Inexpensive M1 add-on for extended rules/emails - ISY?

gcimmino

Active Member
I've been running an M1 for a long while and have been happy with it.  I have the XEP and XSZLW/VRC0P integration with a couple of 2Gig stats.
 
I'm looking for an inexpensive add-on that will allow me to do a bit more with rules, including sending emails with dynamic content.  My preference would be for dedicated microcontroller devices vs. software running on a PC/Linux box, but I'm not totally adverse to the latter depending on price point.
 
In retrospect, perhaps the Zwave version of the ISY instead of the XSZLW/VRC0P would have been the way to go, but I don't see the need to move my zwave gear to the ISY for this requirement.
 
Should I consider a non-zwave ISY + elk add-on to get the rules/email functionality or is there something less pricey than $199 for the ISY994i plus $99 for the Elk add on that folks would recommend?
 
Thank you!
 
OP - please don't cross-post.  I kept the post with more views and removed the other.
 
That said - I know it sounds like you're looking for something small in footprint and overhead, but I'll say that the more advanced rules are exactly what drove me to run HA software on top.  The free version of Elve combined with a small 1U atom based PC in the close is a low power device that can handle way more complex rules.  In addition, it can run other utility software around the house that I like to have always on.  For me, it was a quick and easy solution.
 
Now, if you like to tinker, one would think there would be some good options that can run on an rPi by now - they're certainly powerful enough now... but I just don't know what's out there that you wouldn't have to sink a ton of time into.
 
Thanks for the reply.  Elve looks interesting, but the project seems to have gone dead.  The last SW update is over a year ago.  There's been discussion on open sourcing it, but those seem to have gone fallow as of last summer too.
 
I think I'll continue to research the ISY or HomeTroller Zee S2 options.  Certainly not as flexible, but there's something to be said for ongoing development.
 
Yeah it's unfortunate that it was a 1-2 man project and they moved on to bigger and better things.  I certainly wish there was ongoing development - I really liked where they were going.  That said, there's a strong basis, and the M1 hasn't changed in 8+ years so it's fine, and there are some people writing drivers for other modules.
 
If you find anything better, please update us.  I'd love to find something (other than homeseer) that can integrate with the M1 and even bridge into some of these cloud-based offerings... I'd love to get my Echo controlling my lights through my M1.
 
i used to do the following as a workaround to get zone specific emails from my XEP:
 
Set up XEP emails like this:
1 = 1
2 = 2
3 = 3
4 = 4
5 = 5
6 = Doors: 1Front, 2Back 3Side 4Overhead 5Basement.
7 = Windows 1Dining 2Kitchen 3Master 4Guest 5Living
8 = Smoke 1LivingRoom 2Garage 3MasterHall ...
9 = Motions 1Dining 2Kitchen 3Master 4Guest 5Living 
10 = Whatever 1This 2That 3You get the idea
 
Then set up rules for each zone to send TWO emails.
So front door sends email 1 and 6
Kitchen motion sends 2 and 9
So using 1-5 as numbers and 6-10 with multiple zone descriptions and cross referencing, you get 25 distinct notifications out of 10 XEP emails... 
And you still have 11 thru 16 for specific things.
 
You can just do 1,2,3=1,2,3  and then 4,5,6 with zone descriptions so you get 9 notifications out of 6 emails, and you still have 7 thru 16 for regular emails for a total of 19.
Or (4x4) 16 out of (4+4) 8 + 8 remaining  =24
25 out of 10 + 6 = 31
36 out of 12 + 4 = 40
...
 
It works.
It can be a little overwhelming if multiple zones are violated..
And emails, or SMS's, don't always reach their destination in the order sent.
 
But the system works if you need a cheap workaround for more emails...
 
Kevin 
 
Back
Top