RE: Comfort vs HomeVision

[Williams Christopher C <CCWILLIAMS@xxxxxxx>]

Thanks for all your comments:

Nigel wrote:

> If they are X10 appliances, Comfort can control them itself, would you
> want=20
> to use HV just so something with a good visual interface knows the
> state of=20
> all the appliances?  Comfort's web InterfACE would probably do the
> job, but=20
> then you would need a PC on to control it.  It's got various timer
> programs=20
> to make the place looked 'lived in'
>=20
I was under the impression that HomeVision had more functionality when
it
came to IR control of Hi-Fi etc, in particular I am interested in
feedback
as to whether the units are on, (I can't find discrete codes for my
equipment).
I have had a Marrantz RC5000 since Feb but I have never got round to
setting
it up the way I had intended.  I want it/something else (HV) to remember
if
Surround sound is in use so that the volume control always works the
same way.
e.g. If no surround sound, change TV volume, if surround sound, change
amp volume.
Latterly I thought it may be possible to get HV to re-route the original
TV remote signals
so that it controls the amp volume instead of the TV volume when
necessary.
I know this is complete overkill, I just wanted to make it Wife proof!

I also think that HV has quite flexible control of X10 and is useful for
locating problems.

> Don't you need a PC to set up HomeVision though?
>=20
I have access to a Notebook from work which would do for this job.

> can HV cope with Comfort's (seemingly fairly simple) RS232=20
> protocol though?  It can probably send the necessary messages, but
> might=20
> not be able to act on messages received?  I'm not sure.
>=20
The manual seems to suggest that it can be programmed to cope with most
situations, i.e. receiving data as ASCII or binary and selecting
portions of a received
string.

> >( I had thought about using RS485, but according to Andrew Roberts
> the
> >RS485 interface in Comfort is purely for internal use.)
>=20
> This is purely speculation, but I would not be surprised if the 485=20
> protocols were very similar to the RS-232 ones, with some extra
> control or=20
> handshaking bits to identify the source and destination of messages.
> That=20
> _is_ just speculation, but it looks from the spec like there's nothing
> much=20
> that the UCM kit won't allow you to do which you can do with other
> devices=20
> (keypads, previous CSX software etc) on the RS485 bus.
>=20
I had similar thoughts.

> I'm not sure what HV has that Comfort hasn't, apart from what seems
> like a=20
> good visual display and a higher level programming language (more like
>=20
> C/Basic).  Comfort's big plus points to me are the talking menus,
> control=20
> from any phone, brilliant phone integration, very reliable, very=20
> expandable, well supported.
>=20
This is why I like Comfort and HV!!

> I've used Comfort for over a year now, it's fab, wouldn't be
without=20
> it.  I've got 16 in's and 16 out's (but it can go to 64 with an extra
> box-=20
> I think HV is 24, expandable to 64 in the same box?), not managed to
> use=20
> them all yet (most of the in's have gone, the out's are being taken=20
> slowly...), there's not much to say about it except 'it just works',
> but I=20
> presume HV is found to be similarly reliable.
>=20
One thing that concerns me is where to put these units, it seems likely
that HV should be somewhere near the TV/Hi-Fi i.e lounge,  but this is
not
where I would put Comfort.  I like Comforts REM? module in that you only
need one RS485 cable to get to a suitable place for all the I/O
connections,
the only thing I don't like about it is the price!

> You can easily start with the CPU (with 8 in's and 8 out's), a battery
> and=20
> a keypad (total around =A3430, and add the rest when you want to or
when
>=20
> funds permit.=20=20
>=20
I decided that it may be more useful to add a sounder and some sensors
before adding the keypad ( I believe you can control everything from the

phone ) so that it at least provides some security!

> Probably, could also be a little tantalum failed short circuit, or a
> bad=20
> solder joint, or it could even be nothing to do with a capacitor, just
> a=20
> plausible sounding technical explanation.  There is probably a circuit
> that=20
> puts it in sleep mode when no keys are being pressed, so when a key is
>=20
> pressed, it draws some current and wakes up, so maybe a leaky cap
is=20
> drawing the current so it's staying on all the time?
>=20
> Just a guess, if you have a milliammeter you could see how much
> current is=20
> being drawn by the battery when the keypad is in use and when it's
> been=20
> left for a while.
>=20
Thanks for the pointer, I will have a look at it when I get time.

Mark wrote:

Hmmmmmmm....I think Comfort without the PC interface is like
having a TV
without a remote control.  Sure, you can work it but it's soooo
much easier
with it.  Also, when you are experimenting with the programming
you can
easily go back to an older working setup if you make a mistake.

Again, I can get access to a PC for this job, however its a shame the PC
interface
is extra, quite a bit extra at that!

HomeVision is a different animal.  It is much much easier to
programme.  I
has built in IR support (send and receive), 24 digital I/Os and
of course
video output giving you menu's on your TV to control stuff with.

I can see uses for all of this.

I LOVE my HV too (as does everyone I know that has one).  I
wouldn't be
without it either but as I say above, it may be hard to justify
the expense
of both.

It is certainly a good piece of kit, if only it was half the price!

Ray wrote:

If you want or need the security features then it makes sense to
start with
Comfort first - you can then see whether you need the extra
functionality of
HV later.

Makes sense.

If you are planning on using an intermediary PC between Comfort
and HV then
IMHO HV is a bit redundant since you can do pretty much
everything if not
more on a PC.

I was hoping to avoid using a PC if possible.

Another way to interface Comfort to HV would be to look at the
BasicX chips.
I know I've recommended them a couple of times now and I've yet
to get my
app working (not the BasicX chip's fault), but their features
support what
you want to do. e.g. one chip connected to the serial port of
Comfort's UCM,
outputting on RS485. Another recieving the RS485 and then either
relaying it
to HV via serial port, or via its digital IO lines.

I have not seen these, they sound very interesting. I will look into
them.

In my experience Comfort has a high WAF provided it works and
she can
override it when she wants.

I THINK THIS WILL SWING IT!

Thank you all for your ideas, all I have to do now is save up and
persuade the Wife
that we need a Comfort for Christmas!

Cheers,

Chris Williams




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