A message from Steve at Smarthome.
- Thread starter SteveL
- Start date
So I guess you dont believe anyone that they had devices fail. I am sorry but I dont get the feeling you are really here to help people but more to try and make SH look better. Nothing personnel but if you are going to deny the problems exist you just proved to me that you really do work for SH.
will the i1 devices absorb i2 extended messages like they do x10 messages?
WayneW
Senior Member
Steve,
Are you, or anybody else from SH going to be at EHX?
http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?showtopic=12335
Are you, or anybody else from SH going to be at EHX?
http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?showtopic=12335
We will be doing our trainings at the New Southern Home. We have two houses that we will be doing trainings at. One of houses is Microsoft, ELK, NuVo, InterfaceGo, ISY and INSTEON setup though I do not have a schedule for it yet. It may only be one class. The other which is the 12,000 sqft home we did the training in last year will be with Cortexa. Cortexa has a new team and look with better integraqtion and we will be showing and training on that solution. The New Southern Home has 65 Keypads, 130 switches, 35 lamp modules and 2 inline modules. www.newsouthernhome.com
We will have the schedule at smarthomepro.com in a week or two. Not sure if we are going to have a booth, just the trainings I think.
SteveL
All of my icon relays purchased over a period of 2 years covering both amber and green eventually failed with the paddle issue. Interestingly, non of the dimmers ever failed.
Since the microswitch failure is related to oxidation over time, this test would not be accurate. My low use relays failed sooner than the high use ones.
I had similar but not quite as bad results. Only about 70% of my switches failed from the paddle problem. Mixture of Icon and Switchlincs.
This test noted was for motors and just an example. And it was done at varying ambients and humidity levels to simulate real life extremes (0 to 70 C and up to 95% humidity). They are indoor products.
The point is that mfgs need to test do this type of use to minimize the possibility of premature failure of the product. If they dont then products can fail in the field.
apostolakisl
Senior Member
Steve,
I am new here but thought I might bend your ear.
I am in a new house and am installing my HA system. I have elk M1G and a bunch of Insteon stuff that I moved over from my old house as well some new stuff. The insteon stuff has not had a problem except for the problem of mislabeled items with 600w which resulted in a fried unit.
I have linked the m1g to the insteon via the xsp module and a 2412s. I have my elk turning lights on and off, but can not get the elk to keep track of lights turned on and off via other methods (i.e. at the switch). What is the best way to do this?
Also, I have a 2414u from several years ago. I had a program that either came with or I downloaded. The computer that had the program has crashed in my move and I can not locate the software. I do not remember the exact software, but I am sure I didn't buy it separate from the unit. It is not the timer software, but rather a control software that let you crawl the system, link things, etc. I don't need anything more than that software and would like to get a copy of that back.
Thanks,
I am new here but thought I might bend your ear.
I am in a new house and am installing my HA system. I have elk M1G and a bunch of Insteon stuff that I moved over from my old house as well some new stuff. The insteon stuff has not had a problem except for the problem of mislabeled items with 600w which resulted in a fried unit.
I have linked the m1g to the insteon via the xsp module and a 2412s. I have my elk turning lights on and off, but can not get the elk to keep track of lights turned on and off via other methods (i.e. at the switch). What is the best way to do this?
Also, I have a 2414u from several years ago. I had a program that either came with or I downloaded. The computer that had the program has crashed in my move and I can not locate the software. I do not remember the exact software, but I am sure I didn't buy it separate from the unit. It is not the timer software, but rather a control software that let you crawl the system, link things, etc. I don't need anything more than that software and would like to get a copy of that back.
Thanks,
apostolakisl
Senior Member
I figured out the software. It was the original houselinc and I was able to get it from Smarthome after pulling some teeth.
ver0776
Active Member
I had good luck with the Insteon hardware initially and my only real issue is that SH would not spend ANY time or effort to update their SDM and just abandoned development of it, which left any HA software that did not write an interface from scratch out in the cold (and we PAID $200 for this SDK!)
Recently though I have replaced about 20% of my switches due to paddle issues and my PLC just fried again last week. Between Firmware upgrades and failures, I am on my 4th PLC and it is a bitch to replace all of your links since their SDK does not have a delete link command even...
I have felt violated by Insteon for years and now my vCrib software supports ZWave also and if I did not have to provide support for other Insteon users, I would drop Insteon and replace every switch in the house with ZWave. Currently I run about 60% Insteon, 35% ZWave and 5% X10.
Not sure what this thread is even about, but if SH ever wants love again they can update the SDK and complete it. I am a hack of a programmer but I have a full API for my software now... It is not hard, they don't fix it because they sell software and don't want to help anyone they consider competition and that hurts the entire technology.
They should have never written their own software and put that effort into the SDK so everyone else would easily support Insteon and promote the technology, but they got GREEDY and SLOPPY...
