I recently started a project to try to use the space in our utility, er… server room better. A big part of this was getting a wall mounted rack that I could use for our server and the network equipment that also lives in the space. After a lot of research, and some help from my friend Adam who knows […]
Read more
I didn’t think to wire in the humidifiers when I initially replaced the thermostats in our house for a pair of Ecobee 3. After the weather got cold, and dry, here in Chicago I quickly realized the error of my ways. Not that the existing install wasn’t working, it just wasn’t working as well as it could be, or connected […]
Read more
In a previous post we looked at how to install a Let’s Encrypt certificate with a Unifi Video installation. As it turned out, shortly after publishing our guide Ubiquiti made it possible to do this in a [sort of] official way with Unifi Video 3.8.1+, simplifying the process somewhat. Of course there was still some effort required, figuring out how […]
Read more
I love home automation (HA) because it allows me to make mundane tasks happen without any sustained intervention. Just setup a scene, and let the magic happen. Generally, this works great whether it is a scheduled event or something that is trigger driven. But, every so often I have a scene that requires more intelligence than is available out of […]
Read more
I do not mind Linux, but if I am completely honest Windows is more my thing. It is just more comfortable. So generally when there is a Windows option I go for it, instead of spinning up a Linux VM. Usually this pays off in setup time, but occasionally has the pain where I later have to figure out how […]
Read more
Having recently moved into a new[ish] house, the process of installing some “smart” gadgets has begun. The list is long, but with a couple decidedly unsmart thermostats present it was important to get that sorted ASAP. There are a few smart thermostats available; each with their own plus/minus. For me the most important feature was a strong multi-sensor approach to […]
Read more
Like an increasing number of people my mobile uses a USB-C connector, so my FLIR ONE won’t work without an adapter. Having tired of pulling my old phone out of storage everytime I want to use the thermal camera, I contacted FLIR ONE support this week. Unfortunately, they were no help at all. Seemingly unaware that the world has moved […]
Read more
I recently installed ha-bridge to expose my custom switches and those from my Harmony and Vera systems to the Amazon Echo. One of the challenges I ran across was that the Linux (VM) system that I want to host the app on is Ubuntu, and the installation instructions didn’t cover that. Now, this isn’t a complex task, but there was […]
Read more
I’m not sure exactly why my wife came home with a cheap (£10-15) set of 433MHz remote controlled switches. While I gave her some grief initially, I’m glad she did. Because for a few £ more we now have four “smart” IP switches that can be controlled from a home automation controller (HAC). And since we have an Amazon Echo, […]
Read more
As you all know, one of the major disappointment with the Intel Broadwell NUCs was that Intel made it much harder than is should have been to leverage the HTPC’s HDMI CEC header. So when the Intel NUC6i5SYK (Skylake NUC) review unit arrived, one of the first things I did was crack the case to see if Intel had […]
Read more