Device string in HS4

[risquare]

Do devices in HS4 have a general purpose string associated with them like they used to in HS3. I do not see it in this JSON dump. To ask the same question in another way. What string will be affected by this HS scripting command

hs.SetDeviceString 2805, "this is a test",true

{
"ref": 2805,
"name": "MD5 Output",
"location": "Unknown",
"location2": "Unknown",
"value": 0,
"status": "Off",
"device_type_string": "",
"last_change": "/Date(-62135596800000)/",
"relationship": 3,
"hide_from_view": false,
"associated_devices": [],
"device_type": {
"Device_API": 0,
"Device_API_Description": "No API",
"Device_Type": 0,
"Device_Type_Description": "Type 0",
"Device_SubType": 0,
"Device_SubType_Description": ""
},
"device_type_values": null,
"UserNote": "",
"UserAccess": "Any",
"status_image": "/images/HomeSeer/status/off.gif",
"voice_command": "",
"misc": 4352,
"interface_name": ""
},

[jon00]

From a scripting perspective, it should be exactly the same between HS3 & HS4, otherwise there would be compatibility issues between the two.

Did you see this in your JSON dump?

"device_type_string": "",

[tenholde]

I cannot find a reference to what was called DeviceString in HS3 in the HS4 API Reference. For backward compatibiliy, the HS3 API is still available, although I'm not sure what DeviceString would contain for HS4 devices.

[risquare]

From a scripting perspective, it should be exactly the same between HS3 & HS4, otherwise there would be compatibility issues between the two.

Did you see this in your JSON dump?

"device_type_string": "",

Yes, I do see "device type string" but it is what it says it is - a string related to the device's type not the general string that was part of device's attributes in HS3.

[zwolfpack]

Device string, if set, is returned in the JSON 'status' parameter.

Verified on both HS3 & HS4.

In this example, the device string contains HTML <br> tags; in the JSON these are replaced by CR-LF (\r\n)

                 {
                   'UserAccess' => 'Any',
                   'UserNote' => '',
                   'associated_devices' => [],
                   'device_type' => {
                                      'Device_API' => 0,
                                      'Device_API_Description' => 'No API',
                                      'Device_SubType' => 0,
                                      'Device_SubType_Description' => '',
                                      'Device_Type' => 0,
                                      'Device_Type_Description' => 'Type 0'
                                    },
                   'device_type_string' => '',
                   'device_type_values' => undef,
                   'hide_from_view' => $VAR1->{'Devices'}[1]{'hide_from_view'},
                   'interface_name' => '',
                   'last_change' => '/Date(1596521460051-0700)/',
                   'location' => 'Moon',
                   'location2' => 'Weather',
                   'misc' => 4160,
                   'name' => 'Phase',
                   'ref' => 5,
                   'relationship' => 0,
                   'status' => 'Full Moon
99.4% illuminated
Age: 14d 15h 13m
New in 14d 17h 54m
Full in 28d 20h 35m
In Capricornus',
                   'status_image' => 'images/Moon/188.png',
                   'value' => '188',
                   'voice_command' => ''
                 },

[tenholde]

https://docs.homeseer.com/pages/view...pageId=7443561

devString in HS3 is located in Status in HS4

[jon00]

https://docs.homeseer.com/pages/view...pageId=7443561

devString in HS3 is located in Status in HS4

I think you need to expand that to say in the HS4 PLUGIN SDK. It is not available in HS4 scripting as confirmed by Rich.

[Tillsy]

I think you need to expand that to say in the HS4 PLUGIN SDK. It is not available in HS4 scripting as confirmed by Rich.

Or the HS4 GUI - the field is always blank

[jon00]

Or the HS4 GUI - the field is always blank

Which field are you referring to?

[Tillsy]

[jon00]

That is device status not device string.

If you want to know what device status is, read here: https://forums.homeseer.com/forum/de...-device-status

If you go to the Legacy /deviceutility page, you will see both Status and String listed. Example below.

[risquare]

That is device status not device string.

If you want to know what device status is, read here: https://forums.homeseer.com/forum/de...-device-status

If you go to the Legacy /deviceutility page, you will see both Status and String listed. Example below.

Where in HS4 you can see "Legacy /deviceutility page" ????? ... or do you mean for me to go back to HS3 to see it ?
Pls clarify.

[jon00]

Rather than /devices.html , type in /deviceutility

[Tillsy]

That is device status not device string.

Well it's not status either because it is BLANK.

And here is the source code for that field showing it's actually the string - {{dv=deviceclass_by_ref child.ref}}{{dv.hsdev_string}}

So we don't have the status, only the value, and we don't have the string either. Three completely different versions of a device's output.

[risquare]

Rather than /devices.html , type in /deviceutility

Thanks. I see it now. What was wrong with that beautiful HS3 GUI and why did I pay good money to move to HS4 crap?

The truth is that HS4 displays the "device string" in the "device status" field.

In HS3 (or the legacy in HS4 ) the "device string" is called "device string" and the "device status" is actually a compilation of the "device value" and the settings on "status graphics" page. In other words if you want value 0 to correspond to status "off" than status will be displayed as "off" when the value is 0.

I'm very sensitive to the issue of "device string" as I'm big time user of Big5 plug-in to deal with various APIs and communication with peripherals over HTTP, TCP, MQTT and all this info is stored as a string in most cases when it arrives into HomeSeer via Big5 plug-in.