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Recap of what HST released in 2015

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    Recap of what HST released in 2015

    Looking at Homeseer and the potential of the company and it's platform it seems easy to come to the conclusion that not much is being done. For example there are still problems with HSTouch, and still un-released plugins like Spotify and such. Looking at what was not delivered in my opinion is not as valuable as looking at what was delivered when measuring value.

    So what did HST accomplish this year? I can't remember everything, and some of it may have been from previous years, but I think this list is a good start:
    1. z-net and euro-z-net
    2. vastly improved z-wave
    3. json interface
    4. ascii interface
    5. IFTTT
    6. HSTouch3
    7. my.homeseer improvements
    8. many HS3 refinements such as per user access to devices
    9. z-tool+
    10. UPB plugin beta (finally)
    11. Amazon echo skill
    12. hsm-200 multisensor
    13. z-wave appliance and lamp modules
    14. new zee-trollers


    I'm sure I am missing a lot, for example I do not run homeseer on linux, so I am not sure what was delivered there though I think it was significantly improved this year. This seems like a big list especially considering the complexity of many of the items. Thank you guys for all your hard work, and for your consistent improvement of homeseer! It is this that makes it the best home automation software.
    _______________________________________________

    HS3 : HSpro (3.0.0.460) on Win2012 (vm on ESXi)
    Plugins: HSTouch, UPBSpud, Kinect, Nest, IFTTT, DirecTV, EasyTrigger, Imperihome, Zwave, RFXcom, UltraMon3, UltraWeatherBug3, UltraGCIR3, UltraLog3, UltraPioneer, PHLocation, Pushover, Pushalot, MCSSPrinklers S, JowiHue
    Jon00 Plugins: Bluetooth Proximity, Performance Monitor, DB Chart, Links

    #2
    It's funny, I was just thinking about this earlier today. I agree that HS has done some good things and they have a great product, but that shouldn't excuse the shortcomings.

    This isn't a cheap piece of software and we have invested a lot of money into related to hardware to run it on as well as design interfaces.

    I looked at the bugzilla reports this morning, and to be honest in my job if we had that many bugs outstanding for as long as they have been (confirmed bugs), developers would start getting handed pink slips.

    It frustrates me every time i see Rich or Mark post on the forums... you know they see all, yet they choose to glance over the issues and only post about feature adds and new products. It's like the mentality of the bill collector calling you... if you don't answer the problem will go away right?

    - HSTouch and Designer need a huge overhaul and bug work done

    - The company needs to become more transparent with version releases and explain what the version fixed/changed. People blindly install these changes and then get frustrated when things break and have no info

    - There is some major bugs out there it appears related to peoples database getting corrupted... that should be priority and if HS is going to post anything on the forum it should be sorry, we are working on it.

    There is a lot of knowledge on these forums, this is the reason my post count is so low compared to others. I can find the info and appreciate the help from others. It would be in HS best interest to utilize that and become a little more transparent. You have a ton of beta testers here and people willing to work for free to help you fix bugs.

    Ok Rant over... I do like the product, but communication is always key, don't keep leaving us in the dark.

    Comment


      #3
      Great list - thanks for sharing that. I want to say the 2nd gen tabletop unit was release too this year? I cant remember right off... I do have one of the 1st gen and a 2nd gen.
      Also, better camera streaming in HSTouch was added in the past couple of weeks.

      I, too would love to see some HSTouch changes. Native animated gif support, Spotify support, better Designer options (cut/copy/paste).

      Also, CES is a few weeks away - I wonder if they have been sitting on something to announce then?
      HS4Pro on a Raspberry Pi4
      54 Z-Wave Nodes / 21 Zigbee Devices / 108 Events / 767 Devices
      Plugins: Z-Wave / Zigbee Plus / EasyTrigger / AK Weather / OMNI

      HSTouch Clients: 1 Android

      Comment


        #4
        HST is a software company that is in business to generate revenue. Of course they will focus on new items that will generate revenue as much as any one of us would. I personally think that they have divested themselves into too many categories and it is hard to keep up with a small team. But then, the entire software industry is like this.

