I know I've mentioned this a couple of times, but I want to make an entry dedicated to this idea I have...
Someday, I'd like all of my devices to have an IP address on my LAN:
Thermostat - I want to be able to ssh into my thermostat (or have a secure alternative) so that I can get statistics, find out the current settings, adjust the current settings, and find out the current temperature in the house.
Sprinklers - I want a Java-Enabled sprinkler system so I can write my own custom algorithm for using many different inputs (both locally, and some off the web) to determine my lawn watering needs.
Window Blinds - I want window blinds that I can program to open in the day and close at night so that my houseplants can get the light they need, without my neighbors being able to see me walk around my house in my underwear at night.
Music - I want single-source, multi-destination music control. I want to be able to make a playlist, and have a server play my music, and stream it to whichever room I'm in. And I want it to work the same for the rest of my family. If I go into a room and someone else is already listening to their playlist, then their playlist takes precedence until they leave the room, or until I enter a different space
, or until they give the command to relinquish their playlist in favor of mine.
Door Locks - I want automatic door locks for my house... why have car's had automatic door locks for 30 years, but houses don't? What gives?
FridgeCam - I want a camera in my Fridge that takes a picture right before the light goes off when you close the door, and publishes that picture to the web (ok, so this one isn't probably very hard). But this way, I can check to see if I need to pick up some beer on the way home. :)
Lights - I want those auto-shutoff lights like they have in office buildings, only I want them to do a better job of determining if anyone is in the room (those pesky false positives).
TrashBot - I want a trash robot that wheels itself to the end of the curb on trash day, and wheels itself back after it figures out that the trash has been collected.
RabbitBot - I want a rabbit robot that catches rabbits, spays or neuters them, and releases them back to the wild. And if it catches the same rabbit twice, it conducts hostage negotiations to trade the captive rabbit for one of the other rabbits that have yet to be fixed
.
Is this too much to ask?
I don't know, your point makes perfect sense.
Simpson's did it ... or Wade, 1998 wants its meme back ;-)
Or if there is any real doubt take at look at this Embedded Linux and Home Automation
Despite the humor on our part why not a camera, maybe we also need to switch from the incandescent to LED and a CCD camera. But we really won't need this as our inventory management software can just poll the RFID to see what's in there (or just look in the database to see what's been added removed. Seriously, why not take advantage of the RFID work being done by others. They want to RFID the world fine, we'll take advantage of it. What I really don't want is the refrigerator manufacturers trying to add this functionality via external links to their databases. Talk about the lack of privacy (and they pretty penny they could earn). Sorry the ideas got on a roll (slipped on the butter, haha beet you to it! IYOKTDSOTF ;-).
Lets extend this to include my neighbors cats who insist on marking my yard and destroying various plants and my neighbors dogs ... lets say that I'd like the presents it left, delivered to there home in a most convenient spot.
Author: Linux Smart Homes For Dummies
Nope, there's no doubt... that's why I said that that one was probably not very hard.
Yeah... I'm not sure I'm ready for RFID's in my fridge. I think I'll stick with an image... besides, an image is more fun to look at than a spreadsheet with a list of what's in the fridge :) Seeing the word with a 6 next to it does nothing for me, seeing a six-pack of beer, does :)
Add a little tequila... to your Java http://www.agaveblue.org