Haiku Getting Started w/ Haiku and Haiku Helper

[tannebil]

I downloaded Haiku and have the basics running but I'm not sure what else I can do at this point.  A few questions:
 
1.  How do configuration changes get pushed from Haiku to the controller?  I added a camera in Haiku but it never uploaded to the controller.
 
2.  Is there any documentation as to things I can do with Haiku?  Can I configure which items get presented in different Haiku screens or is the basic configuration fixed?
 
It appears that installing HaikuHelper would give me two things.  First, it would let me get push notifications on my iOS devices. Second, it would let me create a custom web interface that would run on any device with a relatively modern browser, e.g. iOS, Android, Windows Phone on mobile devices.  However, it doesn't look like it comes with pre-programmed apps other than a copy of the Haiku interface nor do I see documentation of using it other than a couple of short examples in postings here.  
 
1.  Is there any "getting started" documentation for HaikuHelper available?
 
2.  If I buy HaikuHelper, will the app install include comprehensive documentation?
 
3.  I'm not a programmer by trade and, while I've done a little bit of work with JavaScript and PHP, I'm a long way from being able to write and debug anything complex.  How much expertise is needed to do anything interesting with HaikuHelper?  I generally have the best success when there's lots of sample code and documentation available.
 
4.  My environment is OS X/iOS and I don't really have the need or interest to run on other platforms.  If I decided to write custom HaikuHelper code, which language is likely to be the easiest way to do it?
 
Thanks, Bill

 

[cantrels]

I can give you my newbie's impression - I'm in a similar boat as yourself in many ways.
 
One helpful page is located here: http://www.haikuautomation.com/support/haikuhelper
 
There is a post in this forum with a link to scripting documentation here: http://cocoontech.com/forums/topic/20582-haikuhelper-javascript-json-api-documentation/
 
Neither Haiku nor HaikuHelper came with an "comprehensive" end-user guide, but the software is, for the most part, very intuitive. Also, the community and developers here are very helpful in responding to questions (or so it seems to me).
 
As for devices management, in my experience, it's the other way around than what you describe. You identify zones, units, flags, buttons, etc on your controller, then Haiku (and HaikuHelper) will see them. I'm investigating PC Access as a means to add/remove/edit these entries for the controller.
 
Best of luck!

 

[tannebil]

Thanks for the links.  I still can't find any way to get from the Null River site to the haikuautomation.com/support site.  Maybe there's actually some kind of an arm's length relationship between Null River and Haiku that makes adding a link on the Null River product page harder than it seems at first glance.
 
There's some useful stuff in the FAQ's which has enabled me to make some progress with Haiku but I think it's mostly a matter of getting my controller configuration done properly then figuring out the way that the controller terminology maps to my mental model of the world. At this point, I've got the zones configured so I can see open/close on doors/windows and the UPB PIM installed.  The PIM will control an existing UPB network configured with UpStart that I've been using with Elve.
 
HaikuHelper looks like a must-have if I want to deliver an interface that my wife will find acceptable so I guess I'll need to suck it up and work on my JavaScript expertise.

 

[lupinglade]

1.  How do configuration changes get pushed from Haiku to the controller?  I added a camera in Haiku but it never uploaded to the controller.

Your configuration is done on the HAI controller, via PC Access or the keypads. Haiku/HaikuHelper download this information. Cameras can be added to Haiku/HaikuHelper directly or via the Extended Setup feature on the controller.
 

2.  Is there any documentation as to things I can do with Haiku?  Can I configure which items get presented in different Haiku screens or is the basic configuration fixed?

Haiku is designed to be intuitive to use. The screens are based on the configuration setup on the controller. You can customize the Rooms section using PC Access by defining custom rooms with whatever controls you like. You can also customize the Favorites screen by using the star icons on each controllable item in Haiku to mark which items are your "favourites".
 

It appears that installing HaikuHelper would give me two things.  First, it would let me get push notifications on my iOS devices. Second, it would let me create a custom web interface that would run on any device with a relatively modern browser, e.g. iOS, Android, Windows Phone on mobile devices.  However, it doesn't look like it comes with pre-programmed apps other than a copy of the Haiku interface nor do I see documentation of using it other than a couple of short examples in postings here.

 
1.  Is there any "getting started" documentation for HaikuHelper available?

There is full documentation in the Help menu.

2.  If I buy HaikuHelper, will the app install include comprehensive documentation?

Yes. We provide a getting started guide, a guide on creating interfaces and full API documentation for scripting and the web framework.

3.  I'm not a programmer by trade and, while I've done a little bit of work with JavaScript and PHP, I'm a long way from being able to write and debug anything complex.  How much expertise is needed to do anything interesting with HaikuHelper?  I generally have the best success when there's lots of sample code and documentation available.

Depends how complex what you want to do is. The API itself is quite easy, but more complex applications require more knowledge of web technologies. Its quite trivial to program automation logic. A complex custom interface could be more challenging, but we do provide tools to make it much easier to do and full documentation.

4.  My environment is OS X/iOS and I don't really have the need or interest to run on other platforms.  If I decided to write custom HaikuHelper code, which language is likely to be the easiest way to do it?

You can use web technologies like JavaScript and CSS/HTML5 for interfaces and automation. You can also interface with other languages like PHP, Ruby, Cocoa and really any other sufficiently powerful language.