This has __GOT__ to be the best POST / THREAD I have ever ran across on the AHP Forums
. Had I have seen such a thread, I would have written the *@(U(_*@# programs myself and never embarked on the long painful task of developing the numerous workarounds that I have had to develop like TOM G has. I am a retired computer programmer who probably wrote 200,000 lines of code in various languages during my career and I have NEVER seen such a poor excuse for published / marketed software being sold to the public. You CAN get it to work, but you best be VERY sharp if you expect to get more out of it than simply turning on one light by setting one motion detector to the same house and unit code.
I have seriously considered a Class Action lawsuit against the marketers of this crap on behalf of every purchaser that purchased it based upon the video showing a "burglar" walking around the house with AHP cameras following his every movement - something that can absolutely NEVER be done with AHP with its SLOW processing of alarms and ("smart") macros! And if I have a material burglary loss because the ("smart" macros) fail to trigger video recording (as is frequently fails to do according to the log files), that is almost a certainty!
I do however _thank_ TOM G for taking the time to share his successes
. Lord knows, we need them !!!!
After about 5 years of *@!*$()#ing with AHP/IWATCH/SMART MACROS, I have a system (working? somewhat?) as a "security" system at my weekend "lakehouse" home at a nearby Lake. It NOW consists of a Dedicated 3.2 Ghz Dell computer w / 2 GB ram, 500 gig drive running Windows 7 Ultimate, APC backup, 3 pan-tilt cameras outdoors (enclosed in my own custom made weatherproof enclosures) & 1 indoor pan-tilt camera, 4 MS16A outdoor motion sensors (protected from the rain) and 2 inside motion detectors, CM15A, 13 unit codes assigned and about 30 ("dumb") macros marketed as "smart macros", - using about 7 phantom switches to trigger serial macro actions to create "subroutine" type functions under alarm conditions.
TOM G is right about everything reacting SLOW as molasses. Raccoons, Deer, Fox and Stray cats trigger most alarms, but VERY SELDOM do I see ANYTHING in the field of view. Occasionally I see the "critter" leaving the premises - and I can tell you the Deer damn sure ain't moving fast when no one is there. They are grazing and still meander almost completely out of the field of camera view before the MS16A senses motion, triggers a macro, sets the active camera to THAT zone, turns on a flood light - IF the nighttime flag is set, starts video recording, and the horizontal video sync stabilizes enough to bet recognizable video. This is ALL ridiculous in this day and age of cheap ram and blazing fast computers. Even written in BASIC, I can't imagine what AHP is doing to gobble up so much time before electronically reacting.
Yea, it blows up (frequently) and randomly "drops" macro actions (confirmed by comparing the Activity Log file against the Stored Video files). It's USUALLY when there is a RASH of activity - which is particularly troubling / irritating. Consequently, instead of a BAT file timer solution that TOM G is using, I am using an expensive Windows program (WinAutomation) to load and run programs to text me on my cell phone IMMEDIATELY. Then I log onto the system from my (Android) cell phone with a wonderful app from XtraLogixc" called "Remote Desktop" with which I can see WHAT'S going on up there and restart AHP. I agree with another poster that RDP is not very secure. But I haven't been able to change the port number on the Android App, so I have identified all the Sprint NET Blocks and allow RDP through the firewall from those NET BLOCKS - and of course use a complex sign-on and password.
YEA, you can get it to work, but you best have a couple of master or doctorate degrees (in electrical, electronic and mechanical engineering to start with) and it will help if you have extensive experience in Ham Radio and programming. Then, if you are retired, have fairly substantial economic resources and have lots of time on your hands (or tinkering is your hobby), you can get AHP and a bunch of X10 modules to do productive work for you.
One thing I can say works VERY WELL for me. The X10 controls are solid in the quiet, remote environment where my application is located. I Don't know what kind of interference would be encountered in a municipal setting. The CM15A works well (except RF), though I ran several new dedicated electrical circuits from the house breaker panel to new outlets where X10 controls are located for flood lights / yard lights / Hot Water Heater / and the HVAC system. The "Timers" in all the AHP modules work VERY RELIABLY AND VERY WELL -- as long as AHP keeps running --. You can create very flexable timers and it is neat to make the place look active when no one is there. It's neat to have the Hot Water Heater and A/C unit come on before I get there. All these modules can be reliably controlled via the cell phone / Xtralogic's Remote Destop app. But as for My-HOUSE, I have NEVER got it to work worth a @*(#*(. I just gave UP.
And the RF on the CM15A sucks. The advertised "Up to 100 feet" is a myth - a lie - actually a "deceptive trade practice" under Texas Law. It's really more like 12 to 15 feet unless you do the antenna mod on the CM15A like I am fixing to do.
Thanks TOM G for a great post. Such a good USER'S MANUAL is much needed.
