X-10 Tinkerer From USA Joins UK Group - Wowed By R. Mouser Node 0

["taketheactive" <taketheactive@xxxxxxxxx>]

An avid X-10 User since the days of BSR (20, 25 years?),  I sporadically
check the NG:comp.home.automation and the Yahoo! Group X10.  Came across a
link for this UK group in the NG today, so I joined to read some more (you
never can pick up enough tips!).  While reading the "New User"
'stuff', I went to the 'home' web site and found this "Node 0
Gallery".

No offense to the others, but...

Mr. Rob Mouser - your picture looks like someone's crew quarters from the
Starship U.S.S. Enterprise [aka Star Trek]

...absolutely gorgeous!  Is there a narrative anywhere?  I'd love to read
about contents, building process and *COST*! (although I don't envy you
doing maintenance! :) )

I had to comment before moving on - now I'll quietly slip away and read
through the archives (I could have waited until a Daily Digest arrived to
get Rob's complete E-Mail address, but the Moderator *DID* ask New Members
for an intro :) )


Currently I'm running >50 modules with an ActiveHome CM11
(self-contained, using laptop just to review / load new devices and
macros).  I use many Motion Sensors, a pair of Outdoor Photofloods, and
several Palmpads and KeyChain Remotes to control things on (currently) 8
Housecodes:

- C: (the original, since I didn't want to have collisions with other folks
using A or B!  i.e. The Original HeathKit Photofloods only had *THREE*
choices) for LIGHTS was my first housecode.

- H: for APPLIANCES (Appliance Modules and Wall Switch Outlets) was my
second housecode.  [H for House, get it?]  (Plus, "All Lights
Flashing" from the Alarm Console was turning all the appliances off
and getting annoying...)

- M: for MACROS is where Sensors trigger routines, such as when the Outdoor
PhotoFloods trip either SUNRISE or SUNSET and control mood lighting,
heating, safety shutdowns, or you want to turn an Appliance Module on for 5
hours when making yogurt, or a plain-jane TIMER SETTING controls an
Appliance Module down on the furnace that powers a 110VAC relay that
switches between a DAY and NIGHT thermostat in the hall, or you want to
turn the furnace back on for 1 hour, or someone pressed ALL OFF (i.e.
forgot to DISARM the alarm *before* opening the door to take the garbage
out!) and messed up the mood lighting and you need to "reset"
it...

- F: for '???/Foto' where Motion Sensors (Eagle/Hawk) simply turn on a
single device (i.e. closet lights, stairway lights, etc...) and half the
addresses are wasted by MODULE+1 for the 'Dummy Light'

- L: for LOWER LEVEL APPLIANCES (and fluorescents) when H filled up

- N: for more MACROS when M filled up

- P: for ANNUNCIATORS (can't use A - too dangerous!) where I have 2
Universal Modules and 1 Chime (since I don't have the Votrax running at the
moment.  Maybe, if/when the laptop runs 24x7, I'll either bring back the
Votrax, or try out some kind of SoundBlaster speech software.  I thought
AT&T had some neat public domain routines that I read about years ago -
a man and a woman? ;) )

- O: for TESTING (next to the last - no acronym/reasoning) new modules
before permanently incorporating them into the setup.


In my "youth", I was running a TW-523 off an IBM 8088 PC with a
BASIC program that I sort of "reverse engineered".  Once I got
the TW-523 timing routines running reliably, I found an advertisement (via
DejaNews - "GOOGLE is your friend" - IIRC) with
"DESCRIPTIONS" of many, many software modules / routines:

- what INPUT was expected;
- what OUTPUT was created; etc...

[No software, just descriptions to let you know what you were buying. 
Unfortunately, it was also no longer "For Sale".]

I treated it as "Program Specs" and proceeded to write all the
modules myself (Programmer/Analyst).  Found a nice sunrise/sunset algorithm
on the internet and "fit" that in.  Came across a RS-232 Votrax
Speech Synthesizer (ala Stephen Hawking) at the Annual Trenton Computer
Fair and had the IBM making announcements, wishing people "HAPPY
BIRTHDAY!" (and speaking DEBUG routines) throughout the day.  "It
was a treat!"  (is that proper UK speak? ;) )


Although I'm certainly in awe of Rob's setup, I enjoy doing my tinkering as
cheaply :eek: as possible (X10's 3-for-1, 4-for-1 *SALES*, etc... ;) )


Well, enuf intro!  [I hope to read where others have done the same (as
requested), learn something I didn't already know, *AND* that I haven't
bored everyone... :D ]


I may not be TALKING, but I'll be LISTENING... :)