Home Automation Gets Real

Call it home automation. Call it a "wired" house. Some might even call it a little scary. But more and more homes are being built today with technology that lets you control everything from lights, temperature, security and appliances over the Internet or with a wireless phone. I've been using some simple to use technology called X10 that has been around for years. It doesn't require any re-wiring. But if you really want a gee whiz kind of wired house, sort of like the Star Ship Enterprise, you've got several choices. IBM has a spin-off company, Home Director, working with home owners and contractors. So is a company called Coactive Networks. Why would you want a smart house? Coactive's David Gaw…

"Some of the more popular services are…get an email notice when the kids get home from school. Many security systems have a mode that tells you when somebody comes in the door and you might like to have a notice that the kids got home from school on time. There are safety services that allow you to, for example, have a notification sent to you and or a neighbor and or a repair person when there's a leak in the basement."