From the Editor
The Power of Patience
In this hunt for self-improvement, the thing that has had the biggest effect on how I live and work is the effort I put...
From the Editor
From the Editor
How We Got Here
Whenever I get the opportunity to network with any industry pros — integrators, owners, marketers, product managers — I enjoy hearing their origin stories;...
From the Editor
Getting Out There
Forcing yourself to do things when it is so much easier not to do them.
From the Editor
A Vision for Profiting from Service Agreements
Lessons learned at the recent HTA East Coast Customer Experience Summit.
From the Editor
Touchy Subject
For anybody growing up in the pre-cloud era, the physical interaction with our content was just as important as the viewing or listening to...
From the Editor
Listen Up!
While I continue to work on my presentation skills, what my blend-in persona has allowed me to do is to become a keen observer...
From the Editor
Taking on Amazon
Whether it is in their capacity as consumer electronics retailer or content producers, Amazon takes a good deal out of the markets, and the...
From the Editor
Scores Over Crashes
Home theater's emotional impact can be as impressive as the visceral ones.
From the Editor
Quick CES Observations
A few reflections of the tech and trends experiences at 2019 CES.
From the Editor
It’s Been a Long Run, but Now It’s Time for a Change
As I Step Aside from My Role at Residential Systems This Month, My Roots Remain Deeply Planted in the Custom Integration Community
From the Editor
My Avatar Moment at Animal Kingdom
I’m Sure I Would have Enjoyed it More If I’d Seen More Than Just the First 30 Minutes of the 2009 James Cameron Movie
From the Editor
Dealing with My Home System Gremlins
Nobody Enjoys Dealing with Mysterious System Hiccups That Require a Device Reboot or Sometimes an Entire Network Reset to Repair
From the Editor
Not Convinced About Voice Control’s Future
Will the Category Continue to Grow or Will the Novelty Wear Off?
From the Editor
Stranger Things as the Next Generation’s Culture-Share Moment
When My Oldest Daughter Told Me That 'Everyone' in the Sixth Grade was Talking About the Netflix’s Series, I Gave Her the Green Light...
Features
Eating Your Vegetables
This year’s Azione Unlimited fall meeting in Austin was another upbeat affair, but there were moments in the short time that I was there...
Features
Manufacturers Re-Embrace Channel at CEDIA
A few companies went out of their way to express their support for custom integrators.
Features
Embracing Service
One of the most important business challenges left for our channel to solve is how to derive profits from client services, as margins on...
Features
Turning it Off
We took our family vacation a little earlier this summer because here in the Midwest most of the kids go back to school in...
Features
Little Gems From CEDIA Business Xchange
There are times when my favorite “aha” insights at industry conferences come from scripted moments during keynote sessions or “bold-print” presentations.
Features
Another Comeback
As a Colts and Yankees fan, I have a couple of reasons to root against teams from New England.
Features
DSP at CES, And Other Audio Trends
The International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is not an easy hang.
Features
Getting the Most From Your Facility
One of the challenges with the home technology integration industry is finding a consistent business model for success. The trouble is that each market...
Features
CEDIA 2016: A Show of Partnerships
CEDIA certainly was all about adding Alexa voice control to custom-centric control systems and once-combative brands playing nice with the now more inclusive Sonos...
Features
Keeping Up to Date on IoT
I had never met anyone from Cyprus, the tiny island in the Mediterranean Sea tucked below Turkey and above Egypt, where the spoken language...
Features
CEDIA Gains Momentum
The CEDIA show motto is Think Big. For Vin Bruno, that seems to be a personal mantra, as well.
Features
Alexa, My Weatherbot
My relationship with Alexa is complicated. On the one hand, she’s great at telling me the weather or setting a kitchen timer when I...
Features
Hiring For Attitude
The next time you bring a job candidate in for an interview, consider this: he or she is probably better trained at being interviewed...
Features
The Gen X Gap in Market Spending
Many of you built your businesses to cater to the needs and desires of Boomers. We’re at a critical inflection point now, however, and...
Features
Driving Up a Home’s Resale Value
Until now, the only “value” your systems really added to a home’s worth was in the smiles they put on your clients’ faces. Now...
Features
Where Were You When You Learned Crestron Left CEDIA?
CEDIA’s CEO has attempted to turn the conversation away from controversy, emphasizing the association’s solid renewal numbers for exhibitors and refuting Klein’s claims of...
Features
Playing CE Powerball at CES
Lately it seems like International CES is like a Powerball lottery, where you’ve got to be in it to win it, but in reality...