Clarification of forum contributors being banned

[melih]

@Tim88

So then why not develop it in house, especially if the core already exists? Sounds like the hard part is already done.

You are correct the hard part is done and was hoping the plugin developers would take advantage and develop the plugin. That is why I offered to donate $18K to Patrick.

But we now realize that Patrick is not interested ( he didn’t say he wasn’t doing it, kept us hanging ).
Writing a web based UI to create a Ezlo Rule Engine is something we started recently. We will give you a web based UI called Ezlo Rule Engine that also has Device Setting capabilities. Of course we will be launching it in steps… hopefully by or around summer we’ll have something pretty decent as an advanced rule engine all web based.(Shame that Plugin guys didn’t do it, but worry not we will always provide what our customers need! One way or the other)
These are VERY preliminary screenshots of the system we are developing…we still have few months to go until I am happy with the end result.

[Tim88]

Functionality looks very similar to scenes in the Vera. One thing that I think is very basic for me anyway is that when I come ‘Home’ I only want to turn a light on if its dark out. I wound up adding lua code to a scene to check if it was night, this seemed like simple functionality that should not have required learning some basic lua code. I’m not a developer by any means but thankfully I’ve had exposure to some basic programming and was able to figure it out with the help of the forum.

[melih]

Like I said, its very preliminary. Please do not Judge yet! This is based on “Preliminary” screenshots I am showing you. Wait until I say, “here is a Rule Engine I am happy with please use” then Judge it You shouldn’t have to know coding to enable HA.
When I am finished with it, there won’t be a function that you have in reactor that is not provided in our Ezlo Rule Engine, Plus more!

[ranneman]

@melih

Writing a web based UI to create a Ezlo Rule Engine is something we started recently.

@melih, this is off topic, but interesting, please start a new topic on this. I’m a happy Reactor user but before Reactor I used lua script to make my system work. I switched to Reactor because it is easy, good and survives system reloads.

[melih]

@Tim88

I come ‘Home’ I only want to turn a light on if its dark out

What you are asking for “if Dark outside, which is Sunset” AND “Some trigger” like motion or door open, “DO Something”. This functionality is already available and can create this scene in our mobile apps in a simple way using “advanced scenes” in the mobile apps. I did it under 1 minute …(I used a motion detector).

[melih]

@ranneman

please start a new topic on this

Ezlo Rule Engine - Web Based UI coming soon - Name it WIN an Ezlo Plus

done.

thanks.

[pentium]

I wonder if you feel that you were entirely honest with the vera community when you arrived. I seem to remember many promises being made about stability and operating a professional business. Then suddenly I started seeing posts about Atom and seeing a new direction. I don’t remember any reference from Ezlo about us vera users being on a ‘dying platform’. As a more casual user that can barely spell API, using PLEG and Reactor to customize my 30 or so devices, I felt like the promises of stable releases and customer support were genuine. I learned quickly to never be on the cutting edge of installing new version releases. So, were you open and honest or did you simply discover that you had a nightmare on your hands and hoped you could migrate vera users rather than letting them know they were working with boat anchors that were about to be cut loose. In fact, are you being honest now or should we be expecting an EOL notice from you?

[melih]

I believe I was honest.
The visionary who setup Vera was a chap called Aaron. In my view, although I only had small amount of time to engage with him, he came across as a “technical visionary” and I very much enjoyed interacting with him.

Here are some snippets from his email at the time when we were acquiring Vera:

As you can read Aaron summarizes it very well.

@pentium

vera users being on a ‘dying platform’.

Although you may be unaware, unfortunately as you will see from the email, it was a well known fact internally. Our decision was to do our best to “support it” until we delivered an alternative.
Please note, we didn’t have to do that! It cost me personally money! It still does, every day! Imagine, you didn’t pay me money when you bought your hub, BUT I am paying your costs so that you can continue running your hardware!
Both the cloud and FW had to be redone. It makes no sense to waste engineering $$ to rewrite something that is working and “good enough”…Whatever code we can reuse, we try our hardest to use it. Development is very expensive process, to -re-write something is never taken lightly!

In technology, things never stay still…and everything has a lifetime…even Operating Systems…Lets take a look at Microsoft Operating System evolution

The OS framework kept changing. I don’t see people crying foul and blaming Microsoft for not continuing with MS-DOS are they? <–Think about this for a second pls!
With Vera that wasn’t the case, it wasn’t being updated to keep up with the latest technology and was lagging behind, “it was time for a fresh reboot”! Good thing was that Ezlo already had started developing it, well before the acquisition.
It is not our intention to EOL anytime soon, but please understand EVERY Product has a lifetime! We are working hard at trying to come up with a “migration path” and tools to get everyone onto the new Firmware.
Hope this answers your questions.

