Is anybody using Home Control Assistant (HCA)?
Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2006 7:09 pm
It seems like the whole world is using HomeSeer, but after using the evaluation version for a while I think it's a severely limited product: It shows the status of my modules on it's webserver and allows me to change the status of the modules, but it doesn't do more than that.
I think $200 is way to steep for such a limited product. Extra functionality can be added my means of plug-ins, but those set you back from $40 up to $100 a piece! Yeah, I know; I paid $$$ for X-10 hardware so they like to have their cut as well, but this is really bad value for money.
The functionality I need really isn't that complicated: I want to be able to switch multiple device on reception of an X-10 command from my remote control. I want to have timers that allow me to automatically switch device at pre-programmed times. And I want timers to allow me to define the duration of my outdoor lights by software, after the detector has triggered them. HomeSeer doesn't seem to offer any of that functionality.
I'm currently testing HCA, which can do many, but not all of these functions. Unfortunately this software if full of bugs and my response to their appeal for beta-testers has been unanswered twice. Perhaps only paying users can be beta-testers, but that's highly unusual and they should at least respond to their email.
Is there anybody out there who uses HCA too and is willing to share his experiences with us?
I think $200 is way to steep for such a limited product. Extra functionality can be added my means of plug-ins, but those set you back from $40 up to $100 a piece! Yeah, I know; I paid $$$ for X-10 hardware so they like to have their cut as well, but this is really bad value for money.
The functionality I need really isn't that complicated: I want to be able to switch multiple device on reception of an X-10 command from my remote control. I want to have timers that allow me to automatically switch device at pre-programmed times. And I want timers to allow me to define the duration of my outdoor lights by software, after the detector has triggered them. HomeSeer doesn't seem to offer any of that functionality.
I'm currently testing HCA, which can do many, but not all of these functions. Unfortunately this software if full of bugs and my response to their appeal for beta-testers has been unanswered twice. Perhaps only paying users can be beta-testers, but that's highly unusual and they should at least respond to their email.
Is there anybody out there who uses HCA too and is willing to share his experiences with us?