New to the forum
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Just unplugged mine as well, i held on to it for the geofencing, but the latest "update" to the app ruined it again.
Living just fine without it, z-way for z-wave, Zigate for Zigbee and RFXtrx for 433mhz. No need to look back!
@Quixote
I see you're considering using Windows to run linux native SW, and mye experience says "Just don't".
I tried this with Grafana, and practically all help on issues i had was for linux users, with the standard: "oh, your'e running it on a windows machine? Good luck with that" replies.
Linux is pure pain for people growing up in the DOS/Windows world like me (and perhaps you), but once you get to a certain point, its livable. And the open-source community is huge, full of nerds (using the word with absolutely no negative connetations) eager to help! -
That’s one of the nice things about this forum... we have a variety of opinions and experiences, and we’re happy to discuss the pros and cons. I actually think that you’ll end up with Linux too, but there’s no harm in starting in an environment you’re familiar with.
The PC-related issues seem initially to do with installing Lua, and then finally with specific plugins which expect to be running on Linux, rather than openLuup itself. YMMV.
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Quixotereplied to CatmanV2 on Dec 5, 2020, 3:46 AM last edited by Quixote Dec 4, 2020, 11:07 PM
@catmanv2 said in New to the forum:
My vera is stuck in a cupboard. Ready for burning.
The Vera abuser formally know as CatmanV2.....
The first step to recovery is admitting that you have a problem.
The last time my Vera crapped out on me, I was all set to make a video of myself, smashing the thing to little pieces with my sledge-hammer and posting the video on the Vera forum. Fortunately I'm very lazy so by the time I had it in me to get it done, logic and reason had crept in and I started thinking I might be able to find some use for it, even if just as an access point.Thank you akbooer for the clear explanations. I have to say, discovering this place is very exciting -- it's the first time in a while that I've felt like I'm exploring something new that I'm keen about, like when I was a kid and I was learning how to set up my BBS.
I'm mostly concerned about the whole Linux thing. As PerH mentioned, it can be a little bit of a learning curve and it often had me feeling pretty helpless. I don't have any aversion to Linux, but I won't be making it my main operating system. The reason for that is not because I'm stubborn, but rather because while I don't spend an inordinate amount of time on gaming, I do enjoy it from time to time and I've spent a small fortune on my gaming rig (especially when you consider that I spent Bitcoin on this damn thing before the price exploded. This is possibly the most expensive gaming system you'll ever come across.
) My experience in the past is that Linux and gaming do not mix. I know it's gotten better over the years, but it still can't touch Windows on that front.So I think the question I need to ponder now is, do I poke around with OpenLuup to familiarize myself with it while not getting too serious about anything, then do a proper permanent set up when I can work a HAPC into my budget, or do I just put the whole thing off until I can invest a proper amount of funds into hardware for this? I'm leaning towards playing around with it on my Windows system for now.
The reason I was asking about Zombifying my Vera was that I was hoping to make use of it in some way since it has the Zwave radio built in. If I could avoid shelling out another hundred bucks on a Zwave stick for the same functionality, that would be great. Otherwise, if I can gain some sort of advantage by doing so, I will.My initial goals as I see them at this point would be:
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To have a single, low-power consumption, always on system that handles whole home audio, all home automation tasks and coordinates all HA systems, including my alarm system (this is important because it's rock solid and I will be using it for mission critical tasks in the future, such as aquarium maintenance and garden irrigation)
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To be able to access and control my music (Local sources) using voice commands (using Echo devices), and possibly execute other macros in the same way.
So the second PC will be purchased at some point and it looks like it will have to be Linux. The thing that concerns me is the transition that will need to happen when that becomes a reality.
I purchased J River Media Center some time ago, and I believe they have a Linux version, so that's one less thing to worry about.
Hopefully I won't need to print out all of the scripts, etc. I put together until then and then re-enter everything when the time comes.
Forgive me if I've been prattling on -- I think I'm mostly just talking to myself here.
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Sorry, one more question:
It seems that the Lua for Windows that is available for download on Github incorporates Lua 5.1.5. Is that still considered Version 5.1, or do I need to search for another source?
Thanks for all the help, everyone! -
If you just want to experiment, install windows subsystem for linux. My dev pc is a Windows machine but thanks to WSL I have a true Linux environment running side by side on Windows. That’s what I’m using to develop for openluup (and for my Linux dev needs in general).
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Great introduction. The background can really help when we’re giving suggestions.
It’s not the case that you need massively capable hardware to run openLuup. The most popular platform is, perhaps, Raspberry Pi, and even then it only uses a few 10s of Mbytes and ~5% cpu. But there are many options, and I’m about to follow a route that others have forged previously to run openLuup under Docker on a Synology NAS... so we’ll all be learning something new over the next few weeks.
Lua 5.1.5 is, indeed, ‘Lua 5.1’, and the best choice. Necessary additional Lua modules may come with your initial installation, or need to be added. There’s a list in the User Guide.
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Nice,
ok, well I installed the Linux subsystem, Lua 5.1 and the dependencies.
@therealdb thanks for the suggestion. It seems to be running alright. Any pointers on how I can have this start with Windows? The user guide only mentions scripts for Linux systems in the appendix. -
Just search for wsl 2 and you’ll find everything you need.
It’s just going to Windows Store and install your favorite distro, ie Ubuntu.
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@therealdb Yes, I did that already. I'm just wondering if I need to open the Bash console and start OpenLuup every time I reboot or if I can set it to start with each boot.
Everything seemed to go alright, but when I open AltUI, I immediately get a message box that says "fail". The weather is showing Paris, and I can't control any of my LIFX bulbs that I imported from the Vera using VeraBridge.
