Re: Adverts

["Mark McCall" <mark@xxxxxxx>]

-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
GET A NEXTCARD VISA, in 30 seconds!  Get rates
of 2.9% Intro or 9.9% Ongoing APR* and no annual fee!
Apply NOW!
http://click.egroups.com/1/7872/9/_/2065/_/967640327/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->

>finally decided to take the plunge and fit a couple of LD10's, then I
>discovered I'd have to replace all the switches too

I'm in the lucky position of having planned for DIN Rail modules in a new
build.  They aren't really very easy to retro-fit.

You could use LW10U s (http://www.letsautomate.com/10030.cfm)
in most of
your locations (although not the 3 way one).

>My best solution so far is IR control.

IR control of what type of circuit Nigel?  How are you going to switch/dim?

>Another bonus is that you could control the light directly in the room
with
>a learning remote and still record any status or feedback

Would this replace the wall switch (not a good idea) or be in addition?  If
in addition, does the wall switch change the status?  Where/how do you
record the status and how would you use this for logic?

One of the great things about my system is the ability for my alarm (and
yours) to control my X10 lights.  If you go the IR route you will be able
to
have Comfort send commands to turn them on but how will you get the IR
commands IN to Comfort?

>But if you're looking for an affordable ready-built solution, there
isn't
>one,

Exactly.  I have been following X10 since Feb 1995.  Since then lots of
people have come (and gone) with alternatives.  CEBus, LonWorks, EIB,
millions of "home-brew" solutions that never get past the talking
stage etc
etc.

Now, maybe BlueTooth or FireWire or something else WILL actually become
available in a cheap, fast, reliable, available, flexible form.  But I'm
guessing that's still a very long way away.

Meantime there are interesting developments coming in X10.  Many of them
cannot be talked about in detail here but there may be new products on the
way that may go some way to helping with most of the X10 problems we all
know about (reliability, range, status requests etc).

>AFAIK.  If there is (when I say affordable, I suppose I mean 'similar
>price to X10'), I would like to know about it.

Me too :-)

>Nigel (I really did _try_ to want X10, honest I did!)

TRY HARDER :-)

M.