Relay Contact Closure -What's the best way?

I have an always on PC at home with a Verizon FIOS Internet
connection. Often I check in from my laptop PC in remote locations
using VNC to see the screen and various ftp programs to transfer
files.

What's the best way to control contact closure relays at home from my
remote locations? I don't think I'm looking for anything too complex
and geeky. The applications being controlled are things like
thermostats and outdoor lighting. A remote status indication (whether
the relay is open or closed) would be nice.

Beachcomber

invalid@notreal.none (Beachcomber) wrote in news:475eddde.537734
@news.verizon.net:

>
> I have an always on PC at home with a Verizon FIOS Internet
> connection. Often I check in from my laptop PC in remote locations
> using VNC to see the screen and various ftp programs to transfer
> files.
>
> What's the best way to control contact closure relays at home from my
> remote locations? I don't think I'm looking for anything too complex
> and geeky. The applications being controlled are things like
> thermostats and outdoor lighting. A remote status indication (whether
> the relay is open or closed) would be nice.
>
> Beachcomber

X10

Regards,

invalid@notreal.none (Beachcomber) writes:

> I have an always on PC at home with a Verizon FIOS Internet
> connection. Often I check in from my laptop PC in remote locations
> using VNC to see the screen and various ftp programs to transfer
> files.
>
> What's the best way to control contact closure relays at home from my
> remote locations? I don't think I'm looking for anything too complex
> and geeky. The applications being controlled are things like
> thermostats and outdoor lighting. A remote status indication (whether
> the relay is open or closed) would be nice.

This is off topic for this group, but X10 sells a bunch of home
automation stuff like that. X10 is a company name as well as an
over-powerline control protocol. smarthome.com is another purveyor of
many such goodies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X10_(industry_standard)


If you search on home automation, I bet you'd find a great deal of
such goodies. There are surely some home automation or x10 dedicated
newsgroups out there too. comp.home.automation appears to be one.


--
Todd H.
http://www.toddh.net/