X10 Community Forum

📱🖥️PiX10Hub => 💬General Discussion => 🧞HomeGenie add Wishes => Topic started by: alzy on February 14, 2019, 11:00:00 AM

Title: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: alzy on February 14, 2019, 11:00:00 AM
Script or app to convert a AHP MyHome.ahx file to a HG config file.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 14, 2019, 11:19:15 AM
Something like that would surely draw new users to HomeGenie. The fact that moving to a new HA software from a large AHP setup means hours of setup time is what keeps users stuck to an obsolete program. I've seen this request for many HA software but never seen anything written for any of them. :(
Pulling in device names & addresses would be a simple task maybe even timers, however macros can get a bit complicated.
The coder would have to be well experienced with both softwares.
I'm not saying this isn't possible just unlikely. :(
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: alzy on February 14, 2019, 11:26:25 AM
I realize it's not likely but if we would like to convert 98% of the AHP users to HG, this could do it!
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 14, 2019, 12:14:42 PM
I'd love to convert all AHP users to HG! ;)
 >!

Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: brobin on February 14, 2019, 12:20:13 PM
I'd love to convert all AHP users to HG! ;)
 >!
With all the work done to date Authinx could hire a development team, not necessarily employees, to develop a new Pi/HG controller with migration from AHP and actually have a product that works!
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: dhouston on February 14, 2019, 12:48:27 PM
With all the work done to date Authinx could hire a development team, not necessarily employees, to develop a new Pi/HG controller with migration from AHP and actually have a product that works!
But it would be highly unlikely that they could make much of a profit on such a product.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: brobin on February 14, 2019, 12:51:14 PM
With all the work done to date Authinx could hire a development team, not necessarily employees, to develop a new Pi/HG controller with migration from AHP and actually have a product that works!
But it would be highly unlikely that they could make much of a profit on such a product.
I bet they could at least DOUBLE the profit they made on the WM100  rofl
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 14, 2019, 12:54:12 PM
With all the work done to date Authinx could hire a development team, not necessarily employees, to develop a new Pi/HG controller with migration from AHP and actually have a product that works!
But it would be highly unlikely that they could make much of a profit on such a product.
I bet they could at least DOUBLE the profit they made on the WM100  rofl
Double of nothing isn't much  rofl
I suspect if they haven't yet they will loose their shirts on the WM100.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: brobin on February 14, 2019, 02:17:15 PM
Yup!
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: racerfern on February 14, 2019, 05:16:38 PM
Let Authinx put up the $$ to convert AHP to HG. That will show their commitment.

They're not going to do it, they're simply wringing every last dollar out of NOS. As I think about it more, I wonder if someone on the other side of the date line, sold Authinx on the WM100 concept, then laughed all the way to the bank.

Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 14, 2019, 05:33:17 PM
 
Let Authinx put up the $$ to convert AHP to HG. That will show their commitment.
They better get Gene to do it I doubt anyone else would know where to start.

Quote
As I think about it more, I wonder if someone on the other side of the date line, sold Authinx on the WM100 concept, then laughed all the way to the bank.
rofl

Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: bkenobi on February 15, 2019, 10:28:42 AM
Devil's advocate here, but Gene owns HG and Authentix owns X10.  Why would Authentix put up any money to make their old broken product settings files work in some other competitor (technically) take their user base.  I understand that that might increase sales indirectly, but I don't see it happening.  That said, I think Authentix would be smart to open the file format so that other people (users, Gene, other HA software authors) could have the opportunity to convert the settings file to their own system.

Even with that format provided, I put the chances as very small considering the size of the X10 AHP user base that is looking to move (or at least is vocal about it).  I agree that it could be a nice selling point for an HA software for a select group of users, but I categorize it as "not gonna happen".
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: racerfern on February 15, 2019, 02:53:01 PM
Quote
They better get Gene to do it I doubt anyone else would know where to start.

That's the problem, Gene wouldn't know where to start, but he would know how to finish. You have to start with the AHP code. Gene could certainly replicate anything given him into HG, but who is going to disassemble or reverse engineer AHP?
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 15, 2019, 03:11:39 PM
Actually all the info needed to import ones AHP setup to another HA program is all in the AHX file which opens with a simple text file reader. You only need the AHP code to see how to write timers and macros to the CM15 memory.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: bkenobi on February 15, 2019, 04:26:50 PM
I haven't had AHP installed in many years but it's good that the file is text format.  That makes it MUCH easier.  However, since the protocol to write to the CM15A was never released and Authentix probably has no idea how to do it (I assume), there's little chance the CM15A will ever be anything more than a modem.  TBF though, why would an author of a HA software want to write an upload for the CM15A anyway?  The controller has to be connected to the system in order to work.  And having timers etc inside the CM15A has limited benefit when the thing must be connected to the software.  If you disconnect it, then there's no need to upgrade from AHP.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: alzy on February 15, 2019, 04:33:32 PM
There's no need to write to the cm15. Upload the AHP config to HG and it runs on the Pi.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: bkenobi on February 15, 2019, 08:44:56 PM
Right, it would help the X10 user that wants to convert from AHP to something else.  Tuicemen wrote about uploading timers etc which I was saying would be of little benefit when using the CM15A with an HA package (e.g., HomeGenie).  In my experience with HG and helping new users get started, any time macros or timers exist on the Cm15A memory, it causes HUGE issues with new users.  The first thing that needs to be done when starting with HG (or any HA software really) is to clear the memory on the controller.  You do NOT want the HA software trying to compete with the controller's built in commands.  It just won't end well.

A way to recover a list of devices in AHP and automatically have it set up in HG would be very valuable though.  I have zero confidence that the macros could be added.  But, the timers shouldn't be all that difficult.

I don't know if Gene has volunteered to incorporate that capability, but if that's something people would like, it should probably be added to the GitHub list of requests.  Adding an example file (if attachments are possible) would be very helpful.  I don't know if Gene uses X10 at this point and even if he does I'm positive he doesn't have AHP installed or configured.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 15, 2019, 09:02:45 PM
My statement about uploading timers and macros was in reference to racerfern stating the AHP code would be require to recover ones AHP setup. The only benefit of having the AHP code (in my opinion) was that feature.
 That feature isn't needed here and was never a benefit  except for the few that ran disconnected from a PC, even still a reconnect was required periodically.
We all are in an agreement, a way to easily move ones AHP setup over to HG would be a really beneficial tool.
 >!
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: bkenobi on February 17, 2019, 01:07:11 AM
Can AHP recover your timers and macros from a CM15A?  I never used them on the device.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: Tuicemen on February 17, 2019, 07:18:16 AM
Can AHP recover your timers and macros from a CM15A?  I never used them on the device.
No, I don't no why that was never built in.
Title: Re: AHP to HG helper app
Post by: bkenobi on February 17, 2019, 10:56:31 AM
The way these are stored on the CM15A is likely raw bits rather than variables. It would be very difficult to download these (if they are even exposed) and convert them back without knowledge of how they were generated. But that information would have been available to X10 since they wrote it in the first place. My assumption is the storage is exposed to write but not read.