Smarthome Update

This weekend I installed three dimmers in our house, as well as the Indigo software on an extra iBook I have laying around. I put the ControlLInk behind the bed.

This is a first test and it was spectacular. The dimmers are very nice indeed, with custom ramp-rates and such. They are $40.00 bucks a piece though, so rapidly become expensive. However there are cheaper models for $20.00 available.

I also this weekend bought a MacMini for $299. Core Solo. And I found a place to get a touch-screen LCD for $165.00 bucks.

Today I’m going to try to diagram how I’m doing the system and I’ll post that.

UPDATE: The touch screen has Mac drivers that ONLY work with 10.4.7 on the mac, but work across PowerPC. E-mail them if you want Intel. I also managed to do some URL jangling and download 10.4.7 delta, so I can upgrade my new Mac Mini to only 10.4.7.

2006: 10/09
CATEGORY: sarah st
3 comments

- Cog
- October 9th, 2006
- REPLY
- QUOTE
Please keep us posted. I have drooled over home automation on Mac for some time and have not the money, time or guts to dig in. Thanks for the info.

Cog

touch screen for $130? do tell.
- Cole
- October 10th, 2006
- REPLY
- QUOTE
Will that touch screen work with Max OSX? I didn’t see that at the site.
- Khalil Amar
- November 1st, 2006
- REPLY
- QUOTE
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ethank/268742236/

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Ethan Kaplan

Music industry executive, technology enthusiast, husband and father.

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Am 30 years old
Father to a 8 month old
Married to Amy Haber Kaplan
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Asides

I wonder what Scott McCloud is going to make of the iPad?

[From Books in the Age of the iPad — Craig Mod]

if just half of the iPad book apps are going to be like this, and I was Amazon or Dell, I would be having some crisis meetings in conference rooms right about now.

[From First Look: How Penguin Will Reinvent Books With iPad | paidContent:UK ]

If I was in the set-top box market, or TV content market, I'd react with a significant amount of fear to Tim Cook saying Apple had no interest in the TV market.

[From Apple Knows a TV Is the Next Step, But Won't Do It - Apple TV - Gizmodo]

Yeah, thought so. I bet the next platform is AppleTV. Natural fit.

[From Apple To Bring iPhone OS To New Gadgets]

So the Windows performance analyst community is about as smarmy as the seduction community. Who'd have thought?

[From Why we don't trust Devil Mountain Software (and neither should you) | Between the Lines | ZDNet.com ]

This happened to me on Orbitz when we went to Maui. I ended up having to call Orbitz and go through tons of levels to complain, called the GM of the hotel, etc. We got taken care of, but the hotel basically said that they treat Travelocity, Orbitz and Expedia bookings as second to direct or agent booked travel.

[From My Bloody Valentine: Expedia.com ]

Couldn't have happened to a better group. Love UrbanAirship.

[From Urban Airship Secures $1.1 Million in Venture Capital Funding | Urban Airship Blog]

I can attest to this. I've stopped buying Android phones because I figure every time you do, something "Amazing" is coming out on another carrier, or even on the same carrier. At least on the IPhone you know: Every July.

[From The Android Who Cried Wolf ]

Can this please be the DirectTV Tivo that we all so need.

[From TiVo schedules a March 2nd NYC event and we’ll be there ]

Why does the fact that someone is announcing a phone automatically mean its an iPhone killer? Lazy journalism, that's why.

[From Microsoft's Secret iPhone Killer Coming Next Monday]

Music + Technology + Random Nonsense from the Music Industry, by Ethan Kaplan