As a home automation enthusiast myself, I totally understand the pain of pairing/unpairing, rewriting scenes…Heck, I can’t even find the device that controls my LED strips, Electrician was kind enough to bury it behind the sheet rock!!! Do you realize how impossible to press a button behind a sheet rock !!!

I want none of us to suffer from these problems that plagued the home automation industry for years! You have to be a tinkering hobbyist to get the basic stuff running. Install this plugin, tinker this, tune that…crazy!
You have to rely and pray that your main controller doesn’t die…
Home automation today is where Operating Systems were in 1975, good for tinkerers and hobbyists.
I am trying to change all this, for all of us!
It certainly is not easy nor is it cheap to deliver this vision! But I am committed to work and invest my money towards achieving this dream!

[Tim88]

Up until ME the OS ran on bootstrapped DOS and I believe NT was the first OS where this wasn’t the case. And I think there is still DOS code in the 32 bit version of Windows 10 for emulation in a virtual environment. NTVDM contains a small subset of DOS functionality.
I believe you you can still launch DOS programs in Windows 7(32bit) and possibly the 32 bit version of 10.
And a lot of times in Windows DOS commands are more efficient.

[melih]

I am a device driver (System) programmer from my old days…(Windows mainly…dabbled in Linux tiny bit)
I have seen the evolution of the internals of the OS from (3.1 when I started developing) till now…
But what point are you making? That its ok to use parts? If so I agree.
The problem to solve is not to “emulate” vera fw inside Ezlo fw.
The problem to solve is how to migrate Vera users to Ezlo FW (in some cases using their existing Vera Hardware) painlessly (if possible). What you are suggesting is only one of many potential solutions.
At the end of the day, its a question of “investment” . MS had to build backward compatibility due to investment made on the operating systems and what it meant for MS.

Don’t start me on efficiency!!! I could in early day start “typing on a word processor” much faster on my 386 days using “Works” than I can do today!!! Same feature eg: “typing on a screen” has gotten much faster CPU but it got much slower…WHY!!! We digress…

[Tim88]

I guess again the question is when will Vera controllers no longer be supported? I know it was mentioned in another thread, Vera will be supported for the medium term but there is I think some uncertainty in when that date truly is as it’s been almost three years now?
Can new life be breathed into the existing hardware and is it worth the effort to the company? I think we wonder if one day you wake up and decide to say enough is enough and stop the bleeding. Or will we be asked to go a subscription route to fund supporting the Vera infrastructure.
I know the future is with ezlo and I don’t mind upgrading but it has to be seamless, painless and provide more and better functionality. I’m sure in time it will get there.

[melih]

@Tim88

Can new life be breathed into the existing hardware

We already are running Ezlo firmware in some of the old Vera hardware.

[Tim88]

Vera edge from what I’ve seen, curios as to why not the plus.

[melih]

Each cpu type requires a different compilation process etc. and differences in hardware configuration brings with it more compilation work.

[Tim88]

I thought in the latter years Microsoft added the any cpu option for x86, at least.
Mobile stuff was a little different but I think xamarin can help with cross platform.

[melih]

Very disturbing that these people started harassing my wife and family members by sending these emails to them!
How low can they go!! And of course, they are not man enough to own up to who they are…!

[Petruska99]

OK, this is unacceptable! Guys this is really low - you just proofed you have hurt ego’s! Sorry to say that, but as a senior director in US IT services company, I wouldn’t accept something like that and I show you door. Still hope it wasn’t on purpose and you just tried to do negative marketing around Melih and his way to some contacts like shareholders and employees and pulling in family, was just unwanted. If not, then shame on you!

[rigpapa]

@Petruska99

OK, this is unacceptable! Guys this is really low

Speaking for myself and with the support of and on behalf of the banned members of this community (including @rafale77, @DesT, @LibraSun), we do not know who is responsible for this email, which many of us also received from the anonymous sender, some of us at multiple addresses. We agree that it is not an acceptable response, no matter the circumstances.

Although Melih redacted many parts in his post, he did clearly leave that the person identifies themselves as an employee in the home automation industry. The email we received said other things, which Melih redacted, that indicate the person is likely someone he has regular local contact with in the industry and has a deeper and broader view of his nature. None of us fulfills that description. We explicitly accept no responsibility for and deny any involvement in this event.

[melih]

@Petruska99

tried to do negative marketing around Melih

I am used to negative marketing about me (comes with the territory), but they cross the line when they involve my family! Clearly shows the mentality and character of the people banned and re-enforces our decision to protect our users from exposure to these kind of people!

First it was Sebastian (the owner of Pointpubmedia) DesT, sending emails to me, when I didn’t respond, he started sending it to all my employees in Ezlo, now emails are being sent to my family members.