What am I getting into here ?

Although there are many X-10 compatible devices in nice glossy catalogs,
please don't go out and buy a lot of stuff that looks like fun right now.
Stay with the simple stuff until you have some experience with them
and by that time, you will have a better idea of how to
make best use of these goodies.

Here's all you need to get started :

Any Macintosh
( $75 - $4000)

Any Mac, from the old MacPlus
to the latest Mac Mini can run XTension.

The best choice for Classic XTension is an older PPC Mac
with some PCI slots.

A cable adaptor
( $8 )
Order it here.

If you have a USB Mac, you don't need this.

If you have a late model Mac, you may need a USB adaptor.
Order it Here.

Or, use one of the latest USB native controllers !

The cheapest starter kit is here: Home Automation Kit
( $50 )

Now of course you need a copy of XTension ! *
But DO note that you can download any version of XTension and it will perform in the LITE mode, which allows you to create a database of 5 units, and play with them before spending a dime on XTension.

Remember to keep it simple at first.
You need only do one thing at a time.
Anything you have to have can be had from the corner Radio Shack,
or overnight via Fedex...
play a bit, think a bit, then buy.

Here's a page with a survey of common X-10 devices

OK, where can I get it all ?

Back to Home Page
Where to get it all
Ready for a Tutorial?

Copyright 2007, Sand Hill Engineering All rights reserved.

Last modified: January 15, 2005
Michael Ferguson, webmaster@shed.com