C4 DIY.com

One of the selling points of the C4 interface is the ability to consolidate your media, and view/call it via the cover-art selection screen. Many DVD changers and media servers are supported via a 2 way driver and work seamlessly through this interface. But what happens after you are done with that movie, and want to start another movie? You are now in control of the device playing your movie, and the guide buttons either does nothing (as it did with my 400 disc Sony Blue-Ray changer) or takes you to the menus of the device playing the media (as it did with my Netgear 9100 Express). These aren’t always as pretty, or as intuitive as the C4 cover-art screen. Also, this will tend to confuse the non-power user (such as my kids). It can become a little button intensive to return to the cover-art screen, which is why this little bit of programming can be a big convenience. For the full rundown on how to get the most out of the guide button and improve your families movie watching experience, hit the read link below.

So, if you were a fan of my writeup “How do I…use a timer to close my garage door?”, but the additional functionality I talked about but didn’t explain was intriguing to you, this article will you get you that much closer to having all that functionality. Here I have covered how to create an override to stop the garage from automatically closing, as well as use the LEDs in your dimmer(s)/switch(s)/keypad(s) to indicate whether the override was put into effect or not.

If all that sounds fun and functional to you, hit the read link for the full scoop on how to make it happen.

We’ve had several requests for people wanting to know how to make lights turn on and off at random to make their home appear occupied while they are away. This makes the home seem occupied and can potentially discourage any would-be burglars. At my house security is something we take seriously. How do we make it look like somebody is always home and milling about? Well, it is really quite simple!

Hit the read link for all the details.

So, there has been some discussion over at C4Forums.com (here to be exact) about how to use a String Variable to track the video/audio source being used in a room. This is useful for several reasons. A big one being the ability to let other users in the house know what you are watching so they don’t hop on that same DVR or DVD player and hijack your show. Another good use is the ability to have the video source change based on an action that took place, and knowing what to switch back to afterwords.

Want all the details on how to implement in your home? Hit the read link below and it will be up and running in no time.

One of the things I really enjoy about my Control4 installation is the control over the garage doors. They used to get left open a lot at my house, but I fixed that with Control4. If you’re interested to know how to utilize a timer to close your garage door(s) after they have been left open for a certain time, hit the read link for the full write-up.

One of the things that I love the most about my Control4 system is all the functionality that I squeeze out of a single light switch or dimmer. Using “multi-taps” and “press and holds” (those have been covered in other write-ups) you can get almost endless functionality out of each switch or dimmer.

For new users, the question is often asked about how to implement a multi-tap. So, that’s what I am going to teach you right now.

Hit the read link for all the details.