Ethernet-based systems for DIY?

["Don Stratton" <anguishandfear@xxxxxxxxx>]

I have been carefully considering what I would like to see in total
home automation for a long time.  it can best be described as Star Trek
technology; I want to know pretty much everything going on in my home
and I want a high level of computing assistance (voice responce,
internet interactivity, intelligent alarm systems that correlate
multiple sensors to evaluate threat and response, tons more).

Needless to say I have not found it.

I can find pretty much all of it in bits and pieces, but nothing that
would logically stitch together very well.  Systems like X10 are weak
in security, alarm systems are weak in home automation, media systems
ignore both, very little of it embraces a do-it-yourselfer, most
systems don't scale or intergrate well with each other, and good
software is absolutely non-existant.  Which brings me to my point.

_IF_ I am right and nothing "good" exists, I may be interested in
building it myself.  I say this both as an interested homeowner who's
handy with a soldering iron, and as the owner and senior engineer of a
company that makes consumer electronic gear.  I did a quick block
design of a data aquisition module I thought would be a good idea
(multiple A/D, multiple GPIO and video inputs with ethernet out back to
the base), checked the net to find nothing quite like it, and am
intrigued by the idea of developing it into a full-fledged commercial
product.  My thinking is that systems like this should be more cellular
in nature, and this DAQ would seem to allow for all home security
sensing needs, some or all of home monitoring needs, easy as hell for
DIY installation and integration into existing sensor systems, and
absolute expandability in the form of ethernet output.  VERY simple
software would allow you to do a lot, very complex software boggles my
mind in terms of sheer potential (the Star Trek stuff).

Am I wrong?  Can someone recommend what they think are good systems and
components?


--Don