Changing the Default On level for Insteon devices

Benjamin SchollnickNo Comments

Certain Insteon lamp modules, allow you to set the Default \”On\” level.  This way, when you turn on the device, it turns on to the brightness (eg 50%) that you have set.
The most obvious benefit, is that you could set a task at 10 pm, to set the Bathroom & bedroom lights to turn on to 25%, so that you are not blinded when you turn on the lamp, at night.
So, how can you do this.
One method, is to set the lamp\’s brightness to the level you want, and then open the AppleScript editor, and type:
 

send insteon raw cmd1 37 cmd2 1 to address \"ADDRESS\"

Where address is the insteon address of the device in question.
But this requires the device to be turned on… Sadly, at this time, some devices do require that the unit is turned on, when you set the default On brightness.
You could try:

send insteon remote poke to address \"01.02.03\" at memory location 50 byte (255 * BRIGHTNESS / 100)

Where \”01.02.03\” is the insteon address of the device.
But this command does not work on all devices, and it could confuse the module bad enough, to force you to factory reset it.
Perceptive Automation – View topic – How to change default ON level.

What Size is your bed?

Benjamin SchollnickNo Comments

Mattress Sizes

  • Twin–39 x 75 inches (or 99 x 190 cm)
  • X-Long Twin–39 x 80 inches (99 x 203 cm)
  • Full–54 x 75 inches (137 x 190 cm)
  • Queen–60 x 80 inches (or 153 x 203 cm)
  • King–76 x 80 inches (or 198 x 203 cm)
  • California King–72 x 84 inches (or 182 x 213 cm)

Fitted Sheet Sizes

  • Twin–39 x 75 inches (or 99 x 190 cm)
  • X-Long Twin–39 x 80 inches (99 x 203 cm)
  • Full–54 x 75 inches (137 x 190 cm)
  • Queen–60 x 80 inches (or 153 x 203 cm)
  • King–76 x 80 inches (or 198 x 203 cm)
  • California King–72 x 84 inches (or 182 x 213 cm)

Flat Sheet Sizes

  • Twin–66 x 96 inches (or 167 x 243 cm)
  • X-Long Twin–66 x 102 inches (or 167 x 259 cm)
  • Full–81 x 96 inches (or 205 x 243 cm)
  • Queen–90 x 102 inches (or 228 x 259 cm)
  • King/California King–108 x 102 inches (or 274 x 259 cm)

Comforter Sizes

  • Twin–68 x 86 inches (or 173 x 218 cm)
  • Full/Queen–86 x 86 inches (or 218 x 218 cm)
  • King/California King–100 x 90 inches (or 254 x 229 cm)

The wrong way to start a developer\’s program….

Benjamin SchollnickNo Comments

You win. I concede defeat. I no longer want to attempt developing an app for the Playbook. Are you happy now? Surely you must be. Considering how terribly designed the entire process is, from the registration right through to loading an app into the simulator, I can only assume that you are trying to drive developers away by inconveniencing them as much as humanly possible. Just in case you’ve forgotten, let me give you a little recap of the process you’ve put together.
Living in Waterloo, it’s hard not to be reminded of you. I walk by your campus every day, most of my friends have worked for you at some point, and you are the largest supporter of the university I attend. So it seemed like a rather good idea to at least attempt to write an app for the Playbook, your shiny new tablet that you hope will be able to compete with the extremely popular iPad and the up and coming Honeycomb tablets. Having already developed apps for the iPhone and iPad, I had a little experience with the process of signing up for developer programs, and naturally I assumed that yours would be different, but fairly straight forward none the less. Well, you know what they say about making assumptions!
One Developer\’s review of RIM\’s developer program… Read it here at You Win, RIM! (An Open Letter To RIM\’s Developer Relations).

The difference between Plurality & Majority voting…

Benjamin SchollnickNo Comments

Recently a motion came up to the Apple Shareholders & the Apple Board on changing the way the Board Members were elected.

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — Apple Inc. investors, gathered today at the company\’s annual shareholder meeting, passed a measure that would elect board members with a majority vote, rather than a plurality.

So previously the Apple Board members were elected on a Plurality basis.  What is a Plurality?  Simply stated, the most votes for any choice in an election wins, and the winner does not need a majority vote.
So, in a three-way vote, with 100 people voting:

  • Candidate 1, gets 45 votes
  • Candidate 2, gets 40 votes
  • Candidate 3, gets 15 votes
Who wins?  In a majority vote, where the winner needs to have 50% or more of the votes, no one would win.  In a plurality vote, Candidate 1 would win, since he has received the most votes.
I presume the Board members prefer the plurality vote, since it reduces the chances of a needing a secondary vote, since you do not need a majority to win the vote.  The shareholders presumably prefer the majority vote, since it helps make sure that the majority of the Shareholders agree with the vote.