Re: Newbie Questions

[Nigel Orr <nigel@xxxxxxx>]

At 15:13 05/10/00 +0100, you wrote:
> What kind of cables and how many  should I run between the
>AV/Homevision and the PC room for video, audio and homevision (it is a
>1930s brick built house so cabling is a nightmare)?

Cat-5 x lots (say 10 or so if you don't want to sit and work it out- think
future expansion, audio, video, phone, network, a couple for
switching/control, IR repeaters etc etc).  Coax and speaker cables as
required (probably 2 co-ax, maybe 4 speaker cables?).

1930's house is probably less of a cabling nightmare than a 1980's or later
house.  If you have floorboards (rather than chipboard or concrete), you're
laughing, even better if you have lath and plaster walls rather than all
solid ones.

Brick isn't really a big barrier, but you might need to buy or hire a
hammer drill and a long drill bit if there are lots of walls to go
through.  In my experience, the biggest nuisance is lifting and replacing
the carpets, but it's not difficult.  But run as much cable as possible,
and you won't need to do it again for another 5-10 years at least!

If the whole house is brick-built, and/or solid floors, you might need to
track walls for cables in some places, best scheduled when redecoration is
due!

>Which security systems should I consider or is it reasonable to run
>the security from Homevision assuming I can make it secure in
>software?

I haven't used HV, I do have Comfort.  It's a superb security system, and a
good base level HA controller, HV is probably easier to set up, but you
only need to do that once, or at least irregularly!

>Will I get interference problems with gigavideo wireless video  and
>the wireless networking?

Possibly.  Are they both on 2.4GHz?  If they are, then it's probably a case
of either ask the manufacturers or 'suck it and see'.  As a firm believer
of having pieces of copper to carry electrons rather than splatting waves
into the air, I'd be looking for cable routes before falling back on a
wireless solution.  I've got a couple of cheap cctv cameras connected
directly to cat-5, no drivers, up to 30m or so of cable, with Comfort
controlling a relay to switch between them, works very well.

Have a look at http://ha.orrs.net for my
retro-wiring guide, it might give
you some ideas of how to run cables.

>Is voice control feasible and if so what is the best solution?

Still seems too 'clunky' to me, but others may know better.

Nigel


-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
GET A NEXTCARD VISA, in 30 seconds!  Get rates
as low as 0.0% Intro APR and no annual fee!
Apply NOW!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9332/9/_/2065/_/970756780/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->