Vaughn
www.vCrib.com
Recently though I have replaced about 20% of my switches due to paddle issues and my PLC just fried again last week. Between Firmware upgrades and failures, I am on my 4th PLC and it is a bitch to replace all of your links since their SDK does not have a delete link command even...
I have felt violated by Insteon for years and now my vCrib software supports ZWave also and if I did not have to provide support for other Insteon users, I would drop Insteon and replace every switch in the house with ZWave. Currently I run about 60% Insteon, 35% ZWave and 5% X10.
Not sure what this thread is even about, but if SH ever wants love again they can update the SDK and complete it. I am a hack of a programmer but I have a full API for my software now... It is not hard, they don't fix it because they sell software and don't want to help anyone they consider competition and that hurts the entire technology.
They should have never written their own software and put that effort into the SDK so everyone else would easily support Insteon and promote the technology, but they got GREEDY and SLOPPY...
Vaughn
www.vCrib.com
I'm not sure if there was a question for me in your post. There have been many companies that have been sucessfull using the same developers process that is in place today. Universal Devices, mControl, ELK, Simple Home Net, ect are some of the companies. Does the developers program offer all of the information that every developer wants?, No probably not. Is all of the information kept up to date with all of the new additions? in some cases, No. If i had spent the $199.99 on the kit and was not happy with the value then I probably would have returned it. If you are looking for specific information that you can not find then feel free to email me and I will do what I can to help you. There is a email address that is on the INSTEON.net website for support and everyone of the emails gets looked at and responded to. SH is working on updating the developer site information daily.
SteveL
ver0776
Active Member
Ah, you are right that the Developer's kit is also used for "Designing from scratch" applications, which you all did put a bunch of work into. I should be more specific in saying that the SDM portion of the SDK was abandoned and it was never completed. I developed my interface based on the SDM (Smarthome Device Manager API), and after two years of using it and waiting for updates I was told they are never coming. I was told to Start from scratch not using the SDM. I bought it for the SDM, put in the development time and was told to throw my work away and use Peeks & Pokes, which I have not had to do since the Commodore 64 days.
So I am sure there are plenty of happy developers out there, but projects built on the SDM did not share in that. InHomeFree and other projects based on the SDM were abandoned for the same reasons I am unhappy.
As for exactly what I wanted, and what I think would have been so easy is:
Take the Peek/Pokes required to delete a link from a device and wrap it up in an API call... And fix the crosslinking API call so it will use deleted link memory spaces instead of skipping over them. These two things would make the SDM fully usable and so much effort was put into the SDM in the first place, I just can't imagine why this could not be done. There was a thread on the Insteon Developers forums stating that the Peek and Pokes where not that hard and could be found on the forums, well if they are not that hard, it should not be that hard to wrap them into an API call either.
There is a massive difference in using the SDM and manually calculating the rolling memory addresses in devices.
So if I had a question I would like for you to comment on is: Can you officially say the the SDM is dead, and why?
Vaughn
ver0776
Active Member
A seperate question is what is the future of the PLC? I am not clear on this, but it seems like it is being abandoned for the PLM? I WOULD have rewritten all my code not using the SDM, but to find it would have only been obsoleted again by having to support the PLM instead was too much of a risk for my limited development resources. This was only reinforced when I saw HomeSeer abandon development for the PLC. Why would they have done that if it is all sunshine and rainbows? I don't have a fraction of the resources they do...
I have not read the Developer forums in a while do to the lack of activity and answeres on there, but maybe that has changed and I will go see if there is anything new on there.
Also, this is the little issue that took me from dissappointed to UNHAPPY:
"Quick Reference Guide for Smarthome Device Manager for INSTEON
(matches alpha-release - 1.10 - 2005-08-25); updated 2005-12-12 - Clarified Fast ON Command"
The current SDM is 3.08 from Dec 2006... It is 2009 and the 1 page guide to the SDM is still from 2005. Couldn't you all at least update that 1 page of docs so it at least matches the current SDM? I have requested this several times on the forums to no avail.
Thanks for providing a voice on these boards though and I still have fantasies about loving Insteon again and it is a more robust protocol than ZWave and I like the extra options it provides.
Vaughn
I have not read the Developer forums in a while do to the lack of activity and answeres on there, but maybe that has changed and I will go see if there is anything new on there.
Also, this is the little issue that took me from dissappointed to UNHAPPY:
"Quick Reference Guide for Smarthome Device Manager for INSTEON
(matches alpha-release - 1.10 - 2005-08-25); updated 2005-12-12 - Clarified Fast ON Command"
The current SDM is 3.08 from Dec 2006... It is 2009 and the 1 page guide to the SDM is still from 2005. Couldn't you all at least update that 1 page of docs so it at least matches the current SDM? I have requested this several times on the forums to no avail.
Thanks for providing a voice on these boards though and I still have fantasies about loving Insteon again and it is a more robust protocol than ZWave and I like the extra options it provides.
Vaughn
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