OT: The Avalounge (mod warning - No Politics)

[ABasin]

Any of you boys ever go to Urban Egg in Colorado Springs?

Many times. Solid spot.

 

[JWK]

Need the Taco Bell's nostalgia menu to come to CO, I need it

 

[henchman21]

Need the Taco Bell's nostalgia menu to come to CO, I need it

Your arteries feel otherwise.

 

[JWK]

Your arteries feel otherwise.

Taco Bell > My Health

 

[S E P H]

Taco Bell > My Health

I had TB the other day and it was pretty damn awesome. I was very impressed, and I will be going back again.

Bro, I got an amazing song for us.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

I had TB the other day and it was pretty damn awesome. I was very impressed, and I will be going back again.

Bro, I got an amazing song for us.

I've been admiring you for playing a long con for over 14 years now, believing all along that you are actually the sane person you otherwise present yourself to be and this thing with KPOP was just to get a rise out of the majority of people on this board.

But damn...lately, I'm starting to lose faith.

 

[S E P H]

I've been admiring you for playing a long con for over 14 years now, believing all along that you are actually the sane person you otherwise present yourself to be and this thing with KPOP was just to get a rise out of the majority of people on this board.

But damn...lately, I'm starting to lose faith.

I would simp for every one of those members.

 

[ABasin]

Looking for some input from people with some experience in regards to home security, smart cameras, thermostats, etc. Appreciate any help here.

Scenario:
- Two homes, one I live in full time in Denver, one vacation cabin not close by. Rent the 2nd one a bit, not much.

What I'd like:
- Remote access to automatic smart lock on front door of home #2. Apply temp codes, etc. for contractors and renters.
- Ring (or like) doorbell/cameras on outside of both homes.
- Remote access to thermostats in both homes, particularly in home #2 (something like Google next thermostats). Don't need voice control, just want to be able to monitor and program.
- Flood/leak monitors in the basement utility rooms of both homes.

Not sure I want more than that, but am open to it.

Can I do all of this with solid products and control it all with one app? If I want one app, am I then stuck with one manufacturer of all of the products?

 

[Ceremony]

the sane person you otherwise present yourself to be

Are you quoting the wrong person? That's seph.

 

[The Moops]

Looking for some input from people with some experience in regards to home security, smart cameras, thermostats, etc. Appreciate any help here.

Scenario:
- Two homes, one I live in full time in Denver, one vacation cabin not close by. Rent the 2nd one a bit, not much.

What I'd like:
- Remote access to automatic smart lock on front door of home #2. Apply temp codes, etc. for contractors and renters.
- Ring (or like) doorbell/cameras on outside of both homes.
- Remote access to thermostats in both homes, particularly in home #2 (something like Google next thermostats). Don't need voice control, just want to be able to monitor and program.
- Flood/leak monitors in the basement utility rooms of both homes.

Not sure I want more than that, but am open to it.

Can I do all of this with solid products and control it all with one app? If I want one app, am I then stuck with one manufacturer of all of the products?

Depends on how involved you want to be in it.... I'm a big self-hosted guy so I'm probably on the opposite end of the spectrum from most people

I have my house and my AirBnB both setup with Home Assistant:

In my house I have a Raspberry Pi 4 booting from a USB SSD (to prevent SD card wear), with a ZWave/Zigbee combo USB radio. This allows me to tie in all my door/window sensors, thermostat (Honeywell Z-Wave), locks, doorbell camera (Amcrest AD110), ect. From there I have a bunch of automations:

• If a door or window is left open for more than 30 seconds, turn off the AC/Heat
• Arm/Disarm the alarm on a schedule (also locks the doors when armed)
• Call 911 if specific doors or windows are opened when armed + blast a 110db siren

I have a few power outlet sensors that'll notify me if I lose power (GFI tripped on my garage freezer once and I lost an entire deer). I
also have a server in the crawlspace that continuously monitors the doorbell footage and does facial recognition to determine if there is someone at the door that I don't recognize and it'll send me a notification on my phone.

