randyth

*UPDATE* This beta test is complete. A big THANKS to everyone who participated. As of March 20, 2018, the skill is now live for everyone. (Hooray!) If you find the skill useful, please do give it a positive review on the Alexa skill store. Positive reviews help support the development of this and other skills like it. Thanks, -Randy ----------------------- I’m looking for about 10 to 20 ISY owners who are interested in beta testing an Alexa Skill called Notify Me. This skill lets you push notifications to your Alexa device using a simple RESTful API. (See the bottom of this post for an example on how to do this via an ISY Network Resource.) When you send your Alexa a notification, it makes a “bing” sound and its ring glows yellow. To hear your notification, just ask, “Alexa, what are my notifications?” Further details can be found at www.notifymyecho.com If you want to be part of this skill’s ISY beta test, please message me with the email address attached to the Amazon account you used to register your Echo device(s). I will then send you a link you can use to enable the skill. Comments, feedback, and (of course) compliments can be posted to this forum. Using Notify Me with the ISY Notify Me requires at least ISY Firmware Release 4.6.2 or 5.0.11 due to its dependency on SNI support Once you’ve received your access code from Notify Me, you can set up a separate network resource for each message you want to send. Here are the instructions for ISY Firmware 4.6.2: Go to Configuration->Networking->Network Resources Click on Add Give your resource a name, like “Hello World” Click on the new resource’s URL column to edit it Use the following settings: HTTPS POST Host: api.notifymyecho.com Port: 443 Path: /v1/NotifyMe Check Use SNI Set timeout(ms) to at least 2,000 Mode: Raw Text Headers: Change Content-Type to application/json Body: enter the following... {"notification":"Hello World", "accessCode":"ACCESS_CODE"} ...replacing ACCESS_CODE with the access code Notify Me emailed you. Click Update; then click Save Click the Save button found at the bottom of the main window. Select the name of the Resource from the list and then click Test

Just installed the Schlage Connect today on three doors. Installation was a breeze, though I had trouble adding the first lock as a Z-Wave device to my ISY. Disconnecting and reconnecting the battery on the lock and trying again did the trick. The last two locks were added on the first try. It's been less than 6 hours since the installation, but so far I'm loving it. Very impressed with the locks and ISY integration. -Randy

This is fantastic. It's working great for me. -Randy

I'd be curious to know what time your admin console shows for your current Sunrise and Sunset (look at the top of the window). You don't live near the North Pole, do you? -Randy

Speaking of 2016 technology, looks like LG is prepping an Echo-like audio player and smarthome hub that "serves as a gateway to smart sensors and connected appliances": http://www.engadget.com/2015/12/30/ces-lg-smartthinq-hub/

Try this: From the admin console's Configuration->Networking->Network Resource tab, select Import and load one of the ZIP files.

Fixed! Thanks for the prompt service, Michel. -Randy

As of today, my programs that use the rest interface via the portal have stopped working. Specifically, a custom Echo app and an IFTT recipe, both of which were previously working fine. To help debug it, I tried sending a simple nodes rest command from my web browser (https://<user>:<password>@my.isy.io/isy/<security_token>/rest/nodes) and I now get the following message: Cannot GET /isy/[xxx]/rest/nodes ...where [xxx] is the security token gleaned from the portal's ISY Information window. Has anything changed recently that would require me to alter they way I access the portal? -Randy

A general thought (and something I should probably post on Amazon's Alexa developer forum)... Instead of having just one list of generic "one size fits all" utterances (Interaction Model) per app, it would be nice if Amazon allowed Echo apps to have a dynamically customize-able Interaction Model per user. This way, the Interaction Model for any one user could include the actual device names found during the device refresh, thereby greatly improving voice recognition for that particular household. -Randy

Using a custom Echo app I wrote for myself, I can say that the Echo refuses to correctly match the word "Christmas" and pass it to my app. So, this is clearly not a problem exclusive to the ISY app. Like you, I finally resorted to using the word "Holiday." I blame Amazon. -Randy

+1 as well

That's great news, and I like the skill name very much. However, I thought skill names had to be more than one syllable. I hope Amazon has changed this requirement because, as I said, I think "home" is a great skill name for this purpose. If Amazon does ask you to choose a new name with more syllables, I suggest you change it to "my home" or "my house." -Randy

It would be interesting to get a poll going of possible names.

