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HAI Omni LT



"Brett Griffin" <brett@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in

<stuff snipped, subject line changed>

> > Is liability that much of an issue?
>
> My only concern is discussing your ideas about how to make the system
reduce
> false alarms, to the extent you mentioned, as the programming you will
want
> to do requires programming that, if you dont do it correctly you may have
> holes in your security system.  I would prefer that topic to stay between
> those who really grasp security and programming, otherwise I would prefer
to
> not suggest other to make changes to the way HAI has setup the security
> system.

I can understand that.   But it's somewhat antithetical to the concept of
Usenet.  My suggestion would be to discuss away, but with constant reminders
of the potential bad consequences and maybe a few liability disclaimers
thrown in.

> Otherwise, the great thing about HAI (and their sister brands Aegis and
OnQ
> Le Grand) is the ability to self monitor with the system calling you on up
> to 8 phone numbers and/or central monitoring.
>
> I am not worried about being sued, but if I discuss this topic in depth, I
> would feel terrible if someone who did not grasp security and programming
> and tried to change the way HAI does security, and something tragic
> happened.

Hey, you're talking to the guy most often zinged in CHA for warning people
not to go mucking around a 240VAC breaker panel without a decent understand
of electrical wiring.  I saw warn away but discuss away, too.  The problem
with one-on-one is that no one else reads the exchange so there's less
review of the information.  It would seem to me that's more dangerous
because it eliminates an important sanity check from the process.  I've
learned an awful lot following threads where there has been a diversity of
approaches and potential solutions.

> Anything else I would be happy to discuss in the forum, lighting,
> temperature, irrigation, or anything else you can dream up...

I've got a lot of ideas I want to explore.  I am going to get an Omni for my
folks, too.  My dad's now in a powerchair and I want to be able to program
the alarm to warn him if he's forgotten to plug it into the charger for the
night.  I also want to do mundane things like check to see if the garage
door is closed, the doors are locked, etc.  As I plan them out, I'll be sure
to seek your input.

> As you dive into the Omni, you will find out how easy and advanced it is.
> While I do not know to what extend you are using the Adicon, the Omni
should
> be able to handle most everything you are doing with Adicon.  However
> anything IR still requires an Ocelot by Adicon.

I was going to try to move some things from the Adicon box to the Omni
simply because I need more IR storage space.  I know I could upgrade to the
Ocelot or Leopard but for now, it's not really a pressing need to free up
more Adicon space.

> The Omni LT has a maximum
> of 2 serial ports, 16 light addresses, 24 inputs and 10 outputs (12v
> triggers).  As you expand and move up, the Pro II has a max of 4 serial
> ports, 256 light addresses, 176 inputs/and 136 outputs. Another cool
feature
> of the Omni is you can mix switch technologies.  I have actually
> demonstrated using an  Omni LT, using Radio Ra, and X-10 and ALC (OnQ
> hardwired switch) simultaneously, and as the end user you have no clue
which
> is which but everything works.  On  Pro II, you can mix, UPB, X-10, X-10
> Extended, X-10 Compose, Radio Ra, ALC, HAI Lighting Control, and 3 other
> lighting technologies via a serial cable, literally all connected to the
> same Omni Pro II.  As you dive deeper into the Omni systems, there is not
> much you cannot do, and almost nothing you cannot do with third party
> products.

I thought the LT would be a good place to start with the Omni line.  I
realize it's underpowered but I could buy two of them for the price of the
Omni II.  Given that all I really want from the Omni is dial-out alarm
capability and X-10 light flashing, I think it will serve my needs.

> > I was asking more about what programs/HW provide the best way of
"pushing"
> > that sort of content to my cell phone.  I've seen lots of different ways
> > of
> > sending video from the house to the internet or directly to a cell
phone.
> > I
> > guess what I'd really like is for the DoorFon to be smart enough to call
> > me
> > when appropriate so I could interact with someone at the front door as
if
> > I
> > were home.  That would be very, very cool.
>
> HAI manufactures a software called weblink. It resides on a PC in the
home,
> and it is a web server.  It will push status and control to a phone or web
> browser.  It will also send video from 1 USB camera, or up to 40 modulated
> TV channels(cameras).  However it will only show one camera/channel at any
> one time.  The software is a very very basic DVR.  You can write a program
> to record 1 channel based on an event in the home.  It is recorded on the
> PC's hardrive, so keep that in mind for security.

I've been looking at some inexpensive video servers that take RCA line level
video and audio connections (from a HQ bullet cam) and

 Access Via Web Browser
 Auto Network Reconnection (ANR)
 Upgrade firmware via The Internet
 Watch dog function supported
 Dynamic IP support
 4 alarm inputs supported
 Duplex function, record and playback
 Auto e-mail warning system
 Intelligent non-stoppable recording
 Multi AP screens supported

http://vitekcctv.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductID=178

How do you think HAI's Weblink compares in stats and prices?  I've seen the
Vitek unit for under $200.  It has the enormous advantage, if I read you
correctly, of not requiring a PC for anything but setting the unit up.  If
you have a cable modem, it should just sit there and serve video without
eating up juice powering a whole PC.  Something like this would run a lot
longer on battery backup and would reset (hopefully) far more quickly than
the average PC.  Trusting a Wintel machine to manage home security is not,
IMHO, a very good idea.  Too many potential bad outcomes.

> The doorphone can be connected to the HAI via a door chime interface.  You
> than write a program based on the press of the doorbell.  It would require
a
> program in the omni and a program in the Weblink software.

That's another advantage of the Vitek box.  It sounds like you merely set up
the email address and some configuration options and it's on line and
working.  Now comes the tricky part.  How do I do this in live action?
Well, once I get my hands on the video server, I'll know more of what it can
do.

> > I looked around at your site and found the sample training you mentioned
> > but
> > it was an exe file.  What's in it?  Is it a program, a compressed MPG or
> > what?
>
> It is a compressed file made using Macromedia Captivate.  The program
> creates the movie and compresses it for sending over the internet.  It is
> still 20 mb, it is not a Mpeg, but a proprietary format Macromedia uses.

Proprietary format?  Hmmmmm.  Hmmmmmmmmmmm.  Does it run under Unix?

> The cool thing about Captivate it allows me to create interactive
trainings.
> I basically instruct, and the viewer has to click thru, so far the
feedback
> is everyone like the interaction with the training.

Well, here's your first NEGATIVE feedback.  If you're trying to sell me
something, make it easy for me to evaluate the quality of the product.  Put
something in a format that's not protected or proprietary.

Right now, I'm sorry to day you haven't interested me enough to want to
download and install yet another flipping program I may never use just to
evaluate your product.  It feels a little like fancy Active-X sites that
scold me for not being able to see their demos because I don't use Internet
Explorer.  Don't vendors know there are 100 other sites that  have the same
content?  I simply click on to another site that doesn't force me to comply
with their terms.

It seems to me if you created something that had your logo, business and
copyright information prominently displayed and played in a standard format
it might promote your business better.  Buts it's your call.  It's sad that
adware and spyware have made many people reluctant to explore new software,
but that's what's happened.  By now there probably aren't many people who
*haven't* installed a shareware app like Kazaa that ending up infesting
their machine with scumware or worse.  In this day and age, when you ask
someone to run a program you're providing, you're asking them to trust you.
I'm one of those "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash and Must Submit to a
Strip Search" kinda guy.  :-)

--
Bobby G.





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