For my AirBnB, it's a bit simpler, it's just there as a way that I can change the lock codes on the doors and reset the thermostat to a normal temperature when I send a Telegram message to a bot I wrote when someone checks out (and another bot to change the codes to a random number before someone checks in). It's at an apartment complex we bought that had Blink cameras from the previous owners so I just stuck with them. I don't love the Blink app, but it's nice that they run on batteries so I don't have to worry about power if I install some more.

Edit:

Forgot to add the main reason why I ended up going with Home Assistant. It lets me tie into the inverter that powers my house. So I'm able to see how my solar is doing or how full my batteries are

 

[henchman21]

Looking for some input from people with some experience in regards to home security, smart cameras, thermostats, etc. Appreciate any help here.

Scenario:
- Two homes, one I live in full time in Denver, one vacation cabin not close by. Rent the 2nd one a bit, not much.

What I'd like:
- Remote access to automatic smart lock on front door of home #2. Apply temp codes, etc. for contractors and renters.
- Ring (or like) doorbell/cameras on outside of both homes.
- Remote access to thermostats in both homes, particularly in home #2 (something like Google next thermostats). Don't need voice control, just want to be able to monitor and program.
- Flood/leak monitors in the basement utility rooms of both homes.

Not sure I want more than that, but am open to it.

Can I do all of this with solid products and control it all with one app? If I want one app, am I then stuck with one manufacturer of all of the products?

You can probably do all of this in either Google or the Apple infrastructure quite easily. Even Amazon. Most of even the third parties support the first two being integrated and Alexa is supported quite a bit two. Personally I'd recommend just diving into one of those ecosystems and sticking within it. I've used both Google and Apple and found enough flexibility on the products I wanted.

Saying that, I find smart thermostats to be absolute trash. The savings modes (some of them that can't be bypassed like Nest) of them are extremely inefficient when utilizing natural gas or propane. I could see a lot of benefit on electric... but if you're pure electric (not heat pump), just dive into an upgrade there. You'll save so much more money just upgrading that. I simply take a few seconds and turn it down when I leave. Or have a very simply, a wifi version that only just changes the temp or turns on or off... doesn't have any 'programming' to save money.

One company I utilize a lot elsewhere is Eufy (Anker's brand). There are certainly some questionable practices and promises behind some of their products. If you care, look up their end to end encryption promises. That isn't a huge deal to me given what I utilize their products for (locks, sensors and cameras outside the home), but each person has different tolerances there. I like that their cameras don't require you to pay for cloud services and you can store locally (and still view over the app/web... which is where some controversy is). Mine, except the doorbells, are all connected to solar panels or have them built in. So never have to worry about them not working. The sensors I have are freeze and leak. I haven't utilized the door/window ones. They are quick and accurate.

One thing I wish for on the Eufy cameras is that they were better at picking up wildlife on notifications. Humans/cars/bikes/etc they do great. It does not understand wildlife at all. Minor pet peeve, but sometimes I'd like to see which bears and cats are visiting for my own entertainment... or I can yell at the deer destroying my wild raspberries.

One caution I have on locks... always make sure at least one of them has a keyed variant. Have a buddy who didn't take that advice and simply did pin/fingerprint... when the batteries died on a cold snap (most of these locks utilize lithium based batteries and they don't like very cold temps), he ended up having to break into his house.

I used to have a lot of connected plugs and light switches for various things, but at this point I've pulled most of those or only set them to timers (which a mechanical timer would do the job cheaper). One exception and very specific to my situation is I have an above ground cistern for water at my cabin. It is insulated, but definitely has freezing risk when we get to single digits and below (fahrenheit). I have a wifi plug and sensor setup to run a couple heaters to keep that from going poorly.

 

[The Merchant]

Alien Romulus encapsulates everything that makes the Alien franchise special. Been seeing a lot of outlets rank it as the 3rd best behind 1 and 2, but I'd argue that it should be right up there at the top. Awesome stuff from Fede Alvarez.

