Subject: From: Date:

Re: [ECS] ECS Event programming question Bill Walters Sat, 20 Feb 1999 15:58:41 -0600

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Martin,

I upgraded last month from ECSD 3.4 to ECS 4 and I'm very happy.

Not knowing how your events are constructed, and what you do, it is very
difficult to answer the question of "...will I lose any functionality.."

For myself:

1. I was logging all incoming and outgoing calls.  
	- Lost the outgoing call logging (BIGMOUTH function)

2. I had a relay which killed the house phones from ringing until after
the CID announcement, and used:

         If   Answer    Is Now    Hang-up

to reset the relay.

        - Lost that since ANSWER in ECS doesn't have a state named
"Hang-Up".  Fixed that by purchasing a $17.95 box from Radio Shack which
is intended to record telephone conversations.  I hooked the "motor
control" output of it onto a digital input on my PD-40 and just use that
now to control the resetting of the relay.

3.  I use a simple touchscreen interfaced via Serial-Byte item for main
interface with ECSD (and yes, ECS too, but about to implement ACE with
newer touchscreen).  I wanted the ability to completely control my voice
message playback remotely, without having to be at the computer.  So, I
used a small TSR named "KBFAKE" to trick the computer into believing
input from the serial port was being typed at the keyboard.  Viola,
instant access to all message playback functions from the touchscreen
(message skip, delete, fast-forward, backspace, keep-new).

          - Lost that as ECS doesn't support Keyboard Macros in any way.

4.  Lastly, lost the ability to use "Local Phone" for control of ECS.  I
thought I'd miss that an awful lot; haven't missed it a bit between
adding ACE, my old touchscreen (via serial) and several extra X-10
6-button consoles.

If you don't upgrade for any other reason, do it for the intelligable
speech output.  TTS is marvelously understandable and the wife likes it
mucho better!

Bill Walters

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