home automation

[kalos]

hello!

which home or everyday life automation would you like?

thanks! 

[Renegade]

Me? None. 

[40hz]

+1 w/Renegade. I'm actually doing as much as possible to reduce my technical and energy footprint these days. My new goal: As little as possible - and simplify, simplify, simplify.
 

[phitsc]

+1 w/Renegade. I'm actually doing as much as possible to reduce my technical and energy footprint these days. My new goal: As little as possible - and simplify, simplify, simplify.
 

-40hz (January 12, 2015, 06:14 PM)

Home automation could actually reduce your energy footprint though.

[Deozaan]

Showering, brushing teeth, combing hair, dressing, vacuuming, sleeping, shaving, eating, cleaning, cooking.

You know, all those pointless things that don't serve any purpose.

[Renegade]

+1 w/Renegade. I'm actually doing as much as possible to reduce my technical and energy footprint these days. My new goal: As little as possible - and simplify, simplify, simplify.
 

-40hz (January 12, 2015, 06:14 PM)

Home automation could actually reduce your energy footprint though.

-phitsc (January 13, 2015, 01:35 AM)

At what cost?

I do a lot of work in the smart device industry, which is just one part of the Internet of Things (IoT). I've also done work on IoT infrastructure, and had a few policy papers come across my desk.

In order to get those resource savings (electricity, gas, water), you're literally telling your utility company (and anyone that wants to hack the insecure systems that are used/will be used) what time you went to the bathroom and whether you took a pee or poo.

I really need to emphasise this: **I AM NOT EXAGGERATING IN THE LEAST. IF ANYTHING, I AM UNDERSTATING THE CASE.**

Smart devices and the IoT are a hellish nightmare.

Now, you can do home automation without the dystopian nightmare, but it requires you to run your own servers in the house without an Internet connection, or with high-levels of security. Your average home owner doesn't have the resources or know-how to do this.

Here's the theme song for the IoT.

[40hz]

+1 w/Renegade. I'm actually doing as much as possible to reduce my technical and energy footprint these days. My new goal: As little as possible - and simplify, simplify, simplify.
 

-40hz (January 12, 2015, 06:14 PM)

Home automation could actually reduce your energy footprint though.

-phitsc (January 13, 2015, 01:35 AM)

Certainly. In some circumstances at least. But only if you want to have your cake and eat it too as far as I can see. Like having devices powered up all the time - but not using as much electricity to do so, for example.

I see that approach more as having increasing efficiency as your primary goal rather than reducing absolute consumption and dependency.

But in fairness, that's probably more a philosophical than physical distinction I'm making. Especially since one less kilowatt consumed is one less kilowatt consumed, no matter what the motivation was behind it.
 

[bit]

Mowing the lawn.
The price of robo-mowers is way too high.

[40hz]

Mowing the lawn.
The price of robo-mowers is way too high.

-bit (January 14, 2015, 09:02 PM)

Rather than a highly 'inefficient' and difficult to maintain grass lawn, why not just naturalize?

Possible answers:

• Too much personal fondness for the color green to give it up
• Non-standard landscaping may reduce your property's market value
• You have small livestock to feed
• Your homeowner's association agreement may not allow it
• It may be illegal where you live (no joke btw!)

 
 

[Renegade]

Mowing the lawn.
The price of robo-mowers is way too high.

-bit (January 14, 2015, 09:02 PM)

Rather than a highly 'inefficient' and difficult to maintain grass lawn, why not just naturalize?

Possible answers:

• Too much personal fondness for the color green to give it up
• Non-standard landscaping may reduce your property's market value
• You have small livestock to feed
• Your homeowner's association agreement may not allow it
• It may be illegal where you live (no joke btw!)

 
 

-40hz (January 14, 2015, 09:11 PM)

FWIW - A year or three ago (I forget), my mother was complaining to me about someone down the street who has an overgrown front yard. She described it as extremely overgrown. I told her to be thankful that they had that freedom. You can quite literally lose your home in some places for it.

[SeraphimLabs]

The town gets mad if you put goats on your lawn to keep the grass short.

They get just as mad if you don't mow it at all.

Clearly this is a conspiracy to sell more lawn mowers and greatly increase greenhouse emissions between fuel-burning noisy lawnmowers and the fact that freshly cut grass is apparently HORRIBLE about emissions. There's been quite a few studies about that.