        I am still on HS2 because I can not upgrade due to outstanding issues and lack of 3rd party plugin support which is no longer as mature as it used to be in previous product. It would have been a more successful decision to allow users to host both HS2 and HS3 in a peer to peer architecture model such that we can migrate over capability bit by bit.

        Overall, I think that we need to be realistic with expectations. At least they are still in business. Heck, I have been using Homeseer since 1998.

        I would encourage them to focus on a few core products and get them in a mature and stable perspective before venturing on wards to other endeavors.
        HomeSeer 2, HomeSeer 3, Allonis myServer, Amazon Alexa Dots, ELK M1G, ISY 994i, HomeKit, BlueIris, and 6 "4k" Cameras using NVR, and integration between all of these systems. Home Automation since 1980.

        Comment


          #5
          Old Timer's Thoughts

          I've been using HS since 1998 and remember a little company "Keware" with a program called Autohome (ever wonder why the HS1 log file was ah.txt?) then they started calling themselves "HomeSeer". Rich, the founder, was a one man show. We had an old bulletin/message board and when you reported a bug, Rich himself would email you a new version to try!

          I've seen many Home Automation Software Packages come and go but HS continues to move to the top of the list. Revenue is a driving factor to support growth and address concerns raised here. I, for one, will not be surprised when I read that HST has been purchased/merged with another company to support growth of the product.

          Comment


            #6
            Homeseer best support is due to community base support. HS1 user here too.
            If HS ever merge/brought out by big co. , then our HS support may come from India.
            I don't want that to happen. But hey, we just existing customer, Only revenue we contribute to HS is upgrade.
            We probably consider buying product sold by HS, instead try saving a few bucks goes to Amazon or other websites. This may persuade Rich from looking at the bit fat check that big co. happen to lay down on his desk.
            my 2 cents

            Comment


              #7
              On going revenue is always a big challenge for software vendors.
              One way that could help and I know most will shoot me down for saying this, is for the software to be sold cheaper but then you have to pay a annual licence fee for support, maintenance and upgrades
              I use specialist software for the business that I am in and all the vendors operate in this manner.
              The fees are normally between 15 and 20% of the original price which does mean every 5 or 6 years you have bought the software again.
              It does however mean that a software vendor can keep the focus on the core product. It in fact forces them to keep the focus on the core product because they don't want to lose the revenue from people not renewing the licence but they also want to ensure they are attracting new customer to the product. The easiest way to do this is to ensure the product is better than the rest.
              I am sure I am not the only one that just want a solid stable solution that just runs and works without any hiccups. I think I have that in my current setup which is still HS2. This is only really stable because I have put triggers in to restart the system if a certain event does not update itself. A simple restart which takes about 30 seconds and everything is back to normal for a few more days. I do keep looking at HS3 but then I read that something is not stable so that puts me off the investment needed.
              I would be happy to pay an annual licence and maintenance fee

              Regards

              Comment


                #8
                Recap of what HST released in 2015

                I don't want everyone to think that I am unhappy with the software. I bought it for a reason after doing a lot of vetting. I just am the type that thinks fix what you already have and make it solid. I understand keeping up with the market, but think R&D should be split. Making new features and fixing the bugs in the current release. I know HS probably doesn't have the man power for this, but again still doesn't excuse bugs gaining birthdays. This software isn't cheap and there is an expectation there with the cost that you are buying a stable product.

                Overall the product is really good and I am happy with it. But trying to explain to the wife, it's a bug when things that she interacts with (HSTouch) do not work as they should, well we all know how well that goes over.

                There is very basic changes that would go a long way. I understand the forum is for users, but either contribute as a company or remain offline completely and leave the forum to us.

                Today I had a crash with HStouch on the latest release that blew up my system with out of memory errors and caused my system to completely crash. It's frustrating to have an interface bring your system to its knees with a memory leak.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Here too been a Homeseer user now since generation 1 of Homeseer (1998).

