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[jeth]

In a page referenced by tonights email (http://www.x10.com/promotions/ms10a_ed_5f1_fb149.html) it states:

Enhanced power!
Pair with X10 Home
Automation or Security
and the possibilities are
endless.

But I can't find anything anywhere that explains how to set up an MS10A with Home Automation products, just Security ones such as the protector Plus. 

Since there are no switches to set the house/unit codes, how can you set them up for use with a Home Automation product such as Active Home Pro? 

Or is this just another one of X10's misleading web pages? 

Thanks........

[KDR]

jeth ... In order to get them to interact with AHP you would need to have AHP with Smart Macros plug-in and the OnAlert plug-in. If you let us know what X10 gear you have and what you want to try to do, I'm sure we can help you get to where you want to be.

^{----------------KDR}

[jeth]

Thanks for response....

I have the Smart Macros plug in but not the OnAlert one yet. 

Basically, what I tried in a test was to pair an MS10A with the DS7000 first to tray and make an assignment to a unit on the DS7000's house code.  It was assigned to unit one there.

But when I opened up the Monitor Activity window after setting the AHP unit to monitor that house code, it never saw any activity from the MS10A even though it was showing on the DS7000. 

So I don't understand how even OnAlert would help if the AHP device itself never sees the activity. 

I had no trouble with the DM10A and the RoboDog kit which uses a "similar" sort of pairing technique.  Whatever code was set up by that was also recognized by other home automation transceivers. 

I was hoping to be able to use the feature of the AHP that stores activity on the monitored house code even when the computer isn't running.  That works fine with other motion detectors.

Joe

[JMac]

Also, (with the OnAlert plugin installed) "register" each MS10A.  Then, you can create a macro that will send E-Mail, turn on lights, etc. if the computer is on.

[jeth]

I understand the concept of macros fine.  The part I don't understand is how the OnAlert software is going to recognize the MS10A if the AHP's CM15A interface doesn't detect an event when monitoring that house code. 

Does the OnAlert software modify the firmware in the CM15A?

Joe

[KDR]

Here is a thread I just posted a work around for setting up House and Unit Codes for security sensors when you have OnAlert plug-in.

http://www.x10community.com/forums/index.php?board=7;topic=12198.2#msg70486

^{----------------KDR}

[KDR]

I understand the concept of macros fine.  The part I don't understand is how the OnAlert software is going to recognize the MS10A if the AHP's CM15A interface doesn't detect an event when monitoring that house code. 

Does the OnAlert software modify the firmware in the CM15A?

Joe

To answer the last part first... No the firmware is not modified.

With OnAlert when you drop a security module into a room AHP assigns it the first available Unit code for the House code that is set for being the monitored house code. (Can be changed, see above post) Once it has done this that House and Unit Code will appear in the Activity Monitor. Should read... Once it has done this the RF activity will appear in the Activity Monitor.

^{----------------KDR}

[KDR]

Here is a sample of the Activity Monitor. With the OnAlert plug-in it will show when the sensors send a RF signal back to the CM15A and will record it in Activity Monitor.



And.. with MyHouse plug-in you can send yourself an email whenever a sensor is triggered. 

^{----------------KDR}

[jeth]

Thanks, KDR,

I'm not sure I understand the sequence yet, though...at what point does the security sensor RF signal that is uniquely coded for the DS7000 become a regular home automation X10 RF signal?

With other home automation sensors, I don't even have to have a module defined in AHP to view their activity.   Yet even though the DS7000 sees the MS10A, the AHP activity monitor doesn't.    I would have thought any software such as OnAlert comes into play "after" the signal is detected by the CM15A.    Plus the CM15A does record activity on the one monitored house code even when it is unplugged from the PC.   When you plug it back in, all of the prerecorded data is uploaded to the AHP monitor panel.

Again, that's assuming the OnAlert software hasn't modified the firmware in the CM15A.

BTW, I have two CM15A's; one had a plain two pin plug (tagged 85F26), and the other a polarized one (tagged 04I38). Both react the same way, and both show a very annoying problem when receiving some RF signals.

For example, just now, with the DS7000 disconnected, and it's MS10A w/o batteries, I pressed the M4 ON button on a palm pad remote.  The activity monitor went into a loop that could only be stopped by unplugging the CM15A.

I don't know how you pasted that image into the message so I'll just try attaching an image I cut from the monitor view.

Joe

[KDR]

The CM15A can receive all the regular RF and all the security RF. AHP can't do anything with the security RF without the plug-in. The OnAlert software interfaces it with AHP. The CM15A receives the security sensors unique code when you register the sensor in OnAlert, just like the DS7000 does.

Once you drop the sensor module into a room it reports it is not registered. You click on a "Register" button for that sensor then go trip the sensor. It registers the sensor at whatever House & Unit Code it selected by default when you dropped it in the room or by the one you assigned it. This is why you have to re-register the sensor if you change the House and/or Unit Code.

^{----------------KDR}

[jeth]

OK, Thanks again KDR.....

That seems to answer my questions......why X-10 designed it that way is another matter. 

I'm not sure whether or not the OnAlert is worth it for this potential application. In addition to the Smart Macros, I  already have two other plug-ins which I really haven't done anything with yet.  (iWitness and MyHouse Online).  They just happened to be part of the bundle that was offered when I got my second CM15A.  Different bundles were offered later.

I can probably do what I need with a bunch of the HawkEye and EagleEye sensors I have. 

With the other flakiness I see, like the looping and generation of additional commands that follow a legitimate command, as shown in the activity monitor segment I posted, I'm not sure it's worth a lot of effort.

I've been using X-10 for many years, even under an earlier name, as well as Radio Shack units.  I probably have fallen for so many of their special "Buy 1 get x free" offers that I have more unused stock than Radio Shack does. 

I get a bit annoyed with their emails, though, because the subject line seldom has any bearing on the content of the email or the web page they refer to.   I'v written them about it, and the response generally is......"call us by phone and we'll explain what we meant".

Thanks again for your responses,
Joe