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gatchel
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| Posted: December 21 2006 at 23:25 | IP Logged
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Hello,
I have been reading (lurking) this and many other forums about the integration of an Elk M1G, Insteon, and using powerhome to manage the links. I have a couple of questions.
Is there a comparison for Houselinc and Powerhome that will sway my decision?
Is it true that powerhome can be hooked up the the M1XSP to manage the Insteon links and devices without the hassle of deleting all links and starting over?
Can powerhome be used to set X-10 address in the insteon devices? (Houselinc has a field to log the address but can not set them)
I have purchased the Houselinc software but have not opened it. The tech / sales guy talked me into it. I can still send it back... for now.
Is there a manual available to download for powerhome?
I plan on using powerhome to just manage the Elk links for now if this is possible and easier this way and would be worth it for this functionality alone.
I also could use a short communication's turtorial on the operation of the PLC and the XSP and / or powerhome.
For example:
Can I use the same Serial PLC to manage the Insteon links and devices then plug it back in to the Elk and continue operation as normal?
Please let me know what you think. Thanks in advance to all.
Bob
Edited by gatchel - December 21 2006 at 23:33
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cmhardwick
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| Posted: December 22 2006 at 10:09 | IP Logged
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Houselinc cannot directly control keypad buttons and can't do inter-button linking on a keypad, Powerhome can. Powerhome ALSO has a 30 day free trial, which Houselinc doesn't.
Powerhome CAN set X-10 addresses (also clear them if there's one left in from the factory testing)
I think, on the linking with the Elk, that's the current project and will be functional in the next release of Powerhome.
Personal opinion, Powerhome while it doesn't have the fancy drag-drop interface that I understand houselinc has, has MUCH more functionality currently. Granted, Houselinc is still VERY new and Powerhome has been out for a while with Insteon support being added to the basic structure, so in time I'm sure the playing field between the 2 will even out.
Hope this helps.
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gatchel
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| Posted: December 22 2006 at 20:13 | IP Logged
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Any idea when the next release will be that includes the Elk Component? This is the main functionality I am looking for.
As for looks...It could look like DOS and I could care less, as long as it is functional.
Edited by gatchel - December 22 2006 at 20:14
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gatchel
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| Posted: December 26 2006 at 11:20 | IP Logged
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Dave,
Can you clarify on the Elk XSP interface component?
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dhoward
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| Posted: December 26 2006 at 13:13 | IP Logged
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Bob,
Welcome to PowerHome!
I would say that PowerHome is better than HouseLinc but then of course Im biased  .
Seriously, Ive played with earlier versions of HouseLinc and talked to many people about the two and the general consensus is this: People seem to find the HouseLinc user interface easier/nicer but PowerHome itself seems to be more robust/capable. If you've still got the shrinkwrap on HouseLinc, definately take advantage of PowerHome's 30 trial.
Yes. PowerHome can connect to the Elk M1XSP (actually the PowerHome ElkInsteon.exe utility since I have not integrated it into the main PowerHome program yet...should be in the next version but the functionality is there now) and program all of the Insteon address information without having to delete or start over.
Yes. PowerHome can set the X10 address for Insteon devices. The device will need a power-off reset though in order for the change to take effect (except for KeypadLincs since they support the ResetEE command).
There is a manual for PowerHome, but it is not updated for the beta version. You can download it from the download page. However, it does not contain any Insteon related information so would not be useful in your particular situation. The Insteon Explorer screen within PowerHome is where all Insteon configuration takes place and this screen is fairly well documented with the hover-help functionality. You'll need to download and install PowerHome to access this info however. The Help function also includes some useful Insteon related information.
Yes. You can use the same serial PLC for programming links within PowerHome and then controlling Insteon from the M1XSP.
