The new year has just started and our first meeting of the year already took place. We from the ioBroker team wish everyone a happy new year and that 2022 will be a great year for home automation.
Dear ioBroker users,
I would like to start by quoting a Facebook message that we think is really great:
A big thank you from me as well. It feels like you guys are part of the family. You turn off the lights when the kids forget, you make sure that the cars are always sufficiently charged, you check the calendars and control the heating. When we get up, you have warmed the towels and wake us up with a soft light. You are the family member that everyone wants. Thank you ioBroker Team
Thanks to Carsten R. for the nice words...
Beta (Latest) vs. Stable
Again and again we receive inquiries from users who have problems with some adapters. If you then ask exactly which version was installed, because such errors would not be known, they say that a version x was installed from the beta/latest repository or even worse, directly from GitHub.
Basically we want to emphasize that a productive installation of ioBroker should ALWAYS use the stable repository. Beta/Latest are versions that may still contain bugs and may possibly affect the whole system. You should ONLY install an adapter directly from Github if the developer has asked you to do so at that time - these versions may not run at all and are certainly not released by the developer, as they represent some stage of development.
What should I do if I ever need an adapter from "Beta/Latest"? In the past this meant to switch the repository in ioBroker from stable to beta, install the one adapter and then switch back. The latter then mostly fell by the wayside. Since Admin 5 this is much more comfortable, WITHOUT changing the repository! Just activate the expert mode briefly and under "Adapter" and the "Custom Install"(GitHub) button use the first tab "Installation of NPM" to update the adapter. This way you get the latest beta version without having to change your repository.
How does an adapter get to Latest or Stable? Long before an adapter is installed on your system, a developer submits a request to add it to the repository. When that happens, experienced developers look at it and tell the requesting developer what needs to be done before his adapter can be included. This can take a few weeks. Only when we are sure that everything is ok, an adapter comes into the latest and the beta testers come into play. If then everything is ok and there was enough feedback, then it can be added to the stable.
Similarly, when an adapter is updated, the rule is that if a version can be considered stable enough after some time and enough installations by beta users in the beta repository, then the developer releases it to the stable repository. In this case, the adapter is automatically reminded after about 15 days.
Adapter requests
ioBroker can do a lot but not everything! That's why we have our wish list. Here everyone can create an issue as a wish or vote for an existing wish by simply opening a wish and voting with a "thumbs up" at the first comment (other reactions are not considered!). You can see the current order of wishes here.
This list has already resulted in many useful adapters!
New adapters
The new year starts with 32 new adapters that have been added to Latest or Stable:
For the drivers among us, new adapters for the Nissan Connect, Renault/Dacia, myT Toyota, Smart eq and Porsche have been released. So that you can also open the garage door, the adapter for Maveo garage doors was released. Once in the garage, the OCPP 1.6 compatible wallboxes can start working.
In times of Corona, a working ventilation system is very important and those from Helios and Zehnder can now talk to ioBroker as well. Sure, it can get cold with all that ventilation, which is why we now also support wood and biomass heating systems from Fröling, wood heating systems from HDG-Bavaria and condensing technology from Bosch Group (Buderus/Junkers/Netfit...).
With the amount of energy we use every day, it would be good to have a Cleveron heating optimizer and air quality sensor. With energy data from Powerfox and an AIO battery system, you're good to go.
While the LG Thinq household appliances are working in the kitchen, one can relax quietly in the whirlpool from Bestway or Intex, filled with softened water from a BWT softening system. Even the, at this time of year, lower lying sun is no problem at all with the awning control from Warema or roller shutter control from Selve.
For all KNX users, an alternative KNX adapter has appeared with openKNX, but also the long-awaited Samsung Smartthings and Xiaomi Gateway 3 have now been released for testing. Also wireless M-Bus devices or Wisen or Elro - Hekr protocol can now be controlled with ioBroker. Also included is an adapter for the Innoxel building automation system popular in Switzerland.
Hopefully it will be warmer soon so that our pets can go out through the Sureflap into the garden controlled by Netro. We can then do something for our health, where the devices of Withings support us.
And last but not least, I would like to introduce the Birthday Adapter to never forget the mother-in-law's birthday again ;-) For the party technology you can then use the ArtNet-Recorder.
Closing words
Who is behind ioBroker? I'm sure many people have asked themselves this question and the answer is really super simple: All of us! Everyone here is an important part of the community. There are the developers, who always put their free time into the project and build new adapters for you or fix existing bugs. There are the testers, who always test our adapters and post issues on Github or in the forum. The writers, who always expand our docs, write posts in the social media, help the other users and also invest a lot of time and sweat in the project. It is the translators who make sure that the texts are not just translated automatically, but also make sense. And of course the users, who always have new ideas, ask questions, take the system apart and get it working again with the help of other users.
At this point, we'd like to remind you of social media etiquette. We are not all at the same level of knowledge. Fortunately, our community is constantly growing and new users, developers, testers, etc. are joining us.
Everyone has the opportunity to ask any questions of a professional or technical nature to the community on social media. Experienced but also new members answer questions and share their knowledge and skills. Use synergies and reach the goal together! Also your reports, what you have built and programmed again great, is always welcome and very popular with all.
ioBroker is a hobby for all of us, so it should and must be fun. Lately, there have been a lot of posts in the community that we don't find very appropriate and that don't belong there. The choice of words, but also the tone play a big role. Please be respectful to each other, and respond to the needs of others or even hold back if it does not contribute to the matter.
Please also keep in mind that hobbies do not have working hours and an answer to a request can and may take some time.
The next meeting will take place on February 16th. Have fun in the ioBroker world. Stay healthy!