Re: Software feature set for automation

[Marc F Hult <MFHult@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I wasn't referring to X-10-only software such as ActiveHome. The software I
mentioned can/could accomplish lighting dimming and other X-10 functions
with other, more reliable hardware. I do agree (if this is your point) that
X-10 has contributed to the failure of HA software to thrive.

... Marc
Marc_F_Hult


On Wed, 27 Jul 2005 16:54:03 -0400, "Robert Green"
<ROBERT_GREEN1963@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
<EfKdnYyjyZfCaHrfRVn-3Q@xxxxxxx>:

>"Marc F Hult" <MFHult@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>
><stuff snipped>
>
>> >What do you all think?
>>
>> That the even excellent software with deep financial backing that had
>these attributes in abundance has failed in the home automation
>>marketplace.(eg, Savoy's CyberHouse, Premise Systems).
>
>If I had to guess, I would say that Activehome is the most widely used
piece
>of automation software.  That's not a testament to its ease of use or
>reliability.  It's more likely a reflection of X-10's marketing efforts.
As
>I was going through my old module box I saw that I had modules from 1st
>Alert, BSR, Sears, Radio Shack, Stanley, IBM, Powerhouse, Leviton and
>Magnavox.  I'll bet there are plenty others.  That's an awful lot of toes
>dipped into the pond.  My take is that most major players have all decided
>that the PLC protocol isn't up to the job, at least straight out of the
box.
>So any software that was tied to these systems dead-ended.
>
>> What is needed for Joe and Jane is software that succeeds in  the
>> marketplace, and so evolves and doesn't dead-end as un-supported legacy
>> software. This requires that end-users can use the stuff they buy.
>
>Usability is the key, but it's something that applies to both SW and HW.
If
>module X doesn't go off when programmed, I think both parts of the system
>would get the blame from a naive end-user and go to the dustbin together.
>
>Again, though I hate to admit it, Activehome is still there while many of
>the others have folded.  The problem I have seen with X-10, at least, is
>that beyond a certain level of use, gremlins arise.  Whether it's noise or
>signal sucking or interference or phantoms, any X-10 installation greater
>than about 10 modules is likely to enter the "phantom zone."  No matter
what
>SW you yoke bad HW to, it's going to fail.
>
>Since Activehome offers no real upgrade path to anything superior, people
>really cluster at that level.  I say this based on the number of unique
>posters that appear to ask questions related to X-10 signal failures and
>then fade away.  The next step for many of these people is to either call
an
>electrician or move to an Ocelot or Elk.  Suzy Homemaker, who can figure
out
>how to use a Mini-timer and lamp modules with a little hand-holding, gets
>off the HA train right then and there.
>
>> Quoting from the article  "Home Automation: If you provide it will they
>> come?" in the July 2005 issue of Security Systems News,  "I's still a
very
>> niche market"  attractive to " people how have an interest in gadgets".
>> Making an analogy to homeowners' unprogrammed VCR's, "It's blinking 12.
We
>> can program [all-in-one home automation] panels but the consumer can't
>> operate it."
>
>I'm not sure I agree.  People who've never seen X-10 before they stay at my
>house really like it.  Guests are always happy not to have to get up to
turn
>off the bedroom lights and not to have to even reach for the bathroom
light.
>The problem with HA gaining "critical mass" is that unlike PC's, to really
>get into HA, you have to twiddle with the home electrical environment in a
>way that goes well beyond plug and play.
>
>I've been successful in "selling" (getting people to use in their own
homes)
>mini-timers, mini-consoles and appliance and lamp modules to people who
were
>non-technical.  However, as soon as I explained that doing what I did with
>the bathroom lights and the Hawkeye required pulling a wall switch or
>calling an electrician, the "look" appeared in their eyes.  It's been very
>clear to me at least that "plug and play" is the model of the day and
>putting in an X-10 wallswitch daunts perhaps 90% of the population.  That's
>where I think HA has failed to generate a critical mass.  I don't think ANY
>SW could overcome the basic HW limitations.
>
>> Which implies that the software has to be useable, i.e., the end user has
>to
>> be able to make it do what they want (with varying degrees of
professional
>> support).
>
>I think had X-10 not been crippled by signal-sucking and noise issues the
>software you seek would have already appeared.  I think it *will* appear
now
>that much more robust transmission protocols have arrived.  Black and
>Decker, Motorola and a number of other big-name vendors are dipping their
>toes in again.  The home of the future's still on the way, but it's getting
>closer all the time.  As soon as one of the startup protocols like Z-wave,
>Insteon or ZigBee develops a critical mass and appears to be stable (even
>when scaled up), the revolution will occur.  Gear can then be made in
>numbers that drive the cost down to X-10 levels.
>
>> Broadly successful models other than installer-centric security
>> panels and high-end systems (Crestron , etc) are scarce.
>
>I think this reinforces my notion that the game ends for many when they
hear
>the words "call an electrician."  The installer-centric panels and high end
>systems are usually all done at once by highly skilled people.  If
something
>was left out, the owners will call back the original installers.  That's a
>far different model than mailordering modules from Smarthome.
>
>I think that there's also a sort of human "back EMF" at work as a result of
>all the bailouts from the HA consumer market.  All those otherwise early
>adopters have been burned and now they are twice shy.  That's a hump any
new
>SW/HW combo will have to overcome.