Home Automation

Meet the $500 Multi-Purpose Powerhouse: The Acer Aspire 5

Meet the $500 Multi-Purpose Powerhouse: The Acer Aspire 5

Monday, August 21, 2023

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We review lots of hardware and numerous operating systems, but none come close to this steal from Amazon for under $500. The Acer Aspire 5 comes in many flavors at many price points. But, if loads of RAM (20GB) and a huge storage capacity (1TB NVMe SSD) top your list of must-haves, nothing we’ve found can touch this deal. The rest of its pedigree is equally impressive: a Ryzen 3 3350U 4-core processor (up to 3.5GHz), backlit keyboard, fingerprint reader… Read More ›

Newbie’s Roadmap to Streaming Audio and Music

Newbie’s Roadmap to Streaming Audio and Music

Monday, July 31, 2023

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We’ve been a diehard audiophile beginning with our in-person autograph from Elvis on a Sunday afternoon while he was playing touch football in the vacant lot beside his mother’s home in Memphis. My first serious setup was a law school graduation present that included a McIntosh amp, preamp, and tuner with Bozak Concert Grand speakers in the early 70’s. From there we added Revox, Tandberg, and Nakamichi tape machines. And then along came MP3, Napster and 10¢ music downloads from… Read More ›

The All-Purpose Device for Home or College-Bound Students

The All-Purpose Device for Home or College-Bound Students

Monday, October 10, 2022

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We won’t attempt to educate you on the feature set of Alexa devices other than to note that, in the words of Bob Dylan, "The Times They Are A-Changin’." What was once a device to provide a weather forecast, turn on your lights, lock your front door, and start your car can now function as a full-featured HD TV with an Echo Show 15 and one of your favorite streaming providers including Netflix, Sling, Hulu, and YouTube TV. And, if… Read More ›

An Electronics Home Makeover for the 21st Century

An Electronics Home Makeover for the 21st Century

Saturday, October 23, 2021

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It was a sad day when we finally sold our Bozak Concert Grand speakers this year after enjoying them for over half a century. They were a graduation present from "Papa Gene" Newsom of Newsom’s Music Center when I graduated from law school in 1971. The sale got me thinking that I really needed to write about what has changed in home entertainment now that we’ve turned the page to another century. Back then, there was no Internet or Spotify,… Read More ›

Blink Cameras: The Travelin’ Man’s Dream Come True

Blink Cameras: The Travelin’ Man’s Dream Come True

Monday, July 12, 2021

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Okay, I’ll admit it. Our family has morphed into a band of traveling gypsies. We’re spreading our time between four cities and four "homes." Not many folks are that crazy, but many of you have vacation homes thanks to Covid. And one of the first things that pops up on your to-do list is how to secure your residences when you’re not at home. Yes, you can pay a monitoring service in every location a hefty monthly fee to do… Read More ›

Taming the Condo Call Box with a Raspberry Pi & Asterisk

Taming the Condo Call Box with a Raspberry Pi & Asterisk

Monday, April 5, 2021

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If you live in an apartment complex or condominium with a call box to let visitors gain door access by calling your apartment, then today’s column is for you. The way almost all of these call boxes work is the management company programs your name, phone number, and apartment number into the call box after which a visitor can look up your name or enter your apartment number and the call box will call you. When you answer the call… Read More ›

Never Miss a Meeting: Google Calendar Alerts for XiVO

Never Miss a Meeting: Google Calendar Alerts for XiVO

Monday, September 19, 2016

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Today we’re pleased to dust off an oldie but goodie and to introduce Google Calendar integration for XiVO and Asterisk® 13.1 This gets you a reminder call at any number you choose based upon the Notification time that is set whenever you schedule a meeting or appointment in your Google Calendar. Our special thanks to Terry Wilson for his pioneering work at Digium® on the calendaring API. Together with the flexibility that XiVO affords out of the box, it made… Read More ›

Mobile Internet: The 2016 Road Warrior’s Guide to Choosing New Wheels

Mobile Internet: The 2016 Road Warrior’s Guide to Choosing New Wheels

Monday, January 18, 2016

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Embed from Getty Images OK. We’re not going to bring Mobile Computing down to the teepee level, but we have decided to dedicate a column regularly to Mobile Internet developments in the marketplace. Of course, our major focus will remain the impact on unified communications and especially Asterisk®, FreeSWITCH™, PBX in a Flash™, and Incredible PBX™. The idea here is to document a design that lets road warriors travel with the same communications dexterity that they have at home or… Read More ›

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