Telephone features that we've come to accept as standard such as a built in digital answering machine etc.
• Voice Trek links together Dragon Dictate and ActiveHome to provide voice control of you X10 equipment.
• The APC SurgeStation is a great and necessary addition to your Home Office.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all. I didn't get too many bad comments about the new layout so I guess that means it's working out OK. One thing for sure is that many of you found areas of the website that you didn't know were there. That was the object of the exercise.

I had a chance to drop in at COMDEX in Las Vegas last week. Revenge of the Nerds XXII. What a zoo that place is ... and what a huge amount of cash there is to spend in that (computer) industry. Although I had a tough time wading through the jargon quagmire ... here are a few quick observations:

• Home Networking is starting to be recognized as the huge marketplace that we know it is.
• Plasma flat screen displays are awesome ... I want a 52" one real bad for my future home theater / home office / home control center.
• Voice Recognition is getting a lot of attention and will probably evolve as the killer app for the new millenium. The HAL2000 gang had 3 small booths showing off their stuff. We should all thank them for telling the world about home automation.
• What happens when 400,000 stressed out Nerds with bald spots need to pee at the same time?
• Watch out for the Panasonic Microcast System.
• He who has the best looking and most jargon friendly blond presenter wins.

It's worth noting that I wrote down these observations while wolfing down a hot dog, facing a blank white wall after being herded through a lineup of cattle at the trough. Man ... that's a lifestyle that needs some work.

So, what about this "Home Network" that everyone is talking about. Right now the emphasis is on the cabling that goes behind the walls of our new abode or the wireless / telephone / powerline networks that can be used by those who can't or won't tear the walls apart to install new wiring. Bottom line though is providing communication for consumer and PC devices in the home. Perhaps the most practical place to start is the Home Office. MaryLu Hildreth at RCS asks the question "Do You Need a Home Office?". Of course the answer to that depends on who you are but if you have hobbies or kids or use PC then the answer is probably Yes. For more about cabling read about the Wired for Life™ program that has been developed by CommScope and The Siemon Company in "Caveat Emptor" ... all wiring systems are not created equal. Two articles describe an important / critical piece of equipment required in that home office. "Power Protection 101" by Jennifer Seymour at APC explains the different types of power surges that you need to protect your equipment from and Lori Vierthaler of Interex describes of few of their surge protection products including the "Remote Surge". I did a quick review of the "APC SurgeStation" which I am presently using in my office.

Uncle Phil sent in the twelfth article in his X10 Technical Series which includes a new photo of the the man himself. While perhaps not a candidate for "Most Desirable Man of the Year", Phil is an excellent technical writer and knows just about all there is to know about installing and troubleshooting X10 control systems. Don't miss this months article about Filtering.

Don Marquardt (a former contest winner) sent us a description of his Dome Abode in Brooks, KY. Don uses the HAL2000 system that he won in our Tips and Tricks Contest to control most everything in this unique environment.

Thanks to Craig Chadwick for some handy tips on using HomeVision to set up and control Lighting Scenes. A scene is a group of X-10 modules that can be set to predetermined levels simultaneously with a single command.

In "Home At The Office", Jeff Vogel turns the Home Office idea around and tells us how to bring some aspects of our Home into the office.

For those of you overseas, Mark McCall has agreed to send in a regular column "HA in the UK" to keep you up to date on new and exciting developments. His website is 2 years old this week and continues to grow.

Product reviews are one of the fun things I get to do and this month is no exception.

• The PC Remote is a nifty little device that plugs into your parallel port and controls your Infra Red devices.
• The Casio PhoneMate adds an email link to the list of Telephone features that we've come to accept as standard such as a built in digital answering machine etc.
• Voice Trek links together Dragon Dictate and ActiveHome to provide voice control of you X10 equipment.
• The APC SurgeStation is a great and necessary addition to your Home Office.
• The first CEBus control system to hit the market is the SmartOne System
• The latest and greatest in lighting control is the Leviton 6343 Switch

Press releases just keep pouring in as this industry continues to grow. Whether you're a professional or just interested in new gadgets etc. you should keep checking back to the press release section during the months to come as we post new information there as soon as we get it. If you want to be reminded automatically, sign up on our Update Mailing List. You'll get an email once a month or so with news and links to new information.

Have a look at the Directories index. There are some new Job Opportunities, Events and Training Sessions posted and the Libraries index lists the Shareware, Links, Articles, Reviews and Tips & Tricks archives which have all been updated. The contest prize this issue is a PC Remote.

For the next issue we are trying to get some info about how Home Automation is being used to help people with disabilities and how it can be applied to unique problems in the future. We're always looking for new articles and ideas so please don't be shy. Contact me to share what you know with the internet community.