Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API • Hacker News Board

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#511

Post by TeMPOraL » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:49 PM UTC

jrockway wrote: post #435

tech_ken wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you're saying that retailers will pay Chamberlain to act as more or less a clearinghouse for package deliveries in my garage, and that in order to successfully operate this model Chamberlain needs to funnel all users through their proprietary channels in order to fully vet the delivery transaction? Or at least to prevent HA users from nibbling at Chamberlain's lunch with DIY equivalents? Do you think that they wil…

I don't think they care about HA at all, but they do care about Amazon not going through them to get access, and from the API server's perspective, both look identical. Personally, I hope that Amazon doesn't play ball. You can TRY and seek rent from the world's largest retailer, but you need them, they don't need you. My main takeaway is that Amazon should offer a discount to deliver packages to buildings with staff…

Curiously in this case, the impetus seems to be a problem that stems primarily from delivery companies squeezing their drivers to near-breaking point. In other words, we're talking about things becoming $1 or $2 more expensive overall, to feed a side industry dedicated to offsetting the negative consequences of exploiting delivery drivers.

The only term that comes to my mind here is cancer.

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#512

Post by ethbr1 » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:53 PM UTC

godelski wrote: post #502

gambiting wrote: post #475

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As if amazon drivers read the notes. I once left a giant note saying in capital letters "DO NOT RING DOORBELL, SLEEPING BABY AT HOME" and of course the absolute knobhead from Amazon had to ring the doorbell. Literally never shouted at anyone in my life before this.

A few times I've left a very big note that says "PLEASE KNOCK LOUDLY" while sitting in my livingroom facing the door just to never see the UPS or FedEx delivery person approach but get a text message about "no one responding" so they reschedule the pickup (and I can't pick it up at the hub a few miles down the road because it's closed...). One time I chased a driver who literally just threw a note on my door (no sign…

It seems to be a local branch culture thing. You see it with USPS offices too.

Some are amazing, mail is delivered perfectly, etc.

Others cannot for the life of them match number to address, and it doesn't seem to matter who is delivering as the attitude spreads across the office.

I think a huge part of this is missing actionable feedback messages.

If USPS/UPS/FedEx had better channels for "my mail was screwed up" reporting, to a granularity necessary to isolate bad branches, I think things would clean themselves up.

As-is, customers learn to live with it and the mothership is unaware the branch is screwing up.

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#513

Post by NavinF » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:54 PM UTC

TeMPOraL wrote: post #499

NavinF wrote: post #482

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You still need an API for getting new codes. If you're willing to switch apps and manually generate a new code every time you order something online, you likely don't order often enough to be relevant to any e-commerce company

The problem should be inverted - use the package tracking number as code. This way, every code is unique, hard to guess, and the delivery person has it literally printed on the box. Being able to update the lock with expected tracking numbers is something that could be done simply and via local network.

> could be done simply and via local network

This is fairly complicated to do locally and securely. If any e-commerce website/app could add tracking numbers as PINs to your smart lock via the local network, that would be a security nightmare. You'd also have to provision domains for every smart lock so that every lock can get Let's Encrypt certs and accept requests from web browsers without configuration. Not to mention most tracking numbers are easily guessable because they consist of a destination code and an auto-increment integer.

Also a lot of companies don't assign a tracking number until the package gets transferred to the last mile carrier. Again, if you're willing to manually copy-paste the tracking number after you get the shipping notification every single time you order something, you're clearly not part of the target demographic

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#514

Post by ethbr1 » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:56 PM UTC

dfxm12 wrote: post #467

spdustin wrote: post #452

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you've ever added "delivery notes" to an order, they're automatically shared with every subsequent order. Clear out the delivery notes on your next order.

I had done this. It didn't work as you are suggesting.

I expect it's probably cached in some downstream sub-contractor's system.

Ergo, both things can be true: Amazon cleared it on their side (customer support sees it cleared) and the delivery drivers still see it (using the subcontractor's system).

Probably because nobody at the sub-contractor's (outsourced) IT/system saw fit to implement a "As a customer, I want to change my note after initially setting it" user story.

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#515

Post by TeMPOraL » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:56 PM UTC

derefr wrote: post #510

TeMPOraL wrote: post #503

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And yet somehow here in Poland we have like 5+ companies (InPost, Allegro, several delivery services and even Orlen - the gas station operator - of all things!) one-upping each other in placing parcel lockers on every flat piece of land that's too small for developers to build an apartment block on. I have 10+ of such lockers within 5 minutes walk of my apartment. Now how is that possible ?

You're talking about the commercial parcel lockers — the ones that fit a whole neighbourhood's deliveries, that are therefore essentially big sturdy metal storage racks underneath — too big and heavy to just pick up and walk away with. Every country has these to some degree; I imagine they're most popular in places that 1. have colder climates, but 2. where people don't tend to drive (like Poland?) The US has some ,…

Fair enough. I got confused because you mentioned Amazon Lockers, which to my understanding, are the proper brand name of the kind of parcel lockers I mentioned, as deployed by Amazon.