I've actually been building a little bit towards home automation though, purely for the sake of convenience.

Everything of course still retains hard mechanical overrides such as the ever reliable off switch that physically interrupts the power supply, but at the same time outside of emergency situations it is really nice to be able to configure household equipment to suit the situation without having to actually adjust each piece of equipment.

And its all energy efficient too, taking advantage of recent improvements in microprocessor technology to push the controller power consumption down to extremely tiny amounts, paired with energy-efficient appliances and lighting because lets face it I'm cheap when it comes to paying companies that I think are trying to screw people.

[40hz]

FWIW - A year or three ago (I forget), my mother was complaining to me about someone down the street who has an overgrown front yard. She described it as extremely overgrown. I told her to be thankful that they had that freedom. You can quite literally lose your home in some places for it.

-Renegade (January 14, 2015, 09:20 PM)

My town has an 'eyesore' ordinance. Fortunately, they seem to have confined the actual enforcement of it to property that includes trash piles, signs of illegal dumping, or 'abandoned' (i.e. unrepairable, rusting and unregistered) motor vehicles. The ordinance provides for graduated fines - and in extreme cases - property seizure.

To date, the town has limited its focus primarily to undeveloped property and limited its enforcement to fines and consent decrees that required the owner clean up their property. However, the ordinance is so broadly worded that there's no reason why they would have to. I don't believe any property has been seized. To date anyway. But it would be interesting to see what would happen if somebody were to decide to start a honeybee and chicken farm on their front lawn. Or just do it up as a natural wooded lot...especially if !!!CHILDREN!!! were living on the same street.

 

[KynloStephen66515]

I get the feeling that 90% of "kalos posts" are some sort of homework assignment and you lot are unknowingly completing them for him.

[tomos]

I get the feeling that 90% of "kalos posts" are some sort of homework assignment and you lot are unknowingly completing them for him.

-Stephen66515 (January 16, 2015, 05:14 PM)

I think we're not doing a very good job of it though :-/

[Stoic Joker]

I get the feeling that 90% of "kalos posts" are some sort of homework assignment and you lot are unknowingly completing them for him.

-Stephen66515 (January 16, 2015, 05:14 PM)

I think we're not doing a very good job of it though :-/

-tomos (January 16, 2015, 05:53 PM)

...That depends entirely on what grade he's after (too many A's draw attention - Ya know..).

[kalos]

bhaha indeed if I was preparing an assignment I wouldn't get any help at all from these posts!

[bit]

I want a mechanical tiger. Full size. Fake fur no problem.
There was once a short story possibly in a science fiction anthology about a guy who ordered a mechanical tiger, and used to take it for walks at night.
It's eyes would glow affectionately.
One day (jeez, I read this, like decades ago) I think he asked it to jump a puddle, and it got wet.
So then it began to malfunction over time, but it always acted like a big tame tabby cat with glowing eyes.

[bit]

FWIW - A year or three ago (I forget), my mother was complaining to me about someone down the street who has an overgrown front yard. She described it as extremely overgrown. I told her to be thankful that they had that freedom. You can quite literally lose your home in some places for it.

-Renegade (January 14, 2015, 09:20 PM)

My town has an 'eyesore' ordinance. Fortunately, they seem to have confined the actual enforcement of it to property that includes trash piles, signs of illegal dumping, or 'abandoned' (i.e. unrepairable, rusting and unregistered) motor vehicles. The ordinance provides for graduated fines - and in extreme cases - property seizure.

To date, the town has limited its focus primarily to undeveloped property and limited its enforcement to fines and consent decrees that required the owner clean up their property. However, the ordinance is so broadly worded that there's no reason why they would have to. I don't believe any property has been seized. To date anyway. But it would be interesting to see what would happen if somebody were to decide to start a honeybee and chicken farm on their front lawn. Or just do it up as a natural wooded lot...especially if !!!CHILDREN!!! were living on the same street.

 

-40hz (January 14, 2015, 09:43 PM)

We used to have a bee hive in a dirt-paved alley I would use as a shortcut near our house.
I never bothered it, and it never bothered me.
Except I had the senseless habit of going barefoot sometimes and stepped on a bee once and got stung on the bottom of my foot.
My foot swelled for three days and itched insanely.
I know now, the treatment for that is to apply a bandage with a paste of baking soda and water, and keep it moist and fresh.