This system is written in Microsoft .Net (and I just happen to be a .Net developer)… it also works with all of the devices I already have or plan to purchase. One thing I’ll need to concentrate on is a good UI for the A/V stack in my living room. It’s not just enough to have my iPhone work as a remote control, with a few macros - I’d like it to be able to display a list of all of my online movies for example, and let me choose which to watch. Or… display logos for the different channels on DirecTV instead of having to move through the guide to remember the channel number.

mControl’s server has a built in webserver that will allow any web browser capable of running javascript to control the system. And surprise! They just came out with an iPhone interface… which is perfect for me

I’m also looking at picking up a Nokia800 Tablet PC to use for a controller in the living roomw, and mControl will be capatible with that as well.

And, since this is done in .Net, I will have little problem laying out webpages, or writing custom control modules for it.

Finally, they’ve recently released an mControl add-In for Windows Home Server… and I just received my 120 day eval of WHS today! So… looks like my system will be a Windows Home Server running mControl!

Let the games begin!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Microsoft slashes Windows Home Server price
• Windows Home Server Now Under $100

You might like these posts

• The Hardware Requirements
• Setting up the MainLobby Server
• Software Needs
• Not gonna wait anymore!
• I have DirecTV!

Still Waiting!

Well, I think I’ve given the folks at Cinemar MORE than enough time to help setup my MLServer, but their “CIO” has completely blown me off.  He was all excited about working with me to get it working so that we could have a case study online of it’s use… but I guess that was all just smoke up my skirt!

Anyway… I’ll be jumping back into this in January on my own.  I’ll be researching various pieces of software and hardware to use, and figuring out how to integrate it all.  Should be a really interesting journey of discovery - so stay tuned!

Related Posts

• The Project
• Software Needs

Well,  I’m still waiting to setup my MLServer.  The CIO has promised to connect to my machine and check out the configuration, but to date, I’ve heard nothing from him.  I hope this isn’t an indication of how “well” their customer service is.  If I don’t have this configured by next weekend, I may have no choice but to find another automation controller to use as the basis for my system!

You might like these posts

• My Global Cache GC-100 arrived!
• The Hardware Requirements
• Software Needs
• I have DirecTV!
• Setting up the MainLobby Server

I’ve spent a couple of hours this morning installing and configuring the MainLobby Server by Cinemar on my controller server.  It was fairly easy to install - they have a wizard that allows you to choose what parts you want installed, which device drivers you will need, etc.  Then it starts downloading and installing.

I installed the core components (which gives you quite a bit), and then I added a driver for my global cache.  I also added the DirecTV driver; I’m hoping that I can control my HR21 via the RS-232 interface on my GC-100.  That will give me the ability to use IR Port 3 as inbound, in case my wife decides to use a generic remote (she’s not thrilled that I’m going to use the iPhone to control everything - she doesn’t have one ).

Now I’m in the process of finding IR codes for my three components.  I’m going to have to enter these into the driver for the GC-100.  It’s not easy - you have to get the IR codes for the Pronto (ccf Files) from places like RemoteCentral.com, convert them to text files, and then cut and paste the codes into the driver settings window.  But hopefully, I’ll have this done by Thursday - since I’d love to be able to control the A/V stack by then.

Oh!  Cinemar released the beta of their iPhone interface over the weekend… it rocks!  Fairly simple to use, and for an ASP .Net guy like me, very simple to create new screens.

You might like these posts

• My First Hardware Purchase
• The Hardware Requirements
• I have DirecTV!
• Software Needs
• What’s it all about?

I just received my Global Cache GC-100 today from Smarthome.com.  I’m surprised at how small it is!

I’ve already wired it up (simple really - an AC adapter, a network cable, and 3 IR emitters stuck on the front of my TV controller, my Bose 3-2-1, and my DirecTV HR21 DVR).

The next step is to begin installing software to control the A/V stack.  I’m going to be working with Cinemar’s MainLobby server.  They just released their iPhone interface over the weekend, so everything is right on time!

Check back soon - I’lm hoping to have the automation working by Thursday!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Simple serial servo controller

You might like these posts

• Still waiting…
• What’s it all about?
• Not gonna wait anymore!
• Software Needs
• It’s mControl for me!

Well, so the DirecTV installer showed up on Friday and installed two rooms for High Definition DVR.  I have a pre-wired house, with centralized wire closet, so my wife and I pulled 2 runs of dual RG6 cable last weekend in anticipation of this install.  The cable was an awesome deal - I got it from CablesForLess - 500 feet on a REAL spool for $99 (it was a closeout).

I had also purchased a 75′ HDMI cable from them so that I could place the tuner in the closet, and run the cable to the TV through the attic.  Alas, it was not to be.  I don’t think an OompaLoompa could crawl through my attic!

So, the install went very smoothly.  The installer mounted the dish on my block wall with a clear view of the Southern sky, then trenched the cable under the rocks in my yard, and up into my distribution panel for cable.  From there, he just connected to the dual runs we had pulled, and connected them again in our distribution box out to the two rooms (each room in our house has dual F connections in the wall; the living room has four).  Voila!  Directv in both rooms.

No automation yet - I’m still waiting for the GC-100 to arrive.  Once that gets here, I’ll use it to control the A/V stack in the living room via my iPhone.

Until then, I have two HR21-100 DVR’s to explore.

Related articles by Zemanta

• DirecTV’s HR21 Pro gets inspected, now available

You might like these posts

• My Global Cache GC-100 arrived!
• Still waiting…
• My First Hardware Purchase
• It’s mControl for me!
• What’s it all about?

So I’ve made my first hardware purchase.  I purchased a Global Cache GC-100 network adapter.  This adapter will translate commands sent via TCP/IP to IR commands to replace my remote control.