 

[5280]

Alien Romulus encapsulates everything that makes the Alien franchise special. Been seeing a lot of outlets rank it as the 3rd best behind 1 and 2, but I'd argue that it should be right up there at the top. Awesome stuff from Fede Alvarez.

I love the Alien franchise. They scare the shit out of me. I like the second one best

 

[ABasin]

@The Moops and @henchman21, thank you both for quality responses.

I think I'm more in the "I don't want to maintain much, just want the basics to work" camp.

Ideally, one app that lets me get notices when someone approaches the door, the heat goes down below a certain temp, the basement floods, the front door unlocks, etc. Then allows me to control the thermostat, the the door lock open/close/new entry code remotely.

 

[henchman21]

@The Moops and @henchman21, thank you both for quality responses.

I think I'm more in the "I don't want to maintain much, just want the basics to work" camp.

Ideally, one app that lets me get notices when someone approaches the door, the heat goes down below a certain temp, the basement floods, the front door unlocks, etc. Then allows me to control the thermostat, the the door lock open/close/new entry code remotely.

Google Home is probably the ecosystem you'd want. Apple Home Kit can pretty much do the same thing, but unless you are an iPhone person and are never going to switch... then I'd recommend just going to the Google side of things. Google Home pretty much works with most smart device brands and can put most of it in one app. Just make sure whichever ones you utilize are compatible with it and you'll be set.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

Alien Romulus encapsulates everything that makes the Alien franchise special. Been seeing a lot of outlets rank it as the 3rd best behind 1 and 2, but I'd argue that it should be right up there at the top. Awesome stuff from Fede Alvarez.

I love the Alien franchise. They scare the shit out of me. I like the second one best

I'm looking forward to watching Romulus, but I don't think I'm going to the theater to watch it. Theaters have become such a pain in the ass the last two decades. Just not a fun experience. The moment it hits streaming though, I'll be buying it.

The franchise for me is really 4 different franchises.

The Alien Franchise: Alien, Aliens

Generic Sci-Fi Wrapped in Alien Clothing: Alien 3, Alien Resuurection

Ill Advised Attempt to Combine Blade Runner and Aliens: Prometheus, Covenant

Video Games: Alien vs Predator, Requiem, plus all the actual video games from the 1982 Atari release thru today. Although Alien: Isolation actually ranks up with those first two movies in my opinion.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

I'm an old man and still very much scared of where technology is going. Like why the f*** does my toaster or coffee pot need to be connected to the internet? I'm scared to death my toaster is going to hear me say it burned my toast and electrocute me the next time I use it.

Seriously though. we got a base SimpliSafe system years ago as a gift and just decided to install it on our current house and got upgrades so it covers window/door alarms, motion detectors and security cameras/lights. But the Mrs really did some research and wanted the Google Nest for heat so that's what we got and I've loved it. The simplicity of the interface is excellent. We like to turn the heat way down during the winter when we aren't home. Being able to pull out a cellphone and dial up the heat to a wonderfully pleasant 68-70 as you walk out the door at work and have the house hit that mark by the time I get home is down right delightful. Truly is the little things in life that bring so much pleasure.

 

[Pokecheque]

Alien Romulus encapsulates everything that makes the Alien franchise special. Been seeing a lot of outlets rank it as the 3rd best behind 1 and 2, but I'd argue that it should be right up there at the top. Awesome stuff from Fede Alvarez.

Good, I haven't seen anything since Prometheus because that one just plain sucked.

 

[The Moops]

Good, I haven't seen anything since Prometheus because that one just plain sucked.

I didn't hate Prometheus, but I only saw the original Alien like 20 years ago. I need to go watch the others. Funny enough I didn't even know it was in the same universe until half way through because I'm an idiot.

