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[dhouston]

It also says:

Both the house code and unit code may also reside in the same button
thereby creating a button for a specific X-10 module.

So it seems to suggest using a feature of the Pronto remote (adding multiple commands to one button) to send two separate messages rather than some mechanism of their protocol for combining them into one message.

That may be what I'm remembering. I had a TS-1000 and, later, a TSU-3000 (if my memory isn't too foggy).

I'll look again, tomorrow for CodeGen. I had put it on RemoteCentral but found so many people posting, and claiming credit for, codes it generated that I took it down.

The webpage that Laser currently hosts is a trimmed down, and static, archive. I asked them to host it after the Wayback Machine had problems when someone grabbed the davehouston.org domain name. One of the attorneys involved in taking down Gawker is one David Houston (no relation) from down Texas way.

[dhouston]

I found the Philips Pronto TS1000 & TSU3000 manuals online. They did allow you to create macros and assign them to a button (onscreen) so that may be what my feeble memory banks are recalling. Sorry for the confusion.

[toasterking]

I found the Philips Pronto TS1000 & TSU3000 manuals online. They did allow you to create macros and assign them to a button (onscreen) so that may be what my feeble memory banks are recalling. Sorry for the confusion.

You could assign macros to onscreen buttons or hard buttons actually, or even link both kinds of buttons to the same macro.  Or even set up a hard button that changes the display of onscreen buttons.  I think the main problem with the Pronto remotes was that they were a little too advanced for much of their target market and never were able to refine their software enough to reduce that barrier to entry.  It disappointed me greatly to see development of the Pronto line cease.

The confusion over the IR543AH protocol features is not a problem.  You just got me a little excited; that is all. 

[toasterking]

Also, dhouston, I really enjoyed your new signature.

[dhouston]

You could assign macros to onscreen buttons or hard buttons actually, or even link both kinds of buttons to the same macro.  Or even set up a hard button that changes the display of onscreen buttons.  I think the main problem with the Pronto remotes was that they were a little too advanced for much of their target market and never were able to refine their software enough to reduce that barrier to entry.  It disappointed me greatly to see development of the Pronto line cease.

I, also, liked the Pronto despite its price. But, I have lost the use of my left hand and am now losing feeling in my right hand so the bulkiness of their remotes became a major problem for me. There is a current thread on the Basic4Arduino forums about sending IR with the ESP8266 so the cost of a device that can receive WiFi and send IR has dropped a bit... 
https://www.itead.cc/psf-b85.html
while most smartphones can now do much of what the Pronto did. And then there's...
https://www.ray.co/
with more features for less money than the Pronto.

For macros, if you are able to insert delays, you should be able to create buttons that include house, unit and function. The PICs used in the IR543AH do not multitask so they cannot receive/process IR while they are sending PLC.

[dhouston]

Also, dhouston, I really enjoyed your new signature.

That's indirectly a result of this thread. I did a search of the old Usenet comp.home.automation newsgroup to see when I first mentioned CodeGen or the IR543AH and found a post from 2000 where I mentioned converting some CCF files to the format used by the OmniRemote. I used a similar signature back then which I'd forgotten. So, after a bit of editing, I am now recycling it, as well.

[dhouston]

dhouston, that "read me" file also mentions your code generator program:

Another great Windows program for generating large numbers of IR and RF hex
strings, including Extended Commands, is CodeGen http://www.laser.com/dhouston/codegen.htm

The page no longer appears to be on your web site.  This page also has a broken link to that same page:
https://www.laser.com/dhouston/pronto.html

The Pronto file jogged my memory a bit. While most of its links are now dead-ends, I may have archived some of the documentation. I may even find some details in the BX24-AHT docs as it could also send/receive RF and IR.

Before shutting down my webpage  I downloaded all of the files that were on it. I may find some of the now missing docs by rummaging through that ZIP.

[dhouston]

I've emailed the Ray Partners Program asking if there's a developers API|SDK|Protocol that I (or younger developers) might use to talk to the $2 ESP8285 (ESP8266 based) to do things like we want to do here but for folks without a Pronto.
https://www.ray.co/pro
Specifically, I'd like to add support for...
https://www.itead.cc/psf-b85.html
https://www.itead.cc/smart-home/slampher.html
Gus Dattilo is currently exploring adding a WiFi link to the XTB-232. I'm sending him a link to the PSF-B85 which might make things simpler.

[toasterking]

And then there's...
https://www.ray.co/
with more features for less money than the Pronto.

I haven't used one, but my initial impression is that this device wouldn't really compete in the same class with the Pronto or my TSU501 and it's designed to solve different problems.