I’m going to use this adapter in the living room on my new DirecTV HD DVR and my Bose 3-2-1 system.  I’ll be purchasing the MainLobby software licenses soon to drive this.  I should have my iPhone at least acting like a remote control by next week!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Microsoft Wants Media Center To Fail…I Swear

Related Posts

• The Project
• The Hardware Requirements

Ok, now that we’ve layed out our hardware needs - let’s focus on software.

As I said, I want maximum flexibility in the implementation, so I’ve decided to focus on a system that provides control screens via HTML.  That way, the myriad of devices out there that have a browser built in to them can serve as a controller.

The system must be extensible with plugins to allow for the development and/or purchase of drivers for each hardware component.  It should also be able to schedule events, handle triggers (a light going on, for example), and be scriptable either through a language, or via a GUI.

It would also be nice if the system were written in .Net (either VB or C#), so that I could contribute custom software.

I’ve tentatively identified MainLobby andMLServer from Cinemar.  MLServer comes with a built in webserver so I can use any browser I want as a control (iPhone, Nokia, any Tablet PC, Internet Explorer, etc).  They also have an impressive number of drivers out of the box (including all I need to control the hardware I’ve identified), and quite a few 3rd party plugins.

They also have a screen designer/control program called MainLobby which will allow me to design each control screen as I’d like it.  AND they have an impressive amount of graphics and icons that I can purchase for use.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Control multi-touch on your computer using an iPhone

Related Posts

• The Project
• Not gonna wait anymore!
• The Hardware Requirements
• What’s it all about?

So, let’s get right to it.  All of this automation will require hardware, and plenty of it.  Seems to me that the hardware is the first thing I need… since without it, the software is just a game!

Insteon

For controlling my lights, my fans, my appliances, my thermostat, and my watering system.  Insteon provides all sorts of automation modules, from lamp controllers and switches, to dimmers, to thermostats and watering controllers.  They have some slick light switches and keypads, and they even have a module that will allow you to control the Insteon modules via TCP/IP.  Good thing too - we’ll need that.

Global Cache

For converting TCP/IP signals into IR signals to control AV equipment.  Global Cache provides modules that will receive commands via TCP/IP and emit IR signals to control anything that uses an Infrared Remote Conrol.  That’s all my AV equipment!

iPhone

For controlling the ENTIRE system (I have an original iPhone… no need for a 3G)  Do I really have to tell you what an iPhone is? 

Nokia N810

A slick interface for the living room that will control my AV system (and the whole house)

Oh, this is slick.  It’s a small tablet pc that has a slide down keyboard, and is WiFi enabled.  A really slick way to control the entire house.

Related Posts

• The Project
• My First Hardware Purchase
• Software Needs
• What’s it all about?

The Decision

OK, so it’s time to automate my house.  I’m tired of having to walk through the rocks to turn on my pool light, or having to walk back into the kitchen to turn off the porch light, or lock up the house.  In a word, I’m lazy.  And what is technology for, if not to make it easier for me to lay in bed, eat pizza, and watch TV?

Anyway, I can do this.  I’ve been programming for 20+ years, and electronics is a hobby of mine.  Finally, everything I need to automate the house is available online - I just need to bring it all together.

I’ve decided to use the iPhone as a controller.  It’s ability to connect to WiFi coupled with the Safari browser make it ideal to work as a controller in any web based system.  I’m leaning towards developing everything web based so I can control it via the Internet (through appropriate security and NATing), as well as with my iPhone.  There are also some nice tablet PCs out there that would work as well (the Nokia N810 comes to mind).

What to Automate?

Here’s a list of what I want to automate:

• That pesky pool light
• Lights throughout my home (both for security purposes, and for “scenes”)
• My alarm system (I want status, and I want to be able to set it)
• All of my AV equipment.  In ANY room.
• My thermostat.
• All of my ceiling fans.
• My phone system (home PBX?)
• My landscape watering system.
• My pool cleaning cycle
• My DVR
• My music collection

The Ultimate System

Here are some things the ultimate system should allow me to do:

• I should be able to access my email on ANY platform appropriate - the iPhone, the tabletPC, TVs in any room.
• I want to get the status of my system in as many ways possible:  iPhone, tabletPC, via a Browser, maybe even on a touch panel in the hall.
• My phone system should be fully integrated with the automation.  For example, if I’m watching a movie, and somebody calls, my iPhone gives me the choice of whether to answer or not.  If I choose to answer, my movie will pause.  Once I hangup, my movie will continue.
• My system should know if I’m home or not (based on whether my iPhone is home?) and act accordingly (phone calls follow me, energy usage is reduced, etc).
• I should be able to control an AV component in any room with the same controller.  As I move between rooms, the system should sense that and act appropriately.  For example, if I leave the bedroom - the TV should shut off.
• The system should handle multiple users.  So, if my wife has an iphone, and I leave the room, but she doesn’t, the TV should stay on.
• HOWEVER, this should be configurable in the system, so that either the system is controller agnostic, or actions are tied to a specific controller.  That way, if I want, I can tell the system that if I turned on the TV, and I leave, the TV should go off.
• I should also have the ability to configure the system so that the TV would also come back on when I return to the room (i.e., the system would maintain state).

How am I going to do it?

One step at a time!  I’ll start with the hardware, then write back-end software to control it, a server to handle the events, the rules, the creation of control screens, etc, and finally, create a web interface to display my control screens.

Watch for the next post to discuss the hardware needed.  And please, feel free to comment.  Spam comments won’t be tolerated, but you can DEFINITELY point me to hardware and software you feel would be useful!

Related articles by Zemanta

• The iPhone will drive the netbook craze

Related Posts

• The Project
• Software Needs
• The Hardware Requirements