Inside-Out

Katelyn Plays Dr. Phil

2006-09-20T17:23:33Z

A week ago I had this gal call me up and say that a purchase of a camera kit was made under her fiancé’s name and she wanted to change the purchase to show that it was indeed under her name because she paid for it. She then went into a VERY long story about how he had kicked her out of the house and had broken off the engagement. On top of all that he had used her credit card to place the order so technically speaking she bought the equipment. It turns out that this credit card misuse worked out well for the caller because she absolutely loved her setup from X10. She wanted everything on the account transferred to her name. So I put in notes into the order stating that this customer indeed wants to keep this product.

]]> Two days later I’m talking to her now ex-fiancé who called in and said that he wanted to return the system and get credit onto a different card. Because of credit card security I told him that we cannot do this, and that the notes indicated that his ex-fiancé is more than happy to keep the product. This is about the time he started ranting and raving about how she had cheated on him a and how this was his credit card but that she had stolen it from him, and a couple of not so friendly adjectives. He hung up after cursing even more about his ex-fiancé.

The very next day she calls up to add a Protector Plus system to the order. Turns out she was filing a restraining order against him and wanted more protection. It’s kind of ironic that his fraudulent purchase is now his ex-fiancés protection.

I’m sure we haven’t heard the end of this one. There’s a Lifetime made for TV movie in there somewhere!

Fantasy Sports Tracker

2006-09-19T18:57:11Z

Here in Seattle we’re known for specialty coffees, technology, and grunge music in the 90’s. After last football season the Seahawks and their fans are hoping to make it back to the Super Bowl and put Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks out there for the world to see. After the Super Bowl loss last season Seahawk fans are rabid and have more foam in their mouth than a latte from Starbucks. Every Sunday is a big deal this season in Seattle. Rather than raking fall leaves and other home improvement projects everyone is watching every move coach Mike Holmgren makes.

]]> Like Mike Holmgren I’ve got my own team and I’ve got a league of other coaches trying to knock my team down. My Fantasy Football league is full of sports nuts watching every game and studying stat after stat. I can’t possibly enjoy the actual games if I’m going back to my computer every other down to check my fantasy teams stats. I was thinking there has to be an easier way to watch the game AND watch my fantasy football team.

Generally when faced with a problem like this I look to X10 for answers. Sure enough there was a kit that would work. The X10 'Fantasy Sports' Tracker.

After hooking up the sender to my computer and the receiver to my TV I was able to send my Fantasy Football stat page from the computer to my television. This way I can watch the game, and watch my stats at the same time.

It’s just like changing the channel! Watch the big game on channel 13; switch over to my stats by hitting video input on my remote, then back to the game. With my TV’s picture in picture I can have them both up and switch from the small screen to the big screen with a simple push of a button.

My favorite thing about the kit actually has nothing to do with the kit. Now I can stay in the family room and watch the game without getting flagged down by my wife while running to the den. Before the X10 'Fantasy Sports' Tracker on the way to view my stats my wife would catch me and put me to work. Rather than watching the game or watching my stats I’d be in the yard raking leaves or cleaning the gutter.

Now I’ve got the game, my fantasy stats all in the comfort of my family room. Now I just need a mini fridge and I’ll be set for the next 17 weeks.

Jeff Stops Crazy Neighbors

2006-07-18T23:22:20Z

While trolling through e-mails and reading up on the new Sentinel and seeing that it is by far our best and most versatile camera with its weather enclosed dome and starlight mode for low light situations, my phone finally rang.

I answered the phone as charming and lovely as usual. "Thank you for calling X-10 Sales, my name is Jeff. Would you like to hear about our limited time deals on our new Sentinel camera?"

]]> "Umm, yes please..." the female voice trailed off. Filled with a sense of some hope on a great sale I continued and told her all the great features of our Sentinel, including the 240 degree panning, the amazing 44x zoom, of course the bragging rights of the starlight mode and that it came at the astounding price of $599.99.

"That is pretty high" She stated.

"Okay, what kind of system are you looking at hooking up today?" I asked. I hadn't known I was about to open a bombshell of a story.

"I'm trying to catch my neighbor. She's a crazy woman! She ruined our cars...she's poisoned my dog! And the police won't do anything because she's a very good liar." I was a little taken back, but not dissuaded from helping her. She continued, "The police won't do anything unless I have proof, so I need a camera system that will catch her."

"The Sentinel camera can definitely help in doing that. Am I safe to say she generally does this at night?"

