
A Glass Box of a House in Germany That ‘Thinks’ for Itself - mr_golyadkin
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/17/greathomesanddestinations/a-glass-box-of-a-house-in-germany-that-thinks-for-itself.html
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mc32
I hope all of the things which are automatically actuated via automation
systems and overridden by portable devices (smartphones, etc.) have actual
manual overrides (physical handles on doors, windows, blinds, shutters, etc)
for when you need manual overrides (ie, there is a fire. I need to get out,
in, frantically can't find phone)

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breakingcups
> "As might be expected, there is little need for anything as outdated as a
> door handle or a light switch — everything is at the tap of an iPad or a
> smartphone, which can set room and water temperature, switch on the
> lighting, open and close the windows and even control the refrigerator."

Ugh, no not at all. I'd rather instinctively reach a light-switch than reach
for my tablet, click the power-button, wait 0.4 seconds for it to turn on,
enter my pincode, wait 0.5 seconds before it's usable, open the control app,
which takes 3-10 seconds to then navigate to the proper option and tap it....
For the same result.

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rasur
I enjoyed the use of the term 'minicomputer', being old enough to remember
minicomputer actually meaning something somewhat larger than the size of a
modern day internet router :)

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ucaetano
"Mostly it is the work of engineers and contractors who (...) have no
education in aesthetics."

I consider that to be, often enough, a positive thing.

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mc32
Yes, that's true. Overemphasis on aesthetics above functionality tends to
result in buildings with quirky problems (the recently new mit buildings) and
can stick out like an eyesore once the avant guarde aesthetic falls by the
wayside, but I think here they have a point in that many times contractors and
other builders go for mass production and so don't often optimize for
recyclability or energy usage, etc.

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coldcode
I wonder what the cost would be in bulk. Also how secure the house is against
intruders with such light materials.