As I'm sure you are aware, you are using "the cloud" simply by using your Echo. But, you are certainly minimizing your exposure via a HUE emulator as opposed to a portal solution. Though I have a working HUE emulator in addition to my hard-coded (read, "only works for me") Alexa Skill app, I plan to support UDI's efforts to create an official UDI-created app. I assume the cost of the UDI portal will be reasonable and have no qualms about rewarding their good work with my money. I know UDI would prefer to avoid the cloud as well, but for now, Amazon is sadly not providing UDI with the same level of custom support as they are the big players like Phillips. Maybe down the road... By the way, I also support your efforts, Barry! Even if its only moral support and not with my checkbook. Your work is truly impressive. -Randy

I totally get the aversion to using the cloud, especially for something like home automation where each device (Echo and ISY) coexist on the same LAN. That said, I think using the portal is a perfectly acceptable solution. I'm using it now for my own tests and it adds no noticeable delays. I'm also not too paranoid about the security issues. Heck, I already put a microphone in my house so Jeff Bezos can listen to all my conversations. -Randy

Yay!

Of course! The human is the most important component.

Yeah, RackFanTempLimit is a constant of sorts in the form of an ISY Integer variable so I can tweak it now and then based on how paranoid I am about how hot I can let the rack get versus how much energy I want to save by not running the fan as often (which is really silly of me, I know).

With this method, I can easily have custom triggers that turn the fan on for as much or as little time as I want. For example, I use the following program to turn on the fan for 30 minutes when I hit a button on a remote. (I'm often working around the rack and want the fan to stay on for a while to keep the human -- that's me -- cool). RackFan On If IR 'Up' is Pressed Then Set 'Rack / ZW 004 Rack Fan' On $s_RackFanCoolTimer = 30 Else - No Actions - (To add one, press 'Action')

What I originally posted is one of three programs I use to run a fan that cools an equipment rack if it gets above a certain temperature (as determined by the variable i_RackFanTempLimit). These programs run the fan for at least five minutes and then continually add an additional minute if the rack hasn't decreased in temperature enough. I went ahead and posted all three programs below. @Michel, that's great about 5.0. It will be fun to streamline many of my programs with 5.0's new features. Cool Rack If $s_RackTemp >= $i_RackFanTempLimit And Status 'Rack / ZW 004 Rack Fan' is not On And $s_RackFanCoolTimer is 0 Then Set 'Rack / ZW 004 Rack Fan' On $s_RackFanCoolTimer = 5 Else - No Actions - (To add one, press 'Action') Cool Rack Delay If $s_RackFanCoolTimer > 0 Then Wait 1 minute $s_RackFanCoolTimer -= 1 Else Run Program 'Cool Rack Off' (If) Cool Rack Off - [Not Enabled] If $s_RackTemp < $i_RackFanTempLimit Then $s_RackFanCoolTimer = 0 Set 'Loft / ZW 004 Rack Fan' Off Else $s_RackFanCoolTimer = 1

Maybe not exactly what you're looking for, but I use the following logic to "wait" for as many minutes as the state variable s_RackFanCoolTimer is set to. Because I use a state variable, this timer program is triggered by simply setting the variable to a positive value. If $s_RackFanCoolTimer > 0 Then Wait 1 minute $s_RackFanCoolTimer -= 1 Else Run Program 'Time is Up' (If)

I still care.

I don't think that guy is doing anything very different than what kgividen and I have already done with our Amazon Echo apps. They operate the same in that I issue commands such as "Alexa, tell Sarah to turn on kitchen light." The trick is making the app work for anyone. I suspect this guy's Echo app is hard coded to talk to his personal system, which he calls IntelliHome. Similarly, my app is hard coded to talk to my system via UDI's beta ISYPortal. The trick is making the app work for anyone, so unless he has a clever way for any random user to point his or her Echo device to their personal "IntelliHome" website or ISYPortal, each user has to have a custom app built for them. I could be wrong, of course, and there could be more magic behind the curtains that I can't see from just looking at his video. -Randy

@kingwr I think you hit the nail on head regarding all the user-interface issues that have to be resolved, how they could be resolved given the current Alexa API, and the fact that (until UDI is given the same device-level access Phillips was with their HUE products) any homegrown solution we unwashed developers come up with today will always appear a bit clunky due to the need for the three extra words "...tell <appname> to..." That said, I'm having fun experimenting with solutions while I wait for a more comprehensive API from Amazon. -Randy

@kgividen Happy to talk to you directly. Email sent.