"Yes Jeff. We've parked our new cars down the street and are wanting to move, but too afraid to move them into the driveway. I want to get some cameras to watch over them and catch her in the act!" We discussed several options, from our recording to the VCR or computer. After going over everything she needed we put together the perfect kit for her. She wanted to think about it overnight and callback.

The next day I got the following call…"Jeff I want to buy the Sentinel. I've had enough!" I set her up with the kit we spoke about the day before and assured her that we will do all we can to catch her neighbor with our camera.

Crazy neighbors be warned...the Sentinel is out there!

Josh An X10 Weekend Warrior

2006-07-06T17:27:08Z

This weekend I put together an X10 system for my father in law. He’s a disabled war vet and is having more and more trouble getting around. Exertion is a big no for him. Well, he loves to spend time out in his garage surrounded by his tools. Unfortunately the garage is extremely crowded with various pieces of garbage and junk which blocks the light switch from easy access. Until now he’s been creatively using a squeegee to reach across the garbage and flick on the lights.

]]> Now I know what you all are saying… “Just clean the garage…” Well, that would take way too much work, and quite frankly I didn’t feel like spending three days for a light switch to be more accessible. Instead I dug up some switches I had laying around and grabbed a screw driver.

A few minutes later we had found the breaker and cut power to the garage. This is, of course, the most critical part of any electrical installation. I pulled out a Wall Switch Module (WS467). Easy enough to install with just wire nuts and a flat head screwdriver, we were done in under five minutes. I plugged in a Wireless Transceiver Module (TM751) and whipped out a trust keychain remote (KR19A). With a click of a button we were in business. But could I stop there? Of course not!

Who wants to waste your precious body movement on fumbling with a keychain remote when you can have a motion sensor do the work for you! I pulled out a motion sensor out of my X10 grab bag (MS14A) and set the code… then realized that I had to mount it first… So I mounted it and then programmed the correct code in. So now, when he opens the garage door, the lights turn on automatically. And, after a good 4 hours they will now turn off automatically if he ever forgets to turn them off with his remote. Happy as a clam we both walked inside and showed it off to his wife.

Just for fun I plugged in a remote chime inside so now he will always know when someone is in his garage. As a bonus his wife can now keep track of him just in case she gets worried. And that is how I spent my weekend.

I’ve Got Three Fans!

2006-06-27T00:02:39Z

So over the weekend we hit a heat wave in Seattle. Oh man! I'm not used to this at all! I'm used to the cold and damp Seattle air. Myself and all the other Seattleites not used to this heat are moving in slow motion. So I was enjoying a cold adult beverage after mowing my lawn and looked at my dog…his face said it all. I needed to get some fans!

]]> The wife and I went shopping for fans. It's been years since I've gone shopping for a fan. They even look different than they used to. They're not all round at the top, some are tall and skinny and I'm pretty sure I could stick my finger in one and not lose my finger. I didn't find any metal blades which is good. My uncle Rick had a mishap with a fan, some peanut butter, a bottle of Jack and a bad dare. That's a whole different story.

So while looking in this sea of breeziness at my local hardware store my wife points to this fan with a big fat $60 price tag on it. A 16" oscillating fan...with a remote. "Look honey it has a remote!" she exclaimed thinking surely Tony the gadget lover in me would jump at this. I didn't jump at this though. Instead I gave her a look that she now calls my X10 look.

She quickly understood the look and said "Oh that's right you have your remote." And she was right on the money. I showed her a $20 16" oscillating fan without a remote and let her know that I would pimp out the fan when we got home. So far with X10 stuff I haven't missed yet with my wife. Each suggestion has worked out to save us time or make life easier...well except for my idea for a dinner chime. It would work if it was used.

Back home I took three appliance modules and setup three fans. Told my wife what unit code each was set to and BAM! I was sitting in the living room with an iced tea with my fans on a timer as well as ready to go with my universal remote and keychain remote. So I have three fans with my existing remotes for the price of one of those fancy fans. Plus when go to bed I can turn off the fans in the other rooms by the touch of a button on my mini timer on my nightstand. Ah yes...it's good to have fans…even if we only get a week of summer up here.

-Tony McCarl
Superbowl Team Trainer

Jeff Attempts To Use Superpowers

2006-06-23T00:09:27Z

A customer called and was apparently having some difficulty in getting his camera system to work properly. Looking to provide the best support to customers I was more than happy to help.

