programmatically controlling power sockets in the UK

Posted by cartoonfox on Stack Overflow See other posts from Stack Overflow or by cartoonfox
Published on 2009-12-25T00:50:50Z Indexed on 2010/05/11 6:44 UTC
Read the original article Hit count: 394

Filed under:

electronics

|

interfacing

|

parallel-port

|

serial-port

It's very simple.

I want to plug a lamp into the UK mains supply.

I want to be able to power it on and off from software - say from serial port commands, or by running a command-line or something I can get to from ruby or Java.

I see lots written about how to do this with X10 with American power systems - but has anybody actually tried doing this in the UK?

If you got this working:

1) Exactly what hardware did you use?

2) How do you control it from software?

Thanks!

© Stack Overflow or respective owner

Related posts about electronics

Consumer Electronics Show (CES):CRM for High Technology Firms

as seen on Oracle Blogs - Search for 'Oracle Blogs'
The Consumer Electronics Show, opening Thursday, showcases product innovations that stem from best practices in design, manufacturing, and distribution. Oracle and IBM invite you to learn best practices from peers, as well as why it matters to use CRM tailored for high technology firms -- offered… >>> More
Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Summit:Best Practices in Transforming Channels and Partnerships

as seen on Oracle Blogs - Search for 'Oracle Blogs'
Expanding consumer demand is driving the entire high technology industry, accompanied by product lifecycles as short as a few months, continued pricing and promotion pressures, and increased globalization. Unifying global channel management, operations, and execution flow will increase efficiency… >>> More
Assembly Language and Electronics

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
I want now to start developing devices, but I don't know too of electronics, just some good knowledge in MIPS, x86, 6502 and ARM processors, but where can I find some good resources to learn how to enter on this world of the hardware? >>> More
Use a Crayon to Enhance Engraved Lettering on Electronics

as seen on How to geek - Search for 'How to geek'
Whether you’re making a new electronics project or trying to add definition to an old piece, you can use a simple crayon to make etched logos and text pop. At RedToRope, the DIY and project blog of electrical engineering student and tinkering James Williamson, James shares how he used a crayon… >>> More
Electronics Recycling

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
Is it common practice to not pay for recycling electronics? I find it kind of funny that scrap metal demands such a premium but electronics recycling gets nothing. My dad owns a stereostore and throws away hundreds of radio head-units a month is there anything useful or profitable that can be done… >>> More

Related posts about interfacing

memory interfacing and IO interfacing

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
what is the difference between memory interfacing and IO interfacing ? >>> More
Interfacing Android Nexus One with Arduino + BlueSmirf

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
I'm a bit new to all of this, so bear with me - I'd really appreciate your help. I am trying to link the Android Nexus One with an arduino (Duemilanove) that is connected to a BlueSmirf. I have a program that is simply outputting the string "Hello Bluetooth" to whatever device the BlueSmirf is… >>> More
Interfacing my application with existing authentication systems

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
I'm writing a web based application that will have its own authorization/authentication mechanism (traditional cookie/session based user/pass). However, depending on the organization that licenses the software, I want them to be able to plug in their own existing internal authentication system as… >>> More
Interfacing with Compris POS

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
Does anyone have any data on how to interface with a Compris POS? I have a Compris POS, and I need to grab data from the database. I can't get information from NCR regarding the underlying data format, and I was wondering if anyone had reverse engineered the device, or had any documentation on the… >>> More
C++ VB6 interfacing problem

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
Hi, I'm tearing my hair out trying to solve this one, any insights will be much appreciated: I have a C++ exe which acquires data from some hardware in the main thread and processes it in another thread (thread 2). I use a c++ dll to supply some data processing functions which are called from thread… >>> More