In this issue: the glorious return of the smart switches, and an update on how that project is going. Plus: tips for time management; "full stack" developers; a year in review for MS devs; and DateTime as a value object.
An Update on my Smart Switch Journey
You might remember that a few months ago, in Issue #79, I wrote about smart switches and how progress doesn't often go as fast as we like.
"For this project, the progress comes in fits and starts comes in waves: first when I order the switches, then when they arrive, then when they are installed, then when they are connected. After that, well... both progress, and my personal enjoyment of doing this project, drop off. Mostly because I know in my head that I'm not done yet, and the time until when I will be done is still long and far away."
I'm here to report something awesome: a LOT of progress has been made. But there's a question looming: when this is done, what next?
You might have noticed that these two smart switches are not the same kind that I talked about in the last issue. They are, in fact, from the Lutron Caseta line (affiliate link), which has turned out to be much better than the WeMo line I was previously using. Unfortunately, this means they are also expensive: one switch is around $60, and a hub is required to run the system. This has not been a cheap project.
But it has been an exciting one.
By my estimate, around 70% of the lights in my house (and half of the ceiling fans) are now wired to one of these switches. It's taken me two weekends and probably 15 hours total worth of work to install 19 of these devices. I have four more ready to be installed, and around 8 more after that which I still need to order. My fingers are scraped, my knuckles are cracked. But I did it. I did it, and it feels gooooood.
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