I watched a few weird ones this last week:

The Lobster - the only word I can use to describe this one was "unsettling", but it was enjoyable overall
Upstream Color - I'll need another watch but it was kind of a wild ride. If you liked Primer you'll enjoy it

 

[Ncit3]

I kinda agree with the red letter media review. Romulus feels a lot like you take every Aliens movie, put it into an AI, and ask for a screenplay.

Right down to “you bitch” part completely being unnecessary other than it sounds like what Ripley said in an earlier movie. It was okay though but I’d not put it at the top. Feels like a fan film.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

I kinda agree with the red letter media review. Romulus feels a lot like you take every Aliens movie, put it into an AI, and ask for a screenplay.

Right down to “you bitch” part completely being unnecessary other than it sounds like what Ripley said in an earlier movie. It was okay though but I’d not put it at the top. Feels like a fan film.

That's disappointing. The general gist I've gotten from folks is that if you drop 25% of the movie it would be right with the first two and maybe challenging for the second spot. The problem being they were forced to shoehorn in Ridley Scotts stupid pre-trilogy storyline into what was otherwise a real well done and fun alien movie.

 

[Pokecheque]

I didn't hate Prometheus, but I only saw the original Alien like 20 years ago. I need to go watch the others. Funny enough I didn't even know it was in the same universe until half way through because I'm an idiot.

I watched a few weird ones this last week:

The Lobster - the only word I can use to describe this one was "unsettling", but it was enjoyable overall
Upstream Color - I'll need another watch but it was kind of a wild ride. If you liked Primer you'll enjoy it

I'll have to try Upstream Color again. I think the wife and I started watching it and she gave up right away. She really hates waaay out there indie shit. She still hasn't forgiven me for having us watch "Midsommar" years ago.

The Lobster is fantastic. A very, very dark comedy. Perfect vehicle for Ben Wishaw, who has a knack for playing really glum people. Ironically his character is about the only one who finds a modicum of happiness in that really bleak, dystopian setting.

The thing that just didn't work about Prometheus is that it tried to flesh out the mythology of the "Space Jockey" and we never should've known more about it. Ridley Scott has gone on record in interviews saying it's better to leave the viewer asking more questions than answering them. The fact that these space haulers who just want to get home (in the original film) stumble upon this alien wreck where there's the decomposed remains of some giant-ass being looking like some fallen god is unnerving just by itself, especially when Ripley pieces together that the signal it was sending was a warning, not a distress signal. Should've just left it alone, because whatever the answer was, it was going to be a letdown, and sure enough it was.

 

[The Merchant]

I'm looking forward to watching Romulus, but I don't think I'm going to the theater to watch it. Theaters have become such a pain in the ass the last two decades. Just not a fun experience. The moment it hits streaming though, I'll be buying it.

The franchise for me is really 4 different franchises.

The Alien Franchise: Alien, Aliens

Generic Sci-Fi Wrapped in Alien Clothing: Alien 3, Alien Resuurection

Ill Advised Attempt to Combine Blade Runner and Aliens: Prometheus, Covenant

Video Games: Alien vs Predator, Requiem, plus all the actual video games from the 1982 Atari release thru today. Although Alien: Isolation actually ranks up with those first two movies in my opinion.

That's too bad. I get where you're coming from, but the IMAX experience was worth every penny.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

That's too bad. I get where you're coming from, but the IMAX experience was worth every penny.

Yeah, I think I miss the IMAX screens, but still being jammed in with 300 strangers in a room with little to no air conditioning smelling three days worth of sweat and funk just doesn't justify a $25 ticket. Going to the theater used to be an experience. It's become a pain in the ass. Kind of like McDonalds used to be the wonderful toylike world for children and now it's this drab and dreary version of Starbucks...it's like it is tailoring to the soulless cubical workers of America by providing them the most bland experience possible.

 

[The Moops]

The Lobster is fantastic. A very, very dark comedy. Perfect vehicle for Ben Wishaw, who has a knack for playing really glum people. Ironically his character is about the only one who finds a modicum of happiness in that really bleak, dystopian setting.

I was hoping for more of an In Bruges dark comedy, but I did enjoy it