I agree that per-household lockers are... tricky at best. But then, if we're talking homes, and thus presumably lawns in front of them, I wonder what are the difficulties of selling a multi-slot locker that would be bolted down to the ground (or perhaps a bunch of concrete filling a hole in the ground), and thus as easy to steal as a thick fence post or an ATM? Is this too expensive for homeowners?

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#516

Post by WWLink » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:57 PM UTC

fshbbdssbbgdd wrote: post #444

dfxm12 wrote: post #436

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I gave amazon my code for a Christmas present that absolutely could not have been stolen from my porch (as many other recently had). As a working man, I couldn't sit at home to wait for it. I was a little nervous, but I have cameras at least. I then removed all reference to this code from my account. Then, one driver entered while I was going about my day in there and saw me waiting with a hockey stick, as I was wond…

> and now I sometimes get delivery drivers getting pissed off at me (for some reason) that the code doesn't work after they ring my doorbell Since Amazon clearly has no idea what they are doing, I would put up a note next to the keypad saying “Amazon drivers: just drop the package, there is no code”

Someone else said they put a sign requesting not to ring the doorbell. No, that doesn't work. My solution was to adhere a plastic cover to my doorbell so people can no longer press the button. Problem solved - mostly.. doesn't stop people from squeezing the plastic cover lol.

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#517

Post by eichin » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:57 PM UTC

blitz_skull wrote: post #496

dheera wrote: post #476

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just connected my garage door opener to Home Assistant by taking apart a paired remote and wiring the button to a Zigbee relay. They can't stop me, no part of this is connected to their cloud. In any case, smart home stuff should never rely on the cloud. https://i.imgur.com/lNOXdhe.jpg If you have a Chamberlain garage door opener and looking to connect it to HA you can do this too.

This is genius. As someone who is familiar-enough with minor electronics to fuck something up, but not confident enough to look at this photo and go for it—what am I trying to learn here? What are the terms I'm trying to google to figure out how to connect to via ?

One of the articles on this mentioned "ratgdo" as a simple board to do most of the "make a button wirelessly available to homeassistant", I haven't tried it but searching on it gets you a lot of reasonably specific articles and videos.

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#518

Post by godelski » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:57 PM UTC

judge2020 wrote: post #429

kube-system wrote: post #384

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect new homes are a only small portion of garage door opener sales.

What would beat it? Who is buying garage door openers?

Apartments? Businesses? Yeah, Chamberlain only sells garage door openers BUT Chamberlain Group[0] owns Chamberlain, LiftMaster, Merlin, and Grifco (I think they missed a "t" there).

Literally the bottom of the Chamberlain website reads

> The Chamberlain Group LLC, the corporate parent company to LiftMaster, Chamberlain, Merlin and Grifco, is a global leader in access solutions and products. __We design and engineer residential garage door openers, commercial door operators and gate entry systems.__

[0] https://chamberlaingroup.com/

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#519

Post by NavinF » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:59 PM UTC

TeMPOraL wrote: post #503

derefr wrote: post #500

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How about amazon builds (at their expense) an amazon controlled box, slap a mcu on, do authentication over nfc, rfid, etc etc. Offer it to customers free of charge, hell throw in a sweetener to get them to adopt. I mean, they already do exactly this — this is what Amazon Lockers are. It's just only seemingly worth it to Amazon to deploy them to commercial customers, e.g. at post offices, in front of Whole Foods loc…

And yet somehow here in Poland we have like 5+ companies (InPost, Allegro, several delivery services and even Orlen - the gas station operator - of all things!) one-upping each other in placing parcel lockers on every flat piece of land that's too small for developers to build an apartment block on. I have 10+ of such lockers within 5 minutes walk of my apartment. Now how is that possible ?

Dude you just replied to a comment about Amazon Lockers, one of many locker services that do exactly what you described in the US. If you combine all the companies (I dunno why you would), there's a lot more than 10 per 5 minute walk in a city

Re: Home Assistant blocked from integrating with Garage Door opener API

#520

Post by TeMPOraL » Wed, Nov 08, 2023, 11:59 PM UTC

zmgsabst wrote: post #508

TeMPOraL wrote: post #495

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Somehow this seems an awful lot like a multibillion dollar company offloading work on me. That's most of the tech industry in a nutshell. From the office suite through all the "self-service" web/mobile interfaces, self-service checkouts in stores, to stuff like this - it's all making you do the work that was previously done by full-time professionals. It's a net loss of efficiency, and it only looks otherwise becau…

Have gains not been accounting tricks since the 90s? I would say that almost all of it is, eg, disassembling our manufacturing and shipping it over seas - which ultimately eroded the middle class and jeopardized national security. But neither of those is on the balance sheets of the relevant company. Anti-social short-term metricized business is the ultimate form of Taylorism — and in three generations, we can see th…

> Have gains not been accounting tricks since the 90s?

Quite possibly. I only thought this through wrt. software, as this is my field, but the overall method seems universal: turn concentrated work into disperse work, and throw it over the organizational boundary, so it looks like you've made the costs go away.