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Lighting control systems–like almost every other electronic product in the home from thermostats to sprinklers systems–are becoming intelligent IP- controllable nodes on the home...
Over the last decade of custom home installations, we have seen an explosion in the number of products that we now connect to a...
I was recently pondering what my integration company’s mobile platform strategy should be.
I am writing this column on my PC in my home office, just as I have done for Residential Systems for each of the...
The impact of the Apple iPad on the custom home control market has been well documented–almost all of our clients want a Crestron, AMX,...
Over the last year, our company has seen a significant swell of new and recurring opportunities in what we call “technology refresh installations.”
Ever since Apple introduced the iPod in October 2001, the company has impacted the solutions our industry provides.
Since the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show, I have been reading technology columns and seeing booth demonstrations of CableCARD HDTV tuner farms from Ceton and...
In the late 1980’s, Scott McNealy– cofounder of Sun Microsystems– infamously proclaimed that the “Network is the Computer.”
As a custom integrator of digital solutions in homes, we are always looking for ways to leverage our clients’ broadband connection.
The start of my company, cyberManor, just over a decade ago was based on the premise that data networks in the home would become...
Our clients now expect that they can enjoy a Netflix movie streaming download to each of the main TVs in their home, and they...
Why Media Center May Be the Only Box That Can Do It All We now live in a...
Control4’s 4store And Others Enhance Home Control Features As we start the next decade of custom residential...
Whenever I give a seminar on designing and implementing communications networks for content distribution around the home (as opposed to just installing a...
I have tracked Microsoft’s Media Center technology for the past seven years, often inaccurately predicting that the platform would take off within the custom...
Networking Solutions For Electrical Energy Management One of the higher priorities on our clients’ cost-cutting list has become their monthly electrical bill. This is...
New ip-controlled door entry systems come a-knockin’ Initially, IP-enabled devices were found only in the home office, and then there was a spread of...
Leveraging Social Networks To Advertise Your Services I recently returned from the annual CEDIA Management Conference, and as usual I came back with some...
An Intriguing Single-Box Media Center And Home Theater Option In the world of Windows Media Center systems there are a number of ways to...
REAL NETWORKS ENGAGES IN ROUND TWO OF THE ‘FAIR USE’ FIGHT Editor’s Note: At press time,RealNetworks failed to convince a district judge to lift...
THE IPOD AND ITOUCH DEVICES STORM CEDIA EXPO Each year that I travel to CEDIA EXPO I’m always looking for trends in our industry...
In the residential custom installation business we typically think of ourselves as experts in audio/video, lighting, computer, and home control systems. Now many of...
This is the year that the CableCard-supported Microsoft Media Center platform coupled with a wide variety of Media Center Extenders options was going to...
I am always looking for network-connected devices that truly add value to our client’s broadband connected homes. Of course we all know about the...
Readers of this column know that I usually write about networking topics that are relevant to the custom electronics integration industry and this column...
Readers of my column know that I have been a proponent of Media Center solutions for the home for a number of years. But...
To help you prepare for this years new technology developments, Ive decided to share my top five predictions for 2008. Measure each one against...
CasaTunes is a relatively new, ingenious software tool that lets any Windows computer with an Explorer or Media Center interface control any of the...
When HP abruptly stopped the production of its Microsoft Media Center digital equipment platform earlier in the year there was a sense that Media...
Readers of my column over the years know that I have been a proponent of Microsoft’s Media Center software as a driving force for...
With summer in full swing its time to think about your clients electronic entertainment and communications needs in their backyard. With all the new...
HD CableCARD tuners are becoming readily available. These credit card-sized products can be inserted into CableCARD-ready HDTVs, Series 3 TiVOs, and even some of...
As Phone and Data Systems Grow More Complex, TIA-570-B Could Be the Key to Strong Infrastructures
The Consumer Electronics Show is an exhilarating, exhausting, and overwhelming experience that every professional in the electronics field should attend at least once in...
A lot of press has been given to the new and enhanced features of the upgraded Microsoft Vista operating system due out later this...
Over the years I have carefully watched product introductions in the digital picture frame product category. I always thought this type of product would...
Broadband Has Expanded the Potential of Home Systems, But There are More Networking Challenges on the Horizon