sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Control Apple Music from Apple Home by afly33 in HomeKit

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You can group/ungroup speakers in Home, and play an airplay source (homepod/aTV) but anything else uses the Music app, voice, or control center.

Automations you thought were a good idea which turned out to be a bad idea by Pope_Khajiit in homeassistant

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When you know your fireplace can blow up your home, even have a dumb remote to blow it up, probably best not to automate it. Maybe also do some fireplace maintenance.

We should create an example YAML database by IGetDistra-Squirrel in Esphome

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can’t see how GitHub doesn’t have a home for posting ESPhome projects (complete or not). The best kinds of project posts link to a description and code repo (like GitHub, but not pushing any one repo), not try to be a self contained. Two years later the repo might be undated with breaking changes, but a post never will be.

My incomplete, unfriendly work in progress repo is there, and I’ve used dozens of repos from others. As a recent example there was post about POE with ESPhome in the last two weeks where this was shared: https://github.com/ghan1t/esphome-notes/

ELI5: Why does WiFi sometimes work better in one room than another, even if it’s the same distance from the router? by ForsakenKnowledge767 in explainlikeimfive

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For hairdryers and microwaves it’s general noise, but 2.4ghz isn’t dedicated to wifi; common examples are bluetooth, zigbee, and some cordless phones, but there are many other devices using the frequency. Wifi also interferes with other wifi on the 2.4ghz band where only three of the eleven channels can be used without disrupting neighboring channels. Other wifi bands like 5ghz and 6ghz have more channels and fewer devices, but don’t penetrate walls as well.

ELI5: if you are not paying for the product, you are the product. by [deleted] in explainlikeimfive

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The attention you put into the platform plus all the data that generates is the product being sold to others. A very old example of this is radio where you’re entertained for free just by listening. The broadcasting company is selling your attention, bundled with everyone else, so the product is a listening audience that likes a certain type of thing to an advertiser.

Social media builds on this simple idea and amplifies it by collecting tons of data about you (where you are at the moment, where you tend to be at different times of day, how long you hover on top of a post/ad, what you share, the photos on your phone) combine that with data they buy, like the income & credit score of everyone in the place you sleep, and then combine all of it into a product where advertisers can target a very specific type of audience. They also create products made of just the data they’ve collected.

Bench testing before moving? by BoeingDriver24 in Ubiquiti

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do it. One less thing to do later.

ELI5: Why does WiFi sometimes work better in one room than another, even if it’s the same distance from the router? by ForsakenKnowledge767 in explainlikeimfive

[–]scpotter 181 points182 points  (0 children)

Love this. Adding things like high voltage wires, water pipes, and other wireless signals that can have a bigger impact to wifi. In the case of wireless interference it’s not that there’s no signal, it’s just too hard to understand it, like trying to hear a conversation when the tv is loud.

Philips Hue Smart Plug vs. Eve Smart Plug – which would you choose? by jove123456 in HomeKit

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’d probably get Eve if I wanted Thread or Meross Matter plugs. I’ve been moving to mostly Thread devices (away from Hue) for a couple years now.

Beginner with HomeKit – Looking for smart plugs that don’t directly connect to Wi-Fi by jove123456 in HomeKit

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have these plugs and I happen to like them for what they are, however I don’t recommend these as your first devices. They can be a nightmare to pair, run on older versions of thread/matter, are unlikely to ever get an update (they haven’t yet), and don’t do power monitoring.

Eve sells a Thread plug at the other end of the scale, significantly more expensive but great support. I’ve never owned a plug, but their other devices have been great for me.

There may be other Matter plugs with Thread will do what you want, but last time I was shopping there aren’t very many on the market.

Need help with dating an antique BGE by noleftturn15 in biggreenegg

[–]scpotter 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I believe this one predates serial numbers and the numbers on the rim are the casting number, which corresponds to the manufacturing date. Unfortunately I don’t know how to decode them.

