Subject: From: Date:

RE: [ECS] general comments about ECS Terry, Martin G Mr SAIC Tue, 14 Nov 2000 07:21:05 -0600

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Unfortunately, what this really implies is that Mark include a section of
the manual that explains "how" to program in ECS, vs pointing people at the
examples included.

The examples are fine for people experienced in programming, but this limits
the target market for ECS quite a bit. I'm sure there are a lot of people
who are "hobbiests" that have the ability to connect the hardware pieces
together but lack the programming experience to tackle the configs.

In fact, I'd say that most people that pick up ECS's programming language
quickly have more than one programming language under their belts, and are
already familiar with adapting to another language.

Explaining that ECS logic is really driven by timers, triggers, and external
inputs and giving examples of each are fundamental.

I know Mark is reluctant to move to extensive pdf based documentation, but
that's the main stream format today. Getting up and running with the least
amount of frustration is critical to the end user.

My two cents. :)

-----Original Message-----
From: Dan Butterfield [mailto:dan@butterfields.net]
Sent: Monday, November 13, 2000 11:14 PM
To: ecs-list@netbloc.com
Subject: re: [ECS] general comments about ECS


JoAnne Letkeman wrote:

>...I found it very confusing trying
>to get rid of the default functions without disabling the whole thing
>and could never get the newly written functions to work the way I
>wanted....

FWIW, I'm in a very similar situation to you.  I have specific automation
requirements (voice announced caller id through a whole-house paging system,
multi-zone conditional IR macros, various digital I/O applications like
speaker switching based on AV equipment state and digital picture snapping
when doorbell is pressed), and having a programming background (primarily C)
plus having installed all my automated systems myself to my own
specifications, I'm picky about how things work.

With the exception of the caller-id (which I have some unique requirements
of as well, surprise, like overriding the TTS annunciation with WAV files
for certain numbers in a way that can be updated easily w/o needing to redo
the CFG file or restart ECS), most of the stuff I want to do does not map
closely to the bulk of the default ECS.CFG.  I'm not interested in
voicemail, timed reminders, web access for TV guide info, PLC light control,
security, etc. that consume much of the default ECS.CFG (incidentally, I
have plans for alternative means to accomplish these functions in ways that
better meet my needs).  It's difficult for me to filter thru all that
extraneous stuff to get to the small percentage I do want, plus even for
that small percentage I have to tweak it significantly to get what I want.

Having said that, though, ECS supports the hardware (caller-id,
text-to-speech, Ocelot, interfaces to other computer programs) I want to
use, and is very programmable thru a true text based scripting language.
It's an awkward proprietary language, but at least it has real programming
constructs like nested IF's, looping, variables, etc.  Based on these
requirements, it's the only thing I've found that'll do everything I want.

I decided after much looking thru ECS.CFG (and posting on this list) that I
would be the least confused and would learn the most about ECS if I started
with a blank CFG, and worked my way up.  Obviously, I spend a lot of time
looking at what's in the default ECS.CFG and copying over segments when I
realize they might apply to me.  I'm in the process of doing that, slowly
since I'm doing it in parallel with the hardware installation of various
systems, as well as actually trying to live a real life!  :-)  However, now
that I bit the bullet it isn't quite as confusing and I'm beginning to
understand why things operate how they do.

I am still on the steep part of the uphill learning curve, but I think I'm
starting to see the knee of that curve.  So, you might consider giving it
another try.  If you find the bulk of ECS.CFG doesn't apply to you, maybe
you should start with a blank one as well, using the default as a model.
It's really tedious having to create Items for every single thing, but think
of it like declaring your variables in advance in a C program.  Those who
prefer interpreted or untyped languages which do not require variable
declarations might really be driven crazy by this!

- Dan Butterfield  (dan@butterfields.net)

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