When my clothes washer got SMS with Belkin WeMo but it failed....

9/1/14: See latest update on why I had to replace WeMo Insight switch due to failure. See blog http://hari-google-blog.blogspot.com/2014/08/replaced-belkin-wemo-insight-60-wifi.html

One of pet peeves was that we frequently forget to take clothes when the washer stops and in the best case they get wrinkled a lot and in the worst case very smelly and I need to wash again.

So, I experimented and bought Belkin WeMo Insight switch (actually a plug with a power button and WiFi indicator) for $50 when it came on sale. Regular price was $60.

First I installed Android App WeMo. I then plugged in the WeMo Insight into the wall outler and then the clothese washer to the WeMo Insight. Then I connected to WiFi "router" called WeMo something which was built into WeMo Insight.

After that it asked me which is my home WiFi network and I gave it the password. WeMo Insight which I named WeMo Laundry then connected directly to my router and so did my phone. Then I registered my WeMo laundry to my ifttt account directly from the WeMo App.

Then I went to ifttt (IF This Then That)
and created a "recipe" to send me text message when my WeMo laundry enters standby mode. ifttt asked for my cell phone number and sent me a 4 digit code by SMS which I was asked to enter in my ifttt account to authenticate the transaction. Done.

I started my clothes washer. While the washer was running, I was able to see the power consumed in Watts in real time using the App on the phone. Within seconds after the washer entered standby mode, I got a text message. I guess it worked!

I cannot do the same to my electric clothes drier because it runs on 220V and WeMo Insight only comes in a 110V version.

Update 8/13/14

I changed my router and now Belkin Wemo will first allow my phone to connect to it as an access point and then I open WeMo App and provide the password to the router I want to connect. Once I do that, WeMo is supposed to act as a client and connect itself to the router. It does not. I guess there is a failure. I am going to use Smarthings multi-sensor to sense the stopping of Vibration to detect end of cycle just as I did with the dryer. My conclusion is that Belkin WeMo is not quite there yet...

Fixed distorted sound in Ubuntu 13.10

Found a fix at this link

Distorted sound or no sound at all in Skype can be fixed by modifying file

/etc/pulse/default.pa

sudo mousepad /etc/pulse/default.pa
Find line with
load-module module-udev-detect
and change it to
load-module module-udev-detect tsched

I changed it in 2 places. Commented out the old line. No need to restart the computer. Just quit and re-opened skype.

### Automatically load driver modules depending on the hardware available
.ifexists module-udev-detect.so
#load-module module-udev-detect
load-module module-udev-detect tsched=0
.else
### Use the static hardware detection module (for systems that lack udev support)
#load-module module-detect
load-module module-udev-detect tsched=0
.endif

 

Replaced broken CCFL LCD display with LED display on 2010 Asus laptop K52F-BBR5.

About 1 year ago, my dog ran into the power chord of my wife's Asus laptop and it fell down and display cracked. She was using it with a external monitor.

Here are the Photos

I ordered a repalcement lcd screen for $60 on E-Bay from Boston Computer Pros BCP Inc

They shipped it by USPS Priority mail and I got it in 2 days.

I used a video to remove the old panel to replace it with this panel.

It was easy to remove the panel using a Phillips screw driver.

Problem was that this was LED panel and what I had was CCFL panel. When I wanted to return using e-Bay, Marc responded instantly and said that the CCFL panel can be replaced by a $160 CCFL panel on back order or with LED panel and an adapter board to replace the inverter used by CCFL panel. He offered it at his wholesale price of $30 instead of $40 and shipped it as soon as I shipped back the panel and sent him the tracking number.

In 2 days I received the LCD panel and the adapter. Problem was that I was unable to connect the the CCFL to LED adapter to the LED panel. In fact the connector broke and also a metal strip on the panel broke. When I called, Fumio answered, saw the photos and offered to send me a replacement CCFL to LED adapter and panel already attached to the panel. It arrived in 2 days,

See the photos, It worked great. Total cost $110. Replacement cost of equivalent computer is about $400.

Home Wifi suddenly unstable? It could be your microwave.

You probably noticed that your wireless internet can suddenly be intermittent.

This morning, I was using my computer at home to listen to TV audio using Slingbox which was also on my home network. Suddenly the audio become choppy and picture was freezing. I heard the microwave running in the kitchen and asked my wife to shut it off as a test case. Bingo! wireless was great. Then I swapped the Panasonic Inverter NN-SA651S 12.4Amp microwave with a Sharp Carousel microwave and the problem did not occur.

So, before you replace or move your router, check your appliances for interference. It could even be a blender or any small appliance with a motor controlled by electronics (not a good sine wave).