Is Home Automation a Key to Going Green?

June 19, 2009 | by Steven Castle

Smart programming of automation systems can yield greener results for your home. Credit: Glenn Campbell

Advocates of green technology see the bright skies of a cleaner, greener future—as well as huge business opportunities as many of us strive to go greener. And one of those opportunities is in home control, also known as home automation.

Green technology advocates like myself see the benefit of using electronics to help save energy in a home by shutting off our gadgets and gizmos automatically, controlling our lighting so we’re not leaving on banks of lights unnecessarily, and regulating HVAC systems in our homes more effectively. And as more and more homeowners invest in solar panels and receive smart meters from their utilities, interest in energy monitoring systems will boom. With energy monitoring systems, we’re able to learn how much energy our homes are using—and then do something to cut those costs.

But what can we do about it, especially if we’re not there or if we forget to shut something off or neglect to press the right button?

Microsoft Project Natal

Microsoft Intros Project Natal, Instant 1080p Video on Demand

Coming soon for Xbox LIVE: Instant 1080p VOD, LIVE Party for watching content with friends, Project Natal that puts Wii to shame.

 

Jun 04 By Julie Jacobson

      06.04.2009 — Microsoft has announced so many cool innovations lately that you’d think it was Apple.

At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) on June 1, Microsoft said it would offer TV shows and movies for instant streaming in 1080p with 5.1 surround sound.

“Today, our video store is the largest destination for on-demand, high-definition movies and TV shows in the world,” said Microsoft corporate VP John Schappert at the E3 event. “And as popular as it is, you’ve challenged us to do more. We’ve heard you say, ‘I can get a better picture on a disk,’ and ‘I have to wait for ages for my movies to download ….”

Microsoft’s “new standard in home entertainment,” he added, will be relaunched as Zune Video this fall.

In addition, Microsoft is adding a social element to its video-on-demand service. With LIVE Party, users can invite their friends to watch videos together and respond to the action.

Home burglarized after owner ‘twittered’ he was leaving town

Reported by: Nicole Beyer Email: nbeyer@abc15.com Last Update: 5/29 8:34 pm

The homeowners had thousands of dollars in equipment stolen   MESA, AZ — A family is out thousands of dollars after they typed that they were leaving town on the social messaging site Twitter.com.  “I’m happy they weren’t here anyway,” said Jerry Hyman, who found his son’s home burglarized, “I think that we probably let our guard down a little bit.”  Hyman said he found his son’s back sliding door open before realizing thousands of dollars in equipment was stolen including a Macintosh Pro computer, a printer and two 23-inch flat panel displays.  But what the out-of-town homeowner said may have tipped off the thieves is the Internet.  “We live pretty public lives,” said Israel Hyman, “I do have a strong presence on Twitter and a pretty strong presence on the Internet as a whole because that’s how we make our living.”  Hyman and his wife own a video podcasting company called izzyvideo.com.  “Every one of them that reads my tweets that I sent out knows that I was heading out of town,” said Hyman, “I’ve got it set-up where Twitter goes into Facebook, so it could be someone I know about on Facebook.”  Unless the crooks are caught, Hyman said there’s no way to know for sure if this was a random act or if he was targeted.  But he said the site’s transparency is no reason to stop using it.  “In the future I’m not going to be announcing where I’m going to be heading out of town.”  Hyman’s father said the Mesa Police Department’s civilian investigation specialists filed the police report.  The department uses this civilian team to gather evidence for non-violent crimes at the convenience of the victims.  “They did a great job,” said Jerry Hyman, the victim’s dad, “I was really impressed.”

Copyright 2009 The E.W. Scripps Co. All rights reserved.

Video game industry in flux as E3 opens

By Brandon Griggs and John D. Sutter
CNN

Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime demonstrates a Wii game at last year's E3 show.

 

Millions of people download 99-cent games for their iPhones. An increasing number of Web sites offer free online games. And consumer spending is down amid a global recession.

Is this the time to be promoting $200 video-gaming consoles and $60 games?

But that’s what’s going on this week in Los Angeles, California, where the once-booming video game industry will show off its newest hardware and titles at the Electronic Entertainment Expo.

As the largest annual trade show for gaming enthusiasts, E3 is where the big players roll out their splashiest releases. Industry experts say Microsoft is expected Monday to unveil new motion-tracking technology, called Xbox Fluid, that will let gamers use their bodies to act out what their characters do in a video game.

The device sounds similar to Nintendo’s popular Wii. But Xbox Fluid is expected to employ a camera that senses a player’s body movements so it doesn’t require a handheld remote, as the Wii does.

Games that have nontraditional accessories instead of joystick or push-button controllers — think the guitar from “Rock Band” and “Guitar Hero,” or skateboards and DJ turntables, which are expected to be part of new games — also should be popular at the show, said Brian Crecente, editor-in-chief of Kotaku.com, a video game news site.

Crecente said these game accessories are throwbacks to 1980s arcades. They appeal to a broader group of users because they’re intuitive, he said. Anyone can see a steering wheel or a guitar and know what it’s supposed to do, but controllers or keyboards don’t translate as well to real-life experiences.

Falling flat-screen TVs a growing threat for kids

By Alex Johnson

Reporter

msnbc.com

updated 7:23 a.m. CT, Tues., May 12, 2009

 

Samara Brinkley dozed off just for a moment as she was watching cartoons on TV with her 4-year-old daughter. 

Then “I heard the boom, and I woke up and I [saw] my child laying on the floor, and I [saw] a pool of blood coming out in the back of her head,” said Brinkley, 26, of Jacksonville, Fla. 

Dymounique Wilson, one of Brinkley’s two daughters, died last Wednesday when the family’s 27-inch television fell over on her.

Nearly 17,000 children were rushed to emergency rooms in 2007, the last year for which complete figures were available, after heavy or unstable furniture fell over on them, a new study reported this month. The study, published in the journal Clinical Pediatrics by researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, found that the such injuries had risen 41 percent since 1990.

Westco selected as HAI 5 Star Dealer for 2009

For the 9th consecutive year Westco has been selected by HAI as a Five Star Dealer for 2009.

HAI, manufacturer of integrated automation and security products since 1985, announced the winner of its Five-Star Dealer program for 2009 on March 12th at their annual Dealer Appreciation Party held during the Electronic House Expo (EHX) in Orlando, FL.

HAI’s Five-Star Dealer program was initiated in 2001 to recognize and reward its outstanding dealers each year.  Winners are selected based on various criteria, including the number of years the dealer has been installing HAI products, number of systems installed in the previous year, and unique marketing or programming solutions that involve HAI products. 

“Yet again, HAI had a record number of dealer entries. We would like to thank our exceptional dealers who have chosen to set themselves apart!” stated HAI President Jay McLellan.   Westco has again been named as a 2009 HAI Five-Star Dealer and is designated as such on HAI’s website at www.homeauto.com.

House votes to delay digital TV transition

By Suzanne Choney

msnbc.com

updated 6:22 p.m. CT, Wed., Feb. 4, 2009

 

The House voted Wednesday 264-158 to delay the analog TV shutdown until June 12.

The nation was two weeks away from the original date of Feb. 17 for the digital transition, allowing broadcasters to replace analog TV signals with digital ones.

But the Obama administration and many Democrats asked for the delay, saying millions of people are not ready for the switch. The bill, already approved by the Senate, now goes to the president for his approval, considered a given. Still to be resolved is the funding needed for more coupons to help consumers offset the cost of converter boxes. That issue will likely be considered as part of the economic stimulus legislation.