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[HA Dave]

.... Doesn't the registration confirmation come from their servers?

Yes it does. And.... what happens if the world experiences a monetary collapse, and the government shuts down the phones and Internet to reduce riots? Or what if the power station that supplies our electric is coal powered and is forced by the EPA to shutdown (many are scheduled to be). Will the future rolling brown-outs damage household electronic equipment? If something was to happen to a Home Automation user, like myself... is there support for our widows? Who will manage my HA computer if something happens to me? What happens if the aquifer becomes polluted? Could we run out of drinking water? If the Earths core cools... will electronics still work? I drive a Saturn.... since they stopped making them... can I still buy parts? Is there laws that regulate such things as receivership and bankruptcy? What happens if some blogger somewhere in Europe... starts a rumor that the American Army has taken over the White House? Will it be true?

I am sorry. I just get a little worn out with the what-ifs that have been popping up on the forums.

I would imagine that any bankruptcy judge worth his salt would force some funds to be set aside for server rental.... for a period of time. There are other automation forums on the Web.... and many of the same people that post here also post at them. There will ALWAYS be workarounds, and solutions, and helpful people sharing them on the Internet.

[dave w]

If X10 goes out, how will AHP software be registered for reinstalling (on a new hard drive)? Doesn't the registration confirmation come from their servers?

I agree with HA Dave answer. But you are probably asking "is there a workaround?". The current answer is no. You move on to some other HA software that can use the CM15A as an interface.

[Bill H]

Now HA Dave has given me a lot more to worry about (and he's the optimist)! 

And tnx Dave W...Guess I'll just hang with you guys and follow the group.

[DRH]

Wish I had read this a week ago!  X10 is still misleading its customers!  My CM15A died.  I ordered an Active Home Pro Kit for a replacement, I can always use a few spare modules.  The package I ordered listed the CM15A, and showed its picture.  I just checked X10.com and it still does!  I did see some kits with cell phone control that showed the CM19A, but that was not what I ordered.  Even my shipping invoice says CM15A.  It does have a note that parts sent may not match but will be equal or better than what was ordered.

 What a joke,  I received a totally worthless CM19A and TM751 as a substitute.

Sad Sad way to do business.  I called customer service and was on hold over an hour before I gave up.  Then I tried the email route, and am still waiting.

[Noam]

What a joke,  I received a totally worthless CM19A and TM751 as a substitute.

Sad Sad way to do business.  I called customer service and was on hold over an hour before I gave up.  Then I tried the email route, and am still waiting.

If they send you something that was not the same as what you ordered, and they won't respond to you, I suggest you go through your credit card company for a resolution.

[Brian H]

I don't remember exactly what it was when I checked it awhile back. B- maybe. X10's BBB rating has slipped presently to D+.

[JeffVolp]

The fact that X10 is shipping whatever is laying around and not responding to customers leads me to believe they are nearing the end.  I am becoming concerned that this vast storehouse of information may disappear.  I wonder if any of this stuff is mirrored elsewhere.

Jeff

[Noam]

The fact that X10 is shipping whatever is laying around and not responding to customers leads me to believe they are nearing the end.  I am becoming concerned that this vast storehouse of information may disappear.  I wonder if any of this stuff is mirrored elsewhere.

Jeff

The only thing wrong with that theory is that they keep introducing more new (non-X10) products.

[Brian H]

I think X10 as we know it maybe a thing of the past, but will go on somehow.
With third party automation devices replacing their modules it can't be a good sign.

[Noam]

I think X10 as we know it maybe a thing of the past, but will go on somehow.
With third party automation devices replacing their modules it can't be a good sign.

Well, if they really are dropping their "X10" products, let's hope that someone else jumps in to pick up the slack (like SmartHome seems to be doing with their newest X10 modules).

[dhouston]

I think the X10 PLC Protocol is likely to survive elsewhere. When Smarthome bought Switchlinc a few years back, one of the original partners in Switchlinc took the money and ran but I believe the other original partner has been the primary developer of Insteon. He, of course, also has a great deal of X10 expertise so Smarthome will likely offer X10 capable products far into the future. They will cost more, but the quality will be higher, as well.

There may be other entrants. Irave (Italy) wanted to get into the US market about 8-10 years ago but backed away. They might look again if X10 stops supplying this market. Irave's transmitters did not load the powerline so you could have two-way devices without worrying about attenuation.    

[Noam]

And although I KNOW it will never happen, I can always *wish* that Jeff Volp would produce his own line of X10 modules.
If Smarthome were truly "Smart," they would contract with Jeff to design the products, and then they could use their existing pipelines to produce and sell it.

Wishful thinking, I know.

[JeffVolp]

My comment was not whether X10 will continue as a viable automation system.  I believe it will as others continue to offer products.  And maybe new companies will also enter the market now that they don't have to compete with the X10 bargain basement pricing.

I am concerned about the future of this forum.  Many of us have contributed hundreds of hours providing this information.  What happens to that stored knowledge if someone is not there to fund the server?

Regarding the X10 protocol, the project I have just started to work on may be the answer to the proliferation of noise sources we have today.  Simulations show it should just about null out anything on the powerline (at the distribution panel) that is not a valid X10 command (error checked).  There can still be a noise source on an individual circuit, but its effect would be severely reduced, and limited to just that one circuit.

Jeff

[Noam]

Do any of the user-admins have access to archive the entire site content, and possibly mirror it externally?

[Dan Lawrence]

Let's hope so, because if X10 drops it, it's lost forever.