Origin

When I was a kid, I remember tying a string to a pair of finger nail clippers, making a loop in the other end of the string, and loosely taping the string to a couple of places on the wall (so it would glide through the tape without pulling it off the wall) above the light switch in my bedroom. The loop slid over the light switch toggle. The fingernail clippers acted as a weight – just enough to keep the string taught – and a “remote” “actuator” for my “automated” light switch. By changing the position of the pulleys (tape), I could lay in bed (after repositioning said pulleys), and pull the actuator to turn the light on or off without getting out of bed. Bit of a Rube Goldberg machine (look at me adding links to my blog so I can further educate the masses) though because I actually had to get out of bed after each use to enable the next change of state… could’ve just flipped the switch while I was up!

This is the origin of BrummBilt.

“Gadgets” have always caught my attention… sometimes leading me down a rabbit hole. Today’s IoT (Internet of Things) is exemplary of the rule and nowhere near the exception.

I joined the IoT cult by using Echo Dots from Amazon throughout my house to play music, set alarms and timers, get the time and weather, and pretty much just ask Alexa stupid questions. I then discovered “smart” light bulbs (these use zigbee… google it) and Lowes’ Iris System (wow, looking back, Iris was a real P.O.S.) to control them through an app and with the Dots. I mashed Iris and Alexa together (that sounds dirty) by brute force (knowing even less than I now know… yes, that is possible). All of a sudden, Eureka!, I had a “smart” home.

The hook was set.

… to be continued.