                  That is now 17 years.

                  Homeseer works for me today as it did 17 years ago; only better.
                  - Pete

                  Auto mator
                  Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
                  Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
                  HS4 Lite - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenovo Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram

                  HS4 Pro - V4.1.18.1 - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenova Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram
                  HSTouch on Intel tabletop tablets (Jogglers) - Asus AIO - Windows 11

                  X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by rmasonjr View Post
                    ...better Designer options (cut/copy/paste).
                    +1. This would save me tons of time. Also, I'd like it if each page in Designer could exist as a separate object. When I update elements on that page, any project that uses that page would be updated automatically and it would just be a matter of deploying to the clients.

                    - Robert

                    Comment


                      #11
                      That is a fantastic idea Robert!!!

                      Originally posted by RJS View Post
                      +1. This would save me tons of time. Also, I'd like it if each page in Designer could exist as a separate object. When I update elements on that page, any project that uses that page would be updated automatically and it would just be a matter of deploying to the clients.

                      - Robert

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by 519zwave View Post
                        That is a fantastic idea Robert!!!
                        Thanks but maybe I am asking for too much though. I am not a s/w guy so I don't know the level of effort.

                        - Robert

                        Comment


                          #13
                          It's software! That is the easiest component to change! Rich does miracles once he actually gets working on something...
                          HomeSeer 2, HomeSeer 3, Allonis myServer, Amazon Alexa Dots, ELK M1G, ISY 994i, HomeKit, BlueIris, and 6 "4k" Cameras using NVR, and integration between all of these systems. Home Automation since 1980.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Originally posted by RJS View Post
                            I'd like it if each page in Designer could exist as a separate object. When I update elements on that page, any project that uses that page would be updated automatically and it would just be a matter of deploying to the clients.
                            Just a couple of thoughts for your consideration.
                            1. Is it really necessary to have different projects that share the same pages? Is there a way to use the same project for all installations?
                            2. If you have a "master" project that includes all the pages you use, you could then generate 'deploy-able' projects by deleting unwanted pages and saving under their own name before deploying them. You could then do your page updates on the master project and use it to generate updated versions of the actual projects you use just by deleting pages and doing a 'save as'.

                            I realize that's not exactly what you want, but having shared pages could make version control for your projects an interesting challenge, too.
                            Mike____________________________________________________________ __________________
                            HS3 Pro Edition 3.0.0.548, NUC i3

                            HW: Stargate | NX8e | CAV6.6 | Squeezebox | PCS | WGL 800RF | RFXCOM | Vantage Pro | Green-Eye | Edgeport/8 | Way2Call | Ecobee3 | EtherRain | Ubiquiti

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Uncle Michael View Post
                              Just a couple of thoughts for your consideration.
                              1. Is it really necessary to have different projects that share the same pages? Is there a way to use the same project for all installations?
                              2. If you have a "master" project that includes all the pages you use, you could then generate 'deploy-able' projects by deleting unwanted pages and saving under their own name before deploying them. You could then do your page updates on the master project and use it to generate updated versions of the actual projects you use just by deleting pages and doing a 'save as'.

                              I realize that's not exactly what you want, but having shared pages could make version control for your projects an interesting challenge, too.
                              There are reasons that I have different projects:
                              1. The screen sizes and resolutions of the clients
                              2. The end user (in this case "The wife") preferences and needs
                              3. The purpose of each client device
                              4. The capability of each client device
                              5. And lastly the quirks of HSTouch.
                              I must have a dozen different clients some of which share the same projects. I think I have 7 different projects. Having verbose filenames and versions numbers helps to keep them straight. A few of the devices use a "master" project from which I remove devices before deploying to them. It takes either a good memory or a configuration document to remember exactly which project gets what.
                              So I fantasize (maybe that word is too strong) about having a configuration setting in each project which scans the project folder and lists each page with a check box next to each page. If you want to include the HVAC page, check the box. Change your mind? Un-check the box.

                              - Robert

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