Is this the beginning of the end of my 5 years+ with ST?

I often get questions like this from friends of mine on the autism spectrum. (Quite a few are engineers.) “What’s the point?” Is a very genuine question for them.

The simplest answer is that for most neurotypical people, venting to a sympathetic audience does provide direct benefits: just being heard helps release some emotion which allows the person’s brain to then self-regularize biochemically and lets them then move on to other things. This has been pretty well studied.

The trick is not to get stuck in continual complaining. (And not to vent in a way that makes the problem worse.) Share the moment, feel better, then move on to actually solving problems again. :sunglasses:

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In reference to Apple creating the Appstore in response to customer demand to allow non-Apple developed Apps:

  1. I never said that Samsung isn’t considering the needs or desires of their customers; just that I’m quite sure they are already aware of your specific issues (certainly the desire for local rule processing) and may, like Apple, implement applicable solutions if and when it fits their business plans.

  2. As a counter-example from Apple (and Samsung), consider the very prominent backlash from consumers and the media regarding the removal of the 1/8" standard headphone jack on their smartphones. Apple ignored it. Samsung initially kept the jack and used it as a competive advantage over iPhone (they had commercials humorously demonstrating the inconvenience of adapter dongles), but have unilaterally removed the jack on the latest models.

I’m not saying that customers shouldn’t voice their issues and ideas. I’m saying that we’ve been told many times that this Community is not monitored for issues/requests - the applicable channels are Support and Ratings; and I’m saying that even if all ~10,000 Community members spoke up here, it would still be miniscule compared to the overall customer base and market size, so I do not agree that Topics like this have any significant chance of an impact. You’re welcome to be more optimistic - but I believe you will just face continuing disappointment or maybe even extra frustration because you’re not being heard even as a member of a “large” (not) Community echoing your concerns.

Anyhow: The continuing periodic Community “frustration” is sufficient indication that such Topics will continue regardless of any evidence they have any impact on the direction of the product and platform; so obviously it’s ironic and pointless for me to continue to bother to point out this observation. Go ahead and gather some +1’s if you want. Perhaps my negativity will motivate even more folks to support you.

We are taking slow and deliberate steps to enable developers to do the very thing you are asking for. A lot of us that work at SmartThings are what you could call “power users” too. Plus it’s not just one rule builder like webcore, but we are enabling every developer with the tools and ability to create their own spin a rules engine.

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@jody.albritton - This news (I got the email today) was a VERY pleasant surprise. Integration of webCore into the ST platform was in my ‘hopes and dreams’ given Adrian’s hiring but I was not expecting it. If anything, I figured it would have been a simplified version to appeal more to the masses.

In your quote I also read:

The promised land… but when will we get there??? :slight_smile: I am glad it is being reconfirmed. Hopefully I’ll still be around to enjoy the fruits of this extended development. Who knows… I received my HE hub this week and am currently planning on what to migrate (anything needing local execution that ST cannot currently do) and how.

@jody.albritton - Would you mind confirming whether the promised local execution will be possible when using custom DTHs? The standard DTHs simply do not support any of the extended features many of my devices have so they are far from ideal. If the basic local DTHs remain a requirement, that would be a deal breaker too.

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Thanks @jkp - I knew I wasn’t dreaming things… The post above matches what was my understanding but you end up questioning the veracity when it takes years (or what feels like years - lets not get into a date debate) to get there.

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This may be splitting hairs, but it doesn’t sound like they are integrating WebCore into the platform. Webcore is still its own entity that is not maintained by Samsung employees. They are building an API that third party automation creators, like webcore, can use and be supported in the future. The same API can also be used by SharpTools.io, @RBoy, @michaelahess, @krlaframboise, etc. and hopefully they can create the same smart apps with the new API that they did with Groovy Smart Apps.

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If the result is a locally executed automation, I guess it really doesn’t matter (to me) how it is achieved… This is probably even better as it opens up options for new alternative tools.

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Not ready to talk about the future of DTH’s today. SDC will be heavily focused on the new rules API and other enhancements. There will be a talk about the new stuff for the hub in general terms. When we do have something ready to share it will be all over the community.

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Well, I’ve heard that @Automated_House booked his trip to SDC, so I am sure he’ll keep us updated in real time, as I am sure you guys are going to be super busy. :wink:

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i’ve heard iPhones mysteriously explode as soon as you enter the convention center :exploding_head:

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What perfect time to switch to Galaxy, then…

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Or just “borrow” someone else’s, since this… :wink:

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He can “borrow” @jody.albritton 's and share with us next year’s SDC announcements LOL

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Just hit me up at SDC. I will definitely let you borrow my phone!

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All I can add is that I too was there! However, I have seen the efforts of ST and I “had” started moving things back over to ST. However, I was hit with the 300 device limit so somethings are staying on Hubitat. Today, two automation failed to trigger on Hubitat. Haven’t updated in a while so it might be that I just need to update. I’m actually excited about the future of ST. The “New App” is coming alone and is actually usable now!

To each it’s own but my system has been pretty darn stable as of late!

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I use a lot of echos too, but with sharp tools widgets you can actually even set them to interact with parameters, I use a widget on my home screen to flip through smartthings parameters for a few of my devices actually. I feel like this little plugin is so underutilized by smartthings. Especially the tasker plugin.

For instance a presence sensor tells st that you’re home or away. But my tasker setup tells smartthings that I’m leaving work specifically! (When I was in range [even though I never connected to] my work’s guest Wi-Fi but no longer am in range) etc. I have some really useful routines and automations that wouldn’t be possible without sharptools, I’m shocked that relatively few people use it.

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You just made the next tech media’s headline. “Samsung’s own software engineers use Nokia phones, but say Galaxy phones are better” LOL

Speaking of reliability… my first Hubitat hub died after just a few days. It doesn’t power up, and no it isn’t a power supply issue. Good thing I backed it up so I can restore its configuration on the new one arriving tomorrow.

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Amen to all of that brother.

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