Flash based software to replace chips

cryingraven

Registered
Hi there

I have no idea about electronics but I know about programming. [struggeling a bit with obj-c but that too will pass]

Anyways, I want to put my programming skills to practical use and write software that does things in the real world, not just on my hard drive. I want my Mac to be able to send a wireless signal to [x] to close and lock my door, to turn on the red flashing neons in the hallway, to play the "INTRUDER, INTRUDER" WAV from iTunes to my AirPortExpress speakers when it detects motion in the hallway... to make my coffee in the morning, run my bath at night and predict what tv show I will like, record it and play it when I say: "Dear Mac. I am bored out of my skull"

Well, not exactly, but you get the idea. I asked a friend of mine who did electronics in college as I remember him building electronic circuits and programming cards etc but he said that doing stuff like that would be very hard and he cannot help me.

I then found that programming the chips he said I would need required the use of ASM... Coming from Delphi/ Pascal, learning c/c++ and now doing things in obj-c... the idea of learning ASM is like trading in my Porche for the cart with the square wheels...

I keep seeing smart card readers and writers pop up all over the place, saw that some smart cards are supported by OSX natively and remember reading years ago that Java apps can jun on flash/ memory/ smart cards.

I am thinking that perhaps writing my code as a Java app [or obj-c, maybe?) in XCODE to interface my Mac and the card might make life a little simpler... Am I deranged or is this possible? Obviously the card would have to be attached to a motherboard of sorts that has connections to the devices I intend to operate. Does such custom devices exist for users to buy/ program/ use or is the old motherboard/chip/asm route the only option?

I am starting from scratch here so I do not expect you to teach me how to do this, but I would greatly appreciate any aid in the form of links to where I can find out this kind of information.

What I REALLY want to do, is for my app to access the blue tooth or wi-fi card built into my iMac, send the signal to my device [and here the problems begin] and for my device to actually pick up on these signals and [other main problem] being able to turn the electric current on or off because of it.

I have seen that home automation devices that allow you to lock your doors automatically, but they work via RF frequency so it is of no use to me, however, the door catches can be set to lock or release depending on wether the current is on or off. So If my device can simply turn current on to make a motor attached to a wheel turn on in the correct direction to open or close the door and then be able to turn on/ off the current to the door catch, I would be most happy...

Simple, really, what I want. I just don't have a clue about how to do this. Any links to the electronics building sites/ the component shops in the UK and the relevant programming languages/ SDKs would be most helpful.

My idea is to use an IP cam as a video motion detection device. Writing the code to detect movement is simple enough, but then it should send out an alert via eMail. I should then be able to log onto my home network via my HTTP server and view the video stream of what is going on in my home. This is all doable, thus far. I then want to be able to lock any/all doors remotely via the HTTP server sending Applescript commands to my App. This way I want to block off all rooms apart from those leading to the exit or lock the thief in a room. I want to be able to change the lighting to indicate that he has been spotted and play a loud alarm to attract the attention of the neighbors. Airport express and ip cameras take care of half of that. It is only the lighting and the doors that I need to do remotely.

I thank you in advance for any help...
 
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