]]> The customer said “I can only see my wall!” and asked “What is the range on the cameras system?” I let the customer know our cameras wireless transmission can broadcast up to 100 feet. To make sure it would work optimally I asked what kind of walls he was going through. Brick, concrete, or even a big metal wall can shorten the range slightly. The customer didn’t answer the question and reiterated “I can only see the wall!”

At this point I have no idea how to trouble shoot this. I asked the customer, Can you move the camera to look around the room? He told me no, that wasn’t what he wanted to do. I was quiet a moment as I tried to figure out what the customer was attempting to do.

The wheels were spinning in my head then it hit me. I asked…”Sir, are you trying to use the camera to look –through- the wall?” He answered emphatically, “Yes!, that’s exactly what I’m trying to do, why isn’t it working?”

I held back an embarrassed chuckle and stated, “I’m sorry sir, our cameras do not see through a wall.” He replied back somewhat disappointed “Your website said it could go 100 feet.” I reiterated, “Yes sir, the wireless signal between the camera and the receiver would travel 100 feet, but the camera cannot see through the walls” The customer thought about this a second thanked me for my help and said “you should come up with something that will do that… that would be great!” I told him “Yes sir that would be great…but until we have that you’ll just want to mount that on the other side of the wall.” He thanked me again for my help and went on with his day.

$79.99 for a camera that sees through walls! That would rule! We can package it with Xray Vision goggles and decoder rings…but until then we’ll just sell wireless cameras that don’t see through walls.

This Old Birdhouse

2006-06-19T18:17:14Z

Like most married men I’ve spent a lot of time in the dog house. I’ve clocked in for at least several hundred hours in the dog house both figuratively and literally over the last seven years with my wife. Most of the time I’ve spent in the dog house has been over my lack of handyman skills. Growing up I would always be working on something with my parents who were very good at home improvement work. So I too thought I was the next Bob Vila. Turns out handing my dad a hammer or screw driver and holding up drywall doesn’t really strengthen my Darth Vila Jedi skills. “You said you were a handy man!” is a common phrase I hear.

]]> This weekend for Father’s day my son gave me a birdhouse kit. He has been watching birds and other outdoor life at our home in the back roads of suburbia and I told him we should get a bird house a month ago. So for Fathers day I get a kit… not a birdhouse, but a birdhouse kit. I’m staring at a box full of wood, nails, screws, and other doohickeys (very technical term). Yikes! My wife offered to help me put it together but I decided why not try and put it together. I took shop in 7th grade! I can do this! So my son and I ran off to workshop (an air hockey table in the garage) to put together the best bird house ever.

After looking at these pieces of wood for fifteen minutes or so I decided to hammer in some nails to the wood and get’er done. To my surprise it started to look like a bird house! Even my four year old thought so! After nailing the final nails we finished the birdhouse and hung it up on a tree in the front yard.

“Now what Daddy?” my son said… I wasn’t really sure. Do birds just fly to it? Do we have to get a bird caller? I don’t know, but I don’t want to stand outside all day watching a wooden box. It was time to break out my X10 skills. Over the years I’ve had lots of customers talk about buying cameras for bird watching. Hey I’ve got a bird house to watch! So back to the air hockey table we went….I mean workshop.

I grabbed a camera, motion sensor and my handy screw driver and we setup our bird house cam. We mounted it on the house facing the birdhouse. Now while watching TV we can check out the front door cam, or the bird house. I also setup the computer to take snap shots of the bird house. Once I see some activity I’ll move that to video.

So for Father’s day I was able to show that I can hammer and nail in a pinch and If I ever need to make a bigger dog house I’ll be able to do so. Any tips or suggestions on other bird house accessories I should grab? Anyone have any birdhouse web cams?

My Personal Assistant

2006-06-07T18:14:11Z

Wouldn’t that be nice if everyone had a personal assistant? Not only at work, but for everything you do?

]]> “Hold my calls I’m going golfing.” Or “Change my daughters diaper it’s dirty.” I would love that! The best part would be if I was in trouble I would always have someone there to help me out. Like when my wife asks “Does this make me look fat?” My personal assistant can jump in and take over that conversation. More importantly if I fell off the ladder while installing my floodlights my personal assistant can come running to help me out.

