Category: Automation
Meeting Mode: How I Solved My “Zoom Lighting” Friction with Alexa Routines
If you work from home, you know the “pre-flight” ritual: checking your camera, fixing your hair, and—most importantly—adjusting your lights. In my home office, I…
The Energy Detective: How I Monitor My Home Power for $30
Have you ever looked at your monthly utility bill and wondered exactly which appliance was the culprit behind that price spike? Was it the extra…
The Future Arrived Faster Than I Thought: From 2008 Dreams to my 2026 Tesla
Back in 2008, when I first started blogging here at The Technic Alley, I spent a lot of time “daydreaming” in print. I was fascinated…
Never Swap Cables Again: A 5-Month Review of the NeoCharge Smart Splitter
If you’ve recently added a second electric vehicle to your garage, you’ve likely faced the “Charger Dilemma.” Do you pay an electrician thousands to upgrade…
How Much Customer Support Is Artificial Intelligence Based?
Many of the well established companies now have chat based customer support. This is convenient in many ways if you are good at typing: you…
Smart Lighting – Initial Thoughts on Philips Hue Light Starter Kit
The recent Amazon Prime Day had some interesting geeky offerings. One of them was the Philips Hue Light Starter Kit that comes with a Hue…
Review: Ring Stick-up Cam with Solar Panel
I have been looking for ways to mount security cameras around my house to get good coverage of all doors and windows. If the cameras…
Google Car That Drives Itself
I had posted these “futuristic” thoughts a while ago. But looking at this NY Times article about Google cars that drive themselves, it appears that…
Car That Drives Itself – A Six Hats Perspective
While writing posts for the article The Car That Drives Itself, I have been wondering about all possible reactions to a topic like this. Then…
Article: The Car That Drives Itself
This post is an article that lists the collection of posts on this topic written so far in this blog. Catch Up On Your Sleep…
How Would You Put Your Car On Auto-Pilot?
This is a continuation from the post Cars On Auto-Pilot. Here is one possible way: Set destination information on GPS. Start driving to the nearest…
Cars On Auto-Pilot
If you found my earlier post Catch Up On Your Sleep While Driving interesting, then this one is for you. Why Autopilot? Let’s say you…