• It's neat that it can use WiFi and provides more than unidirectional control, but I don't generally need this.
• It seems to focus on bringing the TV program guide to the remote, while I prefer to watch mainly shows already recorded on my DVR.  I don't really see the benefit of having an interface on 2 different displays anyway.  Besides, I use my TSU501 to control many more important things than the TV!
• It has a huge touch display and barely any hard buttons.  The main reason I use the TSU501 is for its nice balance of programmable hard buttons and customizable touch screen.  I assign my most frequently used functions to hard buttons because I prefer not to look away from the TV or other equipment to use the remote, and that aesthetic is lost with the Ray.  I even have an onscreen button that toggles the D-pad between menu navigation and playback controls for the DVR.  To be fair, I don't think that is possible with most universal remotes.
• It can replicate other remotes as long as they are in its database in the sky, but it looks like options for customization are limited.  You can add custom buttons and learn IR commands from another remote, but it doesn't appear that one can create macros and attach them to any button, and I don't see any mention of a way to create on-remote menu screens like I have on my TSU501.  I would rather create every screen and button manually and learn the codes from the other remote individually if it means I am able to customize the interface and behavior!
• I also haven't found an answer to the burning question:  What happens to the remote when the database in the sky evaporates?

This device has great potential and I'm sure it is already useful to many people, but I'd much rather have an updated Pronto.

I think that the WiFi component has a lot of untapped potential.  For those with a HA PC, it would be neat to have an interface to control macros created in other automation software from the remote, possibly with feedback on the remote screen.  Were PCs not so unpopular these days, I could see more of a market for that sort of thing.  But once you get to that level, with the right software and a WiFi-to-IR or Bluetooth-to-IR bridge, an old iPod Touch could be used as the remote.

[toasterking]

Before shutting down my webpage  I downloaded all of the files that were on it. I may find some of the now missing docs by rummaging through that ZIP.

Don't let me stop you, but I was mainly hoping to find the secret to the combined house/unit/function IR messages that appear to be a non-feature. 

[toasterking]

I've emailed the Ray Partners Program asking if there's a developers API|SDK|Protocol that I (or younger developers) might use to talk to the $2 ESP8285 (ESP8266 based)...

That sounds fun, but are you sure you're starting in the right place?  Trying to add more hardware and code to a platform that is already more purpose-designed and locked down than an iPhone seems like, well, more of a challenge than it needs to be.    After seeing the demos and reading a bit, it also may be a little off-target for the market they are trying to corner with this product.  The Ray doesn't appear to cater nearly as well to the geeks who like to tweak their setups endlessly.

[dhouston]

This device has great potential and I'm sure it is already useful to many people, but I'd much rather have an updated Pronto.

I think 

With ubiquitous smartphones and tablets running an essentially open OS like Android (Ray uses Android), it's tough to justify the price of the Pronto.   

I loved my Pronto and could use it with the BX24-AHT 15+ years ago to do what you're doing and what dave w wants to do. I'd still be using it were I physically able but would probably opt for something like Blumoo today.

[dhouston]

There is a current thread on the Basic4Arduino forums about sending IR with the ESP8266 so the cost of a device that can receive WiFi and send IR has dropped a bit... 

Espressif (make ESP8266) has finally started shipping its ESP32 chip which adds Bluetooth to WiFi and dual processors. It can make projects like this easier and cheaper (and make Blumoo obsolete).

[dave w]

I loved my Pronto and could use it with the BX24-AHT 15+ years ago to do what you're doing and what dave w wants to do. I'd still be using it were I physically able but would probably opt for something like Blumoo today.

Although I have not experimented yet, Blumoo can supposedly take verbal commands. I know some other remotes claimed to respond to voice commands, but the fact that they are no longer on the market makes me wonder how effective voice command worked. With todays smart TVs connected to the internet, saying: "find Big Bang Theory" to a remote with poor voice recognition, may just get you to a big bang...as your wife walks in the room. 

[dhouston]

I think that the WiFi component has a lot of untapped potential.  For those with a HA PC, it would be neat to have an interface to control macros created in other automation software from the remote, possibly with feedback on the remote screen. 

I use a Lenovo Q190 PC (with built-in WiFi) on one of my TV HDMI ports. I control the PC with a wireless KB and find it works better for streaming/browsing than the TVs buiit-in smarts.

With things like the Onion Omega2 Plus and the ESP32 with WiFi, Bluetooth and adequate computing power, I could create onscreen menus that I could use with my KB to control IR controlled devices like the TV itself, a VCR on another HDMI port, a window A/C unit, even X10 IR543 by sending WiFi to the Omega2+ or ESP32 and having them repeat it as IR.
http://hackerboards.com/5-dollar-linux-equipped-omega2-iot-module-launches-on-kickstarter/
http://esp32.net/