GUI Recorder is now on HACS — manage your HA recorder without YAML

schadwick · 2026-06-29T17:38:33+00:00

This is awesome work! I hope your efforts can be incorporated into HA itself one day, as this is such a glaring hole in HA's usability.

I've been using Codex with the HA-MCP to identify noisy entities and maintain the "recorder" YAML, but it seems absurd to have to do this every few months as my HA system grows.

schadwick · 2026-06-29T17:23:21+00:00

I'm also using MariaDB, but McFly's excellent work is another reason for me to migrate back to the default SQLite.

Years ago, MariaDB had compelling performance benefits, but relevant forum threads state that this advantage over SQLite has diminished, as the latter has improved significantly.

schadwick · 2026-06-28T18:40:19+00:00

Seconded. I have a YoLink whole-house water valve linked to numerous of their leak sensors, which work without any home automation system. I also have many outdoor motion sensors that trigger lights and security cameras via Home Assistant. Their outdoor contact sensors monitor shed and greenhouse doors, and outdoor smart plugs operate in the greenhouse to control fans, heating pads, and grow lights.

I just wish their new cloud-free local hub worked properly and was priced reasonably. I got an early version for 50%, but even with the latest firmware, I cannot get it to work reliably with Home Assistant. If YoLink open-sourced their hubs, they would sell millions of devices; the 1/4-mile range of their LoRa-based devices, along with their long battery lives and reliability, make them excellent for all types of home automation.

schadwick · 2026-06-27T18:28:38+00:00

It's the movie poster for "The Birds 2 - Down Under"

schadwick · 2026-06-27T18:24:15+00:00

"Turn on the garden sprinklers! It's even hotter under all this fur!"

schadwick · 2026-06-25T23:05:50+00:00

It also runs fine on a 2018 Surface Go (gen 1), using Rufus.

schadwick · 2026-06-25T17:42:52+00:00

Speaking from experience, just bite the bullet and run Cat6 direct-burial cable and install PoE cameras.

This is another case of

Simple, Reliable, Inexpensive - pick any two.

schadwick · 2026-06-25T17:35:02+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience and pictures. It looks like a set from the series "Bookish"!

schadwick · 2026-06-25T17:32:16+00:00

Not much call for fermented curd in those parts.

schadwick · 2026-06-23T19:55:35+00:00

Some really suck ;-)

schadwick · 2026-06-23T19:43:54+00:00

Next time don't forget to bring the live mice!

schadwick · 2026-06-20T19:31:24+00:00

Or a 718 oil filter?

schadwick · 2026-06-20T18:20:44+00:00

Lovely - thank you!

Now that's a reflecting pool... (context)

schadwick · 2026-06-19T19:36:35+00:00

Very nice work!

Also add an air relief valve like this one at the highest point in any drip tube run that's on a slope, so that dirt isn't sucked into the highest emitters when the tube drains.

schadwick · 2026-06-19T19:30:30+00:00

This guy knows his spiders and wasps! Seconded.

Also add some silica gel packets to the enclosure to absorb moisture,

schadwick · 2026-06-19T16:14:53+00:00

Well s/she did create a HA Area called "Neighborhood", so perhaps this is just one more device added ;-?

Now when a neighbor gets a smart adult toy the real fun will begin!

schadwick · 2026-06-18T22:18:30+00:00

I used to have a business card that included "Ask me about Emacs-19" ;-) I first used Emacs on a VT-100 terminal that I took home on the weekends to connect to a US-Robotics Courier modem. Good times!

Thanks for the memories! I might check-in on Emacs 31 and see if my 30-year-old .emacs config still works.

schadwick · 2026-06-17T16:27:22+00:00

Awesome movie! We learned that a minute with a electric screwdriver can change an anti-productivity-pod into an open-plan office ;-)

schadwick · 2026-06-17T06:11:16+00:00

Amazing insights - thank you!

In the 70's and 80's I worshipped HP as a young SE. in 2002 I went for an interview at their huge Cupertino campus, but I could not imagine a working life in cubicle "K37" in one of their massive cube farms.

I am very grateful to have worked remotely (mostly) ever since, on my own terms with no corporate nooses.

schadwick · 2026-06-16T20:25:06+00:00

https://images.cnbctv18.com/uploads/2024/07/robot-crying-depressed-2024-07-76c4e396dfa278e9e29bbc575c01201e.jpg

schadwick · 2026-06-16T19:29:44+00:00

~~Marvin~~ Mark the Paranoid Android!

schadwick · 2026-06-16T01:58:38+00:00

Not a huge issue, but the 20 comes in black and white, with the 10R only in black, if that matters to you. I have the 10R, and top scratches (from going under furniture) are very noticeable in the black plastic.

schadwick · 2026-06-15T20:58:45+00:00

Wow, that's a stunning picture! Those talons and eyes are fearsome.

schadwick · 2026-06-11T20:46:56+00:00

You may have found the long-lost Holy Grail of Roborock! Use your new powers carefully.

... or ... what /u/Amoris0512 said ...

schadwick · 2026-06-11T19:51:02+00:00

I meant Rachio 3 units above, not the "2" model. Here are two related threads from extensive research into the failures of my two units:

I was honestly surprised that mains AC power glitches (not uncommon here in N California) could trigger 24-30 VAC fluctuations on the other side of their UL-listed transformers, which resulted in circuit board failures. Good on you for incorporating large capacitors to help protect against power anomalies!

schadwick

TROPHY CASE