A brief intro to do what you wish would be to install PowerHome and connect the serial PLC to the PowerHome machine. Setup PowerHome to use the Insteon DM controller using the PowerHome Explorer. Make sure that the SDM is starting and PowerHome can communicate with your Insteon devices. Go through all of the setup operations in the Insteon Explorer. Read each of the hover-help info boxes for more information on what steps you should take.
Next, use PowerHome to create all of your Insteon links between devices and between the PLC. This is all done from the Insteon Explorer. When all of your links have been created and you're satisfied, shutdown PowerHome and disconnect the PLC. Connect your PC to the M1XSP using a null modem cable and a gender bender (the cable must be female to female). Make sure that the Elk and the M1XSP are on and launch the ElkInsteon utility. It's fairly simple and should be relatively self-explanatory. Use the ElkInsteon utility to download the PowerHome Insteon information to the M1XSP. When done, disconnect everything and connect the serial PLC to the M1XSP. You should now be ready to go to control Insteon using the Elk. If you need to add or modify links, just repeat the above steps connecting PowerHome to the PLC, modifying/adding links, connecting the PC to the M1XSP, downloading Insteon info, connecting the PLC to the M1XSP. Convoluted and a pain to switch cables and everything but the best thing available at the moment.
Let me know if you have any problems or questions.
Dave.
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gatchel
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| Posted: December 29 2006 at 15:58 | IP Logged
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Dave,
This is a perfect example why sometimes it is good to walk away and come back to something later. I am a firm believer in the RTFM process, in this case you're informational post.
I couldn't get PH to communicate and auto start the SDM at first but I re-read you post today and in 15 minutes I have PH communicating with the SDM and auto discovered my 4 devices so far.
The key was the section where you said:
"Setup PowerHome to use the Insteon DM controller using the PowerHome Explorer."
I didn't do that at first. I used the PLC...'nuff said.
Now...A few more questions:
Is the "ID" column under the devices tab where I set a number from 1 to 192 to correspond to the Elk device numbering in Elk RP or does the software use a database record number or something else.
Grouping... Sort of the same question use ID 193 and up to set up groups as laid out in the Elk controller?
Does the software enable the ELk M1G to support more than 1 group (193)? Elk has this limitation listed in the XSP manual.
Thanks again for your patience and help.
Bob
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gatchel
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| Posted: December 29 2006 at 21:31 | IP Logged
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Dave,
I found some information on using the sort value in elkinsteon.exe by searching the forum so I understand the numbering system.
I still need to know the grouping information and supported groups as questioned above in my previous post.
Thanks again,
Bob
Edited by gatchel - December 29 2006 at 21:32
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dhoward
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| Posted: December 31 2006 at 12:09 | IP Logged
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Bob,
No problem, glad you got it working finally. That controller definition is tricky because if you do miss it, it definately won't work and people dont know to look for it in a completely different area (Im going to work on something for that problem).
It looks like you found out that the ID needs to be a number from 1 to 192 in the "Sort" column. The next version has a dedicated column for this purpose, but will use the same value.
To use the groups, no special setup or anything is required. The Elk supports sending commands to Insteon PLC groups 1 to 64. Just use PowerHome to create the PLC groups (only use PLC groups 1 to 64 to be compatible with Elk. You can create PLC groups above 64 but the Elk won't be able to access them). Then, when you want to send a command to an Insteon group from the Elk, just control Elk device number 193 to 256 (193 - 192 = 1, 256 - 192 = 64). The Elk doesnt need to know anything about the groups like it needs to know about the individual devices...it just works.
Hope this helps,
Dave.
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gatchel
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| Posted: December 31 2006 at 16:58 | IP Logged
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That definitely helped.
Now my only question is where do link certain devices to a PLC group.
Edit: Nevermind. I did some searching and found:
http://www.power-home.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1019&KW= PLC+Group
I see the whole picture much better now.
Thanks for all of your help.
Bob
Edited by gatchel - December 31 2006 at 17:11
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Topic: Newbie needs help making a final decision