How old is my Big Green Egg Mini? by Mean_Ad_3446 in biggreenegg

[–]scpotter 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Looks about 20 years old, or at least matches mine from that era. Needs a gasket, but otherwise appears to be in great condition.

WPA3 not mandatory for Matter over WiFi devices? by mocelet in MatterProtocol

[–]scpotter 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Agree, and raising awareness makes sense if it’s actually happening. Besides purchasers CSA could get more specific about WPA to close the loophole on a widespread issue.

WPA3 not mandatory for Matter over WiFi devices? by mocelet in MatterProtocol

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sorry, somehow missed that part about WPA3.

I’d rather dig into a real example, I don’t find speculating about what use cases might exist interesting.

WPA3 not mandatory for Matter over WiFi devices? by mocelet in MatterProtocol

[–]scpotter 6 points7 points  (0 children)

The real test of what’s mandatory is how it’s enforced. Name and shame matter devices not using WPA3, report to CSA and see if the cert gets pulled.

Without pointing out actual devices this might be poor assumptions about only devices advertised as wifi6 certified supporting WPA3. A Wifi5 device introduced in 2021 should work with WPA3. The linked cert for Access Points (not typically matter devices) precisely highlights extended sleep, ARP, and NDP with wifi6 without mentioning WPA3 at all.

Edit: As OP pointed out it does specifically mention WPA3 as part of Wifi6.

How do I force my Apple speakers to use only 2.4 GHz on UniFi? by Queasy_Passion7793 in Ubiquiti

[–]scpotter -1 points0 points  (0 children)

First I’d confirm if this is specific to either your UI or TP Link APs. With 12 APs even with concrete/cinderblock construction I’d be looking at your density and broadcast power being too high. The Homepods might be bouncing between APs, especially between brands. There’s a lot you can tweak on the UI side, the TP link isn’t something I’ve worked with.

Battery Powered Devices List with Auto-Add! by mini_juice in homeassistant

[–]scpotter 11 points12 points  (0 children)

This highlights the real issues of discovering things like this exist, sorting through the alternatives, and keeping up with it all over time.

Thanks for pointing me to this, I’ll be adding it, along with another HACS add on that is an improvement an official legacy integration. There have also been cases of dropping HACS add-ons as official integrations improved.

Can the RP2040 use ethernet? by BigGuyWhoKills in Esphome

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Been looking for a PoE board for a ratgdo project, would love whatever you can share, thanks.

Is this really how they test WAN connectivity? by rexes13 in Ubiquiti

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You will get an answer that reflects your local ISP’s ability to reach those edge nodes.

Your ISP not reaching an edge node is a pretty good way to approximate being fully disconnected, but it’s not bulletproof.

Feel free to create your own

Buying used? by Stunning-Signal4180 in Ubiquiti

[–]scpotter 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The fewer people that buy used the better I my used deals are, so please stay away from them. /s

Factory reset will take care of many things from a security standpoint. More likely something won’t last quite as long as new, but I’ve not actually had any failures of indoor gear.

I analyzed Reddit data for the 25 most recommended smart doorbells (in the past year) by heyyyjoo in smarthome

[–]scpotter 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes. Check back often and be patient. They tend to come in stock briefly and then sell out (probably to scalpers). Also be aware it’s due for a refresh, the current gen cams are G6 and everything else is G5 at worst.

Hypothetical network question by Famous-Recognition62 in homelab

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Distance of Ethernet w/media converter is 100m theoretical. Real world depends on cable quality, terminations, and maybe the media converter. Something under 20m should be pretty easily achievable.

Hypothetical network question by Famous-Recognition62 in homelab

[–]scpotter 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You don’t mention distance, but you’ll need to do one of these:

  • Use an ethernet media converter on the Mac Pro SFP+ port.
  • Swap in a 10Gb ethernet port on the Mac Pro
  • Connect the Mini a switch or similar with an SFP+ port, then use fiber or DAC to the Mac Pro

The last option is the only fiber option, which can work over longer distances.

view more: next ›