That actually brings me to the point of this entry. Today I was on the phones helping out in support to relieve the backup of calls. I came across a friendly lady who was asking about adding additional heart pendants to her personal assistant voice dialer. I told her “Of course you can! You can add up to 16!” She ordered two more and told me a little about her situation. It turns out that she took a spill and used the pendant for help. The personal assistant voice dialer called her son who rushed to her house to help. She thanked me for making the personal assistant and said it saved her life. I couldn’t take credit for making the product, but it’s nice to know that we can make such and impact for such a little amount of money.

What do you wish you had a personal assistant for? Could the personal assistant voice dialer work in this situation? Have you used the personal assistant voice dialer?

Excerpt: Tony MCarl is a trainer at our Seattle Office.

Betcha Bottom Dollar

2006-06-06T18:57:51Z

Last weekend was my wife’s big school production of Annie. The 7th and 8th graders have been working months to perfect the play and they were ready to go. I’ve helped with the school play for the last four years as a stage manager. It’s pretty exciting to rush props and sets on and off stage and ensure each of the performers have what they need when they get on stage.

]]> Last year we put on a stellar performance of Guys and Dolls. Everything went great on stage, the problem was backstage. It was hard for the cast to hear what was going on so they would all huddle on each side of the stage causing nothing but trouble when it came time to move props on stage. People in the way, people raising their voices too close to the stage; it was a mess that only people backstage would ever notice. I was determined to not have this happen again this year.

The solution was a simple XCam2, two audio/video receivers and two of the school’s TVs. I placed a wireless camera above the stage looking down. It gave us a totally different view which made it really fun for the kids but more importantly gave us the audio offstage. So the cast huddled around the TVs rather than the sides of the stage leaving open a clear path for my stage screw to take care of business.

Next year I’ll have to record the XCam2’s video. It would make for a great Easter egg on the DVD. We also used an appliance module to turn the lights on and off on the Christmas tree for scene’s 10 and 11. After the play a few parents asked me about my “gadgets” like I was George Jetson or something. I’m pretty sure this December I’ll be making house calls to setup their lights. I didn’t have the heart to tell them it’s so easy.

Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go

2006-05-26T21:30:30Z

It's official I'm an old geezer. It's not a bad thing... it's just official. I came in last night for a training session with our graveyard sales consultant at 2:00 AM after working my normal daytime shift the day before. Back in my younger days I could have easily done this... not so much anymore. My eyes hurt, my muscles ached, and the loud bass coming from the cars on the road at 1:30 this morning drove me crazy. "Turn down your stereo sonny! There's no need for all the boom boom boom!" After my insane drive into work I came in to find there is a whole different world running while I'm in bed.

]]> Our graveyard sales consultant was bright eyed and bushytailed and working the day without complaint or moving at a speed that can only be compared to Droopy Dog. I came across a whole new group of customers that I’ve never been introduced to before. People actually are awake after Conan O’Brien! My wife likes to call them creatures of the night.

After putting in my ten hours I sluggishly drove home to find myself ready for bed. But I had a problem. My son’s tap class was in a few hours and I needed to wake up in time to get him there. “Just set an alarm!” You might say, but that won’t work. I know when I’m tired I can sleep through anything. If our neighboring Mount Rainer ever blew it’s top while I’m sleeping I’d be in trouble.

Generally in the morning my alarm would go off and my wife would give me a swift hit with her elbow to my gut, waking me up and leaving me gasping for air. She was off teaching the children of the world so what can I do? My dog would not be smart enough to wake me up. So rather than having my dog channel Lassie I had an X10 moment.

I ran (probably more of a delirious speed walk) to my den to setup a macro and timer in Activehome Pro to flash my lights, and run my WinAmp player to blast Buckcherry at heart stopping volumes on my sweet sound system in my bedroom. It worked! After a few hours sleep I was able to get to my son’s tap class in time! While at tap class I had another moment. I realized that ten toddlers tapping would also wake me up. I’ll have to remember that next time I need an alarm.

Check these out if you want to do this yourself!

http://activehomepro.com/

http://www.x10.com/products/x10_ak11a.htm

Josh's Lessons Learned...

2006-05-26T01:00:00Z

It was a dark and stormy day… Actually I think it was pretty nice out,
actually. Sitting inside on a nice day is a bugger. Yet the powers that be
decided that today would be a better day than most. As I was slogging
through the ankle deep tech calls I encountered a very nice man from Canada.
He has an acute interest in setting up security for the oil fields in
Canada. We conversed for a little while and he left with a promise from me
to find a system that will work for his application.

