Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Mac Daniel's Advice

Using the X10 System with Your Mac

Evan Kleiman - 2001.10.03

Q. What can I do to make my room even more like its from Star Trek?

A. With the growing popularity of the latest Star Trek installment, Enterprise, TNN's now somewhat over-showing of every great Star Trek movie, and now the re-syndication of Star Trek: The Next Generation, more and more people are growing to love Star Trek again - me, for one. More and more people are wanting their lives and houses to be more like Star Trek as well.

Last week, we discussed making your room a lot like Star Trek by putting in your own X10 system. This week we'll discuss using motion sensors and scripting to have even more control over your room. One of the coolest things in the "Star Trek Room" is voice-command. "Computer, lights!" is possible. First, you need to set up your software to use scripting; AppleScript is, of course, the preferred way to do this, and almost all of the available applications for X10 support this protocol. My favorite applications for this are either X-Tension or SmartHome, by Smarthome.com, both available at X10's Web site. Both of these programs are set up different ways.

Once you have your scripts set up, it's time to let the speech magic begin. First, enable Speech Recognition on your computer. Next, make an alias of your script and drop it in the "Speakable Items" folder. Now you can just say "lights" or whatever - basically anything you name the program or script - and your script will run and do whatever you've programmed it do for you.

Next, we can use motion detecters to make your computerized room seem even more computerized and Star Trek-like. First, to make the motion detecters work, you need to buy a motion detector. As usual, you can find these little delights at the usual bevy of places such as x10.com, eBay, Smarthome.com, and others. Once you get one, aim it at your door (or whatever opening you'll normally be coming through), and you'll now be able to turn on your lights or run any script by walking into the room.

Another cool thing you can do with your new X10 setup is run TV or video cameras through your computer for a type of security system. If you've ever been to X10.com's Web site, you've definitely heard about (or at least seen a picture of) it's "number one" xCam2 system. This system consists of cameras, receivers, and TV or computer control boxes. You add a camera to any area you wish to view on your TV or computer and then hook 'em up. Each one, like your lights, has an individual X10 address. All you do is hook up the cameras and hook up a TV transceiver module, just like you hook up your VCR, and you can watch it on your TV - just like you watch a tape or DVD - and if you want to, you can even record it to your VCR and watch it later, just like you do with a regular, normal, expensive security system.

Also, another cool thing you can do is link up your Xcam2 system with your computer, using many of the different types of supplied software available at X10 's web site, along with some of the hardware which will work with the more modern DV Macs.

Now that you have set up more of your Star Trek room it's time to play with it and have some fun. Next week: how to be getting Scotty and Jean Luc Picard in your room, or not.

Not sure if you should upgrade your old Mac or replace it? Check the Mac Daniel index to see if we've already addressed your problem.

Recent Mac Daniel columns

WiFi Hardware Compatible with Desktop Macs Running OS X, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. USB, ethernet, PCI, and other wireless hardware compatible with Mac OS X.
WiFi CardBus Adapters Compatible with PowerBooks, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. CardBus hardware and drivers compatible with PowerBooks running Mac OS X.
WiFi PC Cards Compatible with PowerBooks Running OS X, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. PCMCIA/PC Card hardware and drivers compatible with PowerBooks running Mac OS X.
WiFi PC Cards for PowerBooks Running Mac OS 9, MetaPhyzx, 03.10. PCMCIA cards and drivers reported to be compatible with PowerBook running the Classic Mac OS.
More in the Mac Daniel index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: 17" MacBook Pro Core Duo, Apr. 2006 - The top-end MacBook Pro includes a 1680 x 1050, 2.16 GHz Core Duo CPU, and supports Apple 30" Cinema Display.
Group of the Day: G4 List is for those using Power Mac G4s or G4 upgrades.
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

Best iPod nano Deals, 11.25. Refurb 8 GB 4G nano, $99; new, $126; refurb 16 GB, $129; new, $150; new 5G/8 GB, $134.60; 16 GB, $161.12. Shipping included.
Best Classic Mac OS Deals, 11.25. System 6.0.8 floppies, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5, $20; 7.6 $13; 8.1, $11; 8.5, $20; 8.6, $90; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $30.
Best 15" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.25. Used 1 GHz Combo, $400; 1.5 GHz SuperDrive, $449; 1.67 GHz hi-res, $600.
Best G4 iMac Deals, 11.24. Used 15" 700 MHz CD-RW, $150; 800 MHz Combo, $229; 1 GHz, $289; 17" 1.25 GHz, $200; 20" 1.25 GHz, $509.
Best MacBook Air Deals, 11.24. Used from $899; refurb from $1,099; new 1.6 GHz/120 HD, $1,150 after rebate; 1.8/64 SSD, $1,150 a/r; 1.86/128 SSD, $1,350 a/r; 2.13/128 SSD, $1,694 a/r.
Best PowerBook G3 Deals, 11.24. Used 233 MHz WallStreet, $75; 266 MHz, $160; 400 MHz Lombard, $199; 400 MHz Pismo, $289; 500 MHz, $350.
Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.23. Used 867 MHz SuperDrive, $348; 1 GHz Combo, $379; SD, $519; 1.33 GHz, $529; 1.5 GHz Combo, $549; SuperDrive, $609.
Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.23. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 4-core. $1,919; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.93 8-core, $4,999; new 2.26 8-core, $2,290.
Best Time Capsule and AirPort Deals, 11.23. Used 802.11g AirPort Extreme, $49; 500 GB Time Capsule, $150; new, $190; 1 TB dual-band, $280; 2 TB, $469; 802.11n AirPort Extreme, $170.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.