Nothing Up My Sleeve

RFID for home automation

The folks who create the Macintosh automation software, XTension, write about Mark Johannessen's experiments with using an inexpensive RFID sensor to trigger scenes and other automated responses. You can read about the technique, and download preliminary RFID-reading software, at the XTension RFID Project page.

Tinderbox Breakfast

A highlight of my current business trip was this morning's "Tinderbox Breakfast" meeting held at the Cypress Hotel in Cupertino, California. I'm writing this while waiting for my next flight, so while there is much to say I'll have to be brief. This unofficial (non-Eastgate) event was reminiscent of the Chicago Tinderbox Day I attended, and regardless of the duration or location, it's fun to share Tinderbox tips and stories over a good meal.

Stefan had some interesting ideas about using the big upcoming changes that Mark has been (appropriately) crowing about online, we compared notes about The Tinderbox Way, and generally enjoyed the company of those who appreciate this unique and fascinating tool.

Oh, and I recommend the pancakes.

Smart homes in the news

In the last two weeks there have been a spate of newspaper articles about home automation. Here are the pointers:

Kate Goodloe and John Jurgensen's The Smart Home discusses having your home send pictures and messages to your cell phone, mostly by using monthly services or costly professionally-installed options. (You, of course, know that doing this yourself is a lot more fun and significantly less expensive.)

Next up is Linda Matchan's Home of Tomorrow . Predicting the future is always dicey, but the author does a good job of projecting how home technology is changing. Often, but looking at what early-adopters are already doing. (Ahem.)

Finally, providing a nice measure of realism, is Ryan Chittum's article about the "home of the future" predictions from the recent past still haven't come to pass, despite the best efforts of marketers and visionaries.