Homeowner Forum / Home Automation / April 2004

I noticed my power co recently replaced my power meter with one that has a circuit
board in it with lots of surface mount components. It looks like there's a CPU-size
chip in there, amongst other things. The meter is not digital -- it still has the
mechanical spinning wheel, ...

I was wondering if anybody can help me out with my situation....I am a
student of electro-mechanical eng and i have a project where a Printer
Port I/O card (which i have already built) posseses 5 inputs and 7
outputs....I am asked to perform (with the help of a VB program)....to

During startup, MultiView causes some sort of exception to be thrown
before it ever reaches the main screen.  There is no indication what the
problem is.  The program just exits and Windows asks if I want to send a
report in to Micro$oft.  I have tried uninstalling & reinstalling ...

Are there any adapters that allow distribution modules fron the structured
systems made by Leviton, Siemon, etc. to be used in a 19" rack setting.
Thanks
Bill

Has anyone done this and is it considered okay.  (using the spare
pairs for regular phone connections)
Thanks.

I have a bathroom fan I want to add this timer to but the current switch has
only two black wires going to it and a copper ground and the switch needs to
be wired to a black (hot) and white (neutral) and ground.  How can I make
this timer work correctly with this config?  I have a ...

I have a yellow rca (video) and red/green rca (audio) outputs that I
need to
mate to my tv that only has a coax input.
Ive seen adapters that will take ONE rca plug and convert it to coax,

I've got a 50+ year old frame house and want to (re)wire data/voice/video
into most of the rooms, plus wire some of the rooms for audio.  Can anyone
recommend any good sources on wiring tips/techniques for tackling this type
of project.

What sort of interest would there be in a PC application for
controlling, monitoring and logging X10 commands?
The app would provide blank panels on which the user draws control /
monitor panels. Each panel could be a floor plan, house plan, list of

I've got a Dell Dimension 4600i, Pentium 4, 2.6 GHz processor, with
Windows XP Home Edition.  I can't seem to copy .bmp picture files from
an internet page onto my C-drive or Desktop without the file being
converted to .jpg, and much smaller.  Even then, when I try to open

I need some advice on how to evaluate those RF Modulators
that will help me with a small A/V distribution project.
I would prefer a unit that supports a minimum of three (3) input
channels (4 would be even better) and a minimum of three (3)

Hi;
I got Dlink 704P Routher, and having a pc loaded with Win xp pro and
some softwares, I want to set my router to prevent an application
connect to internet( certain url and port no.) how can I do that?

I am in the process of remodelling my basement into a poker room. I
have a hatch type door in the floor of my master bedroom that I would
like to open on its own when prompted. Sortof like something you would
see in the movies. A secret room that you flip a hidden switch and the

Well, X10 has done it again, once again making great hardware with
awful software.
The Lola software is much better than "Boom" was but that's not saying
much and it still does not support video.

Can you combine the outputs of a DVD and a VCR using a
splitter/combiner and then pipe it into one a CHANNEL VISION 1-INPUT
MODULATOR? I'm wondering if I can save on the cost of a 2(or 3) input
modulator and just buy a 1 input unit.