]]> Now, the critical part of his setup is that whatever we are going to be
doing on the system needs to be wired. This includes the necessary motion
activated recording. I was baffled as to how I was going to set up a system
with a wired motion sensor (so the techs don’t have to change batteries)
that would send a powerline command to the Active Home Pro to initiate
recording. Well, I was saved in a week or so when I discovered what to me
was a yet unknown goody from the vaults of X10. The Motion Monitor
floodlight can send out a powerline signal when it is tripped. Hooray!

I immediately started setting up a system to send my customer a quote of.
Luckily in the meantime we had received our new and long awaited Sentinel
camera system. The weather-resistant pan tilt and zoom camera was just what
the doctor had ordered for this oil fields. So, the lesson to be learned
from this… Where there’s a will there’s a way. Never undersell yourself. If
you look hard enough you can find something to do what you want...
especially with X10.

Bret Saves The Day

2006-05-25T23:38:39Z

Recently I received a phone call from a group of police officers in Minnesota. They saw our system after doing a search on the Internet and called me to find out some information about our Protector Plus voice dialer security system. I was explaining to this group on a conference call the features of the system and how it could help them. They informed me that there was a real and imminent threat upon their daily lives. I wanted to ask why they decided to call me…after all they are the police right?

]]> This particular group of law enforcement officers arrested a high profile felon who was due to be released soon. They were receiving threats from this individual. Again that’s crazy maybe you should call the police I thought. Then the light bulb went off. With our security system in place X10 was protecting them. They can lead their daily lives without having to worry about their family or property. If anything did happen our system would catch them in the act. Then they would call the police…or themselves. In a way I’m responsible for protecting this group of police officers in Minnesota thanks to our Protector Plus system. Does this make me a deputy?

Tammra's "Daily" Event

2006-05-25T23:35:10Z

What has now become a typical "daily" event:

]]> Me: "Thank You for calling X10 Sales, this is TAMMRA, how can I help you?"

Customer: "What was your name?"

Me: "Tammra"

Customer: "Camera?"

Me: "Tammra"

Customer: "Hi, Camera" "That's cute, Camera sells Cameras.I like that!"

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, and NO, I am NOT that chick on the website! LOL!

Yes, some days are better than others!

Meet Tammra

2006-05-24T00:00:00Z

Wow, where do I start?

I have been contemplating what to say for a couple of days now. I have endless stories from my seemingly endless days in tech support. That having been said, I didn’t feel it necessary to dwell on those, since they are posted all over resellerratings.com. Look for X10 and Tammra. I’m all over the ratings site!

]]> Now that I have become a member of the X10 sales force, I felt it necessary to elaborate on my new experiences. Funny, some of my best stories are of “my” loyal tech support customers that still feel it absolutely imperative to contact me in the event of a technical snafu, or the rare occasion they need to purchase new items. Admittedly, this warms my heart to no end! Returning X10 customers are the best! I am always amused to hear the excitement in their voice when I answer the phone and hear, “Tammra… I wondered if you still worked there!” or “Now that you are a ‘big shot’ sales rep, do you still have time to help an old friend?”

The answer of course being, “For you… anything!”

-Tammra

In The Lobby

2006-05-24T00:00:00Z

Last week while training some of our new hires I heard from that we had a customer waiting in the lobby. Seeing how we're a call center people around me seemed to have no idea what to do. It was almost like they had no idea how to interact with someone face to face. A panic went through the call center. You would think we all lived here and never left. Having years of retail experience I knew I could talk to someone face to face so I decided to head downstairs to see what the hubbub was about.

]]> As it turned out our visitor (Bob) flew in from Arizona...no not just to talk to us…he had some family matters to attend to and thought he would stop by X10 to get some issues taken care of. Somehow he made his way from across town to our well off the beaten path call center. Sadly he received some bad directions from a road sign and spent a few hours in traffic. I offered a treat from the snack tray at the front desk and an ear to listen to his concerns. After a few minutes I realized all he needed was our software sent to him. It was that simple. I took his information and sent him the software. He was tickled pink. I gave him solid directions to get back to his hotel and he was on his way.

It reminded me about the thrill of face to face interaction with customers. It's a totally different ballgame without the veil of secrecy of the phone. Being the trainer I decided to use this as part of training. Act as if your customer is right in front of you. You can't hide. It changes everything.

In the end Bob got his software and was happy he made the trek to X10. For everyone else looking to make the flight to our home in Kent I would save some gas and give us a call or send us an email. While you miss out on the candy at the front desk you’ll still get the one on one support you need without the travel expenses.

-Tony