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.
The theme for this issue is Home Automation for People with Special Needs. No less than 7 articles were sent in along with several letters on the topic. There is obviously a need for more exchange of information on this topic and we want to provide a resource. But we need help. Read the new column about Assisted Living and if you'd like to be part of Home Toys then send an email to bobh@hometoys.com . Past issues are available and we've compiled libraries of all the feature articles and product reviews for easy reference. Free Product Info
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Feb/99 -
Home Automation for Assisted Living
Whew ... things are gettin' busy around here. This is our biggest issue ever and the website readership is growing leaps and bounds. On top of all that ... the Home Automation / Home Networking industry is taking off in a big way with some important players showing up at the table. Microsoft, Sun, Philips, Intel, IBM, Mitsubishi, Sony, Lucent, Compaq, Cisco to name just a few. Be sure to read my report on CES '99. It was awesome for those in this industry who participated. And if you're interested in attending Trade Shows, don't forget that the Home Automation Association show in Orlando FL is on Feb 5-8. It's the showcase for this industry. Also, there are some other shows of interest. BuildUSA is Los Angeles May 24-27, LightFair99 in San Francisco May 11-13 and CABA present Connections99 in Vancouver B.C. Canada May 12-14. One problem is emerging however. What will be the standards and who's going to rule? We've got HomeAPI, JINI, HomeRF, CEBus, LonWorks, X10 and a multitude of others that I don't know about. These groups are all trying to set the standards for various aspects of Home Networking. As all of this unfolds we'll try to keep you as up to date as possible by preparing interviews and articles. For example, this month we feature interviews with the HomeAPI Group, an article about HomeRF Wireless and several press releases about JINI from Sun, HomeAPI Conference, NetWorks, Universal Plug/Play, HomeRF SWAP, and many other developments. The theme for this issue is Home Automation for People with Special Needs. No less than 7 articles were sent in along with several letters on the topic. There is obviously a need for more exchange of information on this topic and we want to provide a resource. But we need help. Read the new column about Assisted Living and if you'd like to be part of Home Toys then send an email to bobh@hometoys.com . Here's a quick list of the theme articles:
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Now for some sad news. Uncle Phil (Philip Kingery) has informed me that this will be his last article (Digital X10). His company Advanced Control Technologies, Inc. has decided to concentrate more on its main market of industrial/commercial controls and so their direction will be less of HA. I want to take this opportunity to thank Phil from all of us involved in this industry. His technical expertise and witty teaching style will be missed. Thanks Phil ... all the best in you future adventures and please keep in touch. Other articles in this our largest issue include:
In Brian Baker's column Plug & Play he discusses the importance of 2 way communications between HA devices. The first installment of HAL User's News tells about the latest developments in this exciting product and Mark McCall review a new X10 wall switch in HA in the UK. Product reviews include a PCS SceneMaster wall switch and multi module as well as the TVRemote which lets you control the light with your existing remote control unit. Press releases have become an extremely popular section at Home Toys. Have a look at the long list of announcements here to get an idea of what is happening in this industry. 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 PCS Smart Switch and Multi Module. The next issue will feature Home Theater Control. It's always a challenge to find authors and enthusiasts willing to send us articles so if you have something to submit please let me know. Right now I'm going to hit the sack. I'm beat. Just one last word of thanks to our advertisers. Without your support we couldn't keep this ball rolling along. If you're a reader and enjoy this magazine you can help by clicking on those ads and buying lots of stuff. Enjoy! |
