J.P.

Simplicity.

I installed a Nest Thermostat E in our bedroom this evening. I don’t know if the E stands for “eco” or “economy version”, but it is a nice looking until but without some of the capabilities of the regular Nest.

I wish I could say the installation was a flawless experience. I don’t know if the software was confused or I was confused, but the Google Home absolutely did not want me to do anything but wait for another Nest device to tell my thermostat how to get connected to the rest of the house. The problem is, I don’t have any other Nest devices. We haven’t had a Nest device of any sort since our relocation to Chicago in 2017, but I think Google Nest may have been confused on this. What should have been less than 30 minutes of installation time stretched into more then 90 minutes and a half dozen Factory Resets.

I finally ended up bringing Chris’ Nest Camera from his setup on the other side of the house to talk to my Nest Thermostat E. It then magically joined our wifi network and all was well.

I like the look of it. I’m surprised the ring doesn’t spin like the regular Nest units do; instead you rub and tap the right side of the unit to make adjustments.

Despite the software obstacles, overall I’m pleased with the unit and I find it aesthetically enjoyable.

26 March 2021 by Geek 0

Tucson, Arizona.

We are officially in Tucson. The drive was not bad today, the house is beautiful, there is much to do, and I’m off to bed. Time changes and all that..

25 March 2021 by Fun and Games Dept 1

Albuquerque, New Mexico.

We are about six hours from our new home, stationed in a Ramada in Albuquerque, N.M. I wasn’t expecting to drive through snow squalls, but we ran into two snow squalls between Tucumcari and Albuquerque. Um, this is the desert.

Overall the drive is going well. Truman has settled into a routine and takes naps. I follow road signs. Earl converses with us both and plays with his phone. It’s quite routine but still enjoyable.

24 March 2021 by Fun and Games Dept 0

Moving Day.

It’s moving day! The movers are packing up the truck as I type. We’ll be cleaning behind them and on the road this afternoon or evening.

I can’t believe it’s happening.

22 March 2021 by Tucson 0

Right?

There are many things I will never understand about Illinois. This No Right Turn is one of them.
21 March 2021 by Why. 0

Technology.

I am all for advancing technology. I’m excited about the technological future and I want to do any and everything I can to help bring our technological musings into fruition. Our new home in Tucson will probably have a lot of gadgets that seem futuristic, so when I see something out in the world that appears to be advancing technology, I get excited.

This touchscreen fuel pump does not excite me.

You know the drill. You put your credit or debit card in the slot (or tap your smart device against the reader that has a 10% chance of actually being there), type in your zip code, and select your octane.

First of all, what are we accomplishing by converting from buttons to a touchscreen? I’m sure many tests were done, but do we think a touchscreen in the middle of a Chicago winter will be super responsive to user inputs? And let’s talk about that. I could barely get the touchscreen to work on a surprisingly mild March day, I can’t imagine how it would be with gloves on a sub-zero January morning.

Aesthetically, the physical device is pleasing. The interface is a little too modern and simplified for my tastes and I could do without the ads, but it’s not awful.

I just don’t get why we needed it.

20 March 2021 by Geek Why. 0

I Should Have Followed You Home.

I can’t believe it’s been nearly eight years since this song’s release. The second single from the album “A”, by Agnetha Fältskog (the first ‘A’ in ABBA), “I Should Have Followed You Home” was a duet with former Take That singer Gary Barlow. Both Gary and Agnetha are so classy, and this live performance still brings me to tears all the years later. Beautiful people, beautiful music.

19 March 2021 by Fun and Games Dept 0

Dimmer.

I’ve been removing our home automation systems in preparation for the move to the desert this weekend. We’re slowly getting used to using light switches again; for the past 3 1/2 years our Philips Hue lights and motion sensors have turned on the lights where we need them.

The system is slowly being safely packed to be taken down to the new house.

After putting in new GE LED bulbs in the fixtures I noticed the dining room table lamp would not come on if the living room lights (the switches are next to each other) were dimmed down. I found this quite weird, since they’re two distinctly separate switches. I could replicate the issue easily: turn the dining room light off, turn the living room lights to the lowest dimmer setting, turn the dining room light on and nothing would happen until I turned the dimmed lights up a little bit. Then the dining room light would come out as well.

A wiring nightmare, right? No!

It turns out the GE LED bulb in the dining room light was supersensitive to the voltage variations from the dimmer, even though the light bulb wasn’t being controlled by the dimmer switch. I swapped out the bulb with another LED bulb and everything worked fine. So then I put the GE bulb in a two-bulb fixture in the bathroom far away from any dimmer switches and turned on the light.

The GE bulb noticeably lags in coming on compared to the other light.

There’s something up with that bulb, so I removed it and put another bulb in its place.

I’m happy I didn’t have to get into a wiring project tonight. We’re just that much closer to moving out on Monday.

18 March 2021 by Chicago 0

About Me.

Just a guy with a husband. We’ve been together 28 years and he still makes me see fireworks on a daily basis. Hiker. Storm Chaser. Private Pilot. Tech Guy. Hackerish.

Weird? Eccentric!

All The Places

Visit my Linktree
January 2025
S M T W T F S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031