Also, the app store is blank. I haven't finished reading the user guide yet though. -
If you access your system through the openLuup console...
http://openLuupIP:3480/openLuup...then you should have a fairly familiar interface quite independently of any AltUI configuration issues. This also gives you access to the log files, which may help.
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Don't burn you stuff guys... :). There is actually nothing wrong with the vera hardware which I found to be actually quite well designed. (much better than the junk eZLO put out). It's the firmware/software which is to blame.
@Quixote, it should cost you nothing to start on windows and tinker with openLuup. I have reused the vera from quite some time for its zigbee radio and could have used its zwave radio as well. The zigbee antenna just happens to be quite weak on it. In order to use them you will however will need a radio host controller. For zigbee, I found home-assistant's zha component to work quite well. For zwave, openzwave (openhab, domoticz, home-assistant), homeseer all can use it. Unfortunately there is no bridge to openluup for these controllers. -
@rafale77, I will not be branching out into Zigbee. I figure the less complicated the system, the more reliable and the less problems to troubleshoot. Maybe if I had gone with Hue instead of LIFX, but I'm pretty happy with the brightness and vivid colors of these lights.
I had every intention of continuing to use the Vera for Zwave with openLuup, but it's becoming apparent that I'd be a lot better off just biting the bullet and buying a UZB dongle and a license for Z-Way. My VeraBridge does not seem to be cooperating, though to be honest I only tested it with my LIFX bulbs and I think I missed a crucial step (like importing the LIFX plugin or something). The plugin is not listed on the store. I tried the sliders that appear for the lights, but they are very unpredictable and do not include any options for color changes. -
Have you got AltUI going correctly? Don’t expect the openLuup console to be a complete replacement, particularly for fancy UI things.
If AltUI is not working correctly, then something fairly basic is probably wrong with the configuration. One of the first thing to look at is the locale setting on your machine.
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Quixotereplied to akbooer on Dec 6, 2020, 8:36 PM last edited by Quixote Dec 6, 2020, 3:39 PM
@akbooer
I stopped trying to get AltUI working since using openLuup's UI seemed to work. Plus I can't see myself paying a recurring subscription fee for a UI that ideally I will never have to see or use after getting everything set up correctly. I'm too cheap to pay a year's subscription for something that I may use for 3 hours after the initial programming. Now, if it were a one time version fee...Loading AltUI gives me a popup box that says simply, "fail". That hurts my feelings.
When I installed Lua and the dependencies, everything went smoothly. Installing openLuup seemed to hang near the end of the installation, but I was able to start it and display AltUI in windows Firefox (with the "fail" message). I was able to update VeraBridge, which seems to have installed it. With VeraBridge I hit "GetVeraFiles" and observed the devices listed. I see a device for LIFX Plugin, but playing with the sliders/power icons for those lights does not yield the correct results. Strangely, I can make the coinciding light do unpredictable things though sometimes.
The locale setting that you mentioned would be set in the Linux subsystem? or within AltUI? I never use any other language but English, but it's possible that my system is trying to use French since I reside in Quebec, Canada.
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Yes, the Linux locale. French or English would be OK, since it has language files for both, so perhaps this is not the issue.
The JavaScript used by plugins for AltUI will not run in the openLuup console interface.
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My Locale is set to en_US.utf8, so I'm all good in that regard.
@akbooer said in New to the forum:
The JavaScript used by plugins for AltUI will not run in the openLuup console interface.
Ok, and what's that in English?
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The openLuup console is not an all-singing and all-dancing UI, doesn’t support fancy browser-based extensions, and isn’t meant as an everyday replacement for AltUI, which remains the primary user-interface for openLuup. Indeed, it’s currently necessary for defining new scenes and variable-watch triggers.
If it’s not running, there’s probably something wrong with your system configuration, although that may have something to do with not having a licence. On the scale of HA installations, it’s not a big cost.
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Quixotereplied to akbooer on Dec 7, 2020, 8:42 AM last edited by Quixote Dec 7, 2020, 3:47 AM
@akbooer fair enough, but, at the risk of sounding ungrateful, I've barely left the starting gate here -- no new scenes, "variable-watch triggers": I have no idea but probably since you brought them up.
Not sure why I would need a license immediately, but in any case, to me it's like paying a yearly subscription for an Echo. When I bought it, it did what it did. Any other developments are the choice of the developer to invest the time into that in order to entice more clients and keep existing ones from leaving for something more appealing. Again, I'm not against a one time fee, but a reoccurring fee doesn't work for me. I also understand that it's in your best interest to have a developer that is well-versed in your project and fully capable of complimenting it on so many levels, however, a dependency on a commercial entity pretty much means that you are no longer "open".
Am I way out of line here?
Oh, and just by the way, if you need icons or anything, I'm willing to help you with that. I have a background in graphic design. -
It’s a fact of history that openLuup would not have existed without AltUI. There’s no way I have the skills to make a modern web interface with asynchronous updates, etc. As my frustrations with Vera grew, AltUI was a huge innovation, which kept me with Vera. TBH, I can’t really imagine using Vera without it, now. After further frustration with the performance and behaviour of the Vera Luup engine, I realised that I did have the skills to develop openLuup.
It’s entirely open, and so BTW is AltUI. Everything is available on GitHub. I don’t consider @amg0 to be a commercial entity, but I take your point, and eschew subscription arrangements for most things. But needs must.
You can certainly continue up to a point with the openLuup interface, but I’m just pointing out that it has its limitations, and the LIFX interface is one such. I’m sure we can get around this, since you imply that you want to control this through one app or other. How is everything else working?
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