Understanding the power of the DMS keypad is a good way to appreciate a computer based control system like AMX's Netlinx System. The heart of these systems is a special computer module which we usually locate in a basement utility area. This is a specialized, single purpose computer – a black box with a fan on it. It's a dedicated unit just for the controlling the Netlinx system.

The DMS keypads are on the input side of the system, somewhat like the keyboard or the mouse on your home computer. A keypad in each room is connected to the processor in the basement. Other input options might include push buttons, touch screens, a remote control, even a garage door opener.

Then we connect the Netlinx System to any devices or sub-systems in your house that you want to control. This is the output side of the system. For example we could connect it to your music system, your home theater, lighting controls, or the thermostats. The actual output signal might be an infra-red command, a switch closure, a 12 volt trigger, an RS-232 command, basically whatever would be necessary to trigger one of the connected devices.

As the illustration above shows, each line of text on the DMS display can be selected by pushing the adjacent button. As soon as you make a selection, the screen changes to show you the next set of choices. We program it so that there is a logical progression of clear, useful information.

The keypad is powerful for two reasons. First, the text is completely programmable, so it would“say whatever makes sense for you and your family. (For example, would you prefer to identify a radio station as “WFCR” or “88.5”?) Secondly, each keypad controls just one room. In other words, if you had six keypads placed around your house, you could conceivably make a different choice for each room. For example, in the music menu – you could listen to the radio in the kitchen, while someone else listens to a classical CD in the library, and at the same time the kids can listen their music down in the basement!

The next step, for even more control than the keypad offers, is to add a touch panel to the system. Touch panels are perfect for handling more complex control operations. The added real estate of the larger display gives us room to spread out the buttons, add more choices, and then label everything in clear English. They can also display clear feedback from the system. Some panels are are built in to the wall, located in a few key spots around the house. Others are wireless. These are meant to be used from your couch, to control the home theater, or perhaps one might sit on a night stand in your bedroom.

One of the most powerful ways to use a touch panel is for controlling a device that's capable of returning information back to the user — a thermostat would be a good example. The display could show you the current indoor temperature, outdoor temperature, humidity, set points, fan status, etc.

Here's another interesting example. Recently computerized “music servers” have begun to replace multi-disc CD changers. These new machines range from a simple iPod to large storage devices that can consolidate all of your CD’s, DVD’s, videos and pictures in one place. Using a touch panel, you could control the music or the videos from anywhere in the house. The touch panel allows you to browse through the choices, search by artist, control the player, it even shows you the Title and Track name of the music that's currently playing!

These systems can control your stereo, your lights, your heating and the air conditioning. They can also operate motorized drapes, skylights, a jacuzzi, door openers – virtually anything that can be operated by a remote control, a switch or a timer. And you can operate these sub-systems from any room in the house! Using the internet, you could even operate the controls when you're away from home. It's incredibly convenient. Once you have lived with this level of control, you will never want to go back!