Difference between revisions of "Dianemo iOS Orbiter"

Revision as of 18:27, 9 August 2011

About

The Dianemo iOS Orbiter is a touch orbiter based on RoamingOrb by Foxi352. It uses the same techniques as Web Orbiter 2.0 and Touch Orbiter in that it connects with an instance of Proxy_Orbiter running on your Dianemo NerveCentre or LinuxMCE Core. Dianemo iOS Orbiter is compatible with both Dianemo NerveCentre's & LinuxMCE Core's but will offer a number of additional features and capabilities when used in conjunction with a NerveCentre. The Dianemo iOS Orbiter is compatible with iPhone3G, iPhone3GS, iPhone4, all models of iPod Touch and iPad.

Current Version - Dianemo iOS Orbiter v1.4

This version has the interactive layer implemented and has some fixes for selections & hilights while using the interactive layer.

Dianemo iOS Orbiter V1.2 (*Preview*)

Version 1.2 has just been submitted to Apple for review (07-07-2011) and should be available from the iOS App store shortly. Below are some videos that show off some of the new features/capabilities in this release;

http://youtu.be/y_vBXAZHqdY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nXoRJ9RaN4

This version implements Enhanced UI.

Dianemo iOS Orbiter V1.1

Version 1.1 of the Dianemo iOS Orbiter App includes a number of new features and capabilities;

• Supports landscape rotation on iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad & iPad2
• New Tab Bar UI with swipe up/down gesture to display/hide Tab bar in the Orbiter view - allows Orbiter to stay full screen all the time.
  • Use the Tab Bar to switch between Orbiter, Configuration & Help views.
  • Swipe down in the Orbiter view to hide & swipe up to display.
• Ability to store multiple connection settings and switch between them easily.
• If you are a Dianemo user then v1.1 also supports secure encrypted remote access to your NerveCentre via Dianemo's remote access portal too and allows you to swap between 'Local' & 'Remote' mode for any number of installations.
• Help tab displays online help & info pages

• iOS Orbiter v1.1 screen images
• 

  Home screen with new Tab UI displayed

• 

  New connection details screen

• 

  Store any No. of connection profiles

• 

  Each connection supports 'External' & 'Internal' mode

New Features in Dianemo v1.1

Dianemo v1.1 has support for rotation in either landscape orientation, supports multiple connection profiles and secure remote access via the Dianemo remote access portal. The most obvious new feature in Dianemo 1.1 is the new Tab Bar UI that is displayed across the bottom of the screen. The Tab Bar provides access to the new in-app features and settings.

The Tab Bar - What the Tabs do

• Orbiter Tab
  • The Orbiter Tab displays the Orbiter view which is the remote control UI for your Dianemo Home Automation System. For the Orbiter view to work correctly you need to have setup a Connection to your Dianemo system in the Configuration Tab (see below). The orbiter View is the only view that allows you to Show/Hide the Tab bar. To hide the Tab bar swipe you finger downwards on your devices screen above the Tab Bar - the Tab Bar should slide off the bottom of the screen. To Display the Tab Bar again swipe your finger upwards on your devices screen - the Tab Bar will will slide back on to the screen. Hiding the Tab Bar is useful when you are using the Orbiter View to access and control your Dianemo system.
• Configuration Tab
  • The Configuration Tab displays the Configuration View on your devices display. The Configuration View is where you setup & manage the connection between your iOS device and you Dianemo System. You can create as many connections as you need in the Connection View - for example if you have more than one home with a Dianemo System installed then you can have a connection for each. Or you might be visiting a friends home who also has a Dianemo System and you can have a connection for that system too.
  • The Configuration Tab will display each of your connections by name. At the bottom of the Configuration Tab list you will see ‘<New Connection>’ touch this to create a new connection. If you touch ‘<New Connection>’ then you see the Configuration Settings view for your new connection - this is where you enter the details about your Dianemo System. The only optional fields below are User Name & Password - you can omitt these if you do not have a Dianemo remote portal account.
    • Description - enter a unique name for this connection in this field.
    • Installation No. - enter your Dianemo Systems 5 digit installation id or your LinuxMCE installation number in this field.
    • Device No. - enter the device number of the 'Generic Web Device' here ** Not a port number as in v1.0 **.
    • User name - enter your Dianemo remote portal user name here.
    • Password - enter your Dianemo remote portal password here.
    • NerveCentre IP - enter the LAN IP address of your Dianemo NerveCentre here.
  • If you touch an existing connection the screen will display the configuration view for that connection. In this view you can switch from a ‘Local’ connection ie using your Dianemo Systems Wifi to allow your device to connect or a ‘Remote’ connection that allows you to connect securely to your Dianemo System when away from home. When you touch either ‘Connect locally’ or ‘Connect remotely’ your device will switch back to the Connections view and you will see either ‘Internal’ or ‘External’ indicated for the connection you are using.
  • You can also ‘Edit’ the connection and ‘Delete’ it.
  • The Connections View also allows you to set Global Settings. These are settings that apply to whatever Connection you are currently using. To access your Global settings touch the ‘Settings’ button in the top right corner of the Connections View screen. The Global Settings View has three settings.
    • Wifi only - if this setting is switched to ‘ON’ then the Dianemo App will only use Wifi for its data connection. If this setting is switched to ‘OFF’ and your device also has a mobile or cellular data connection then the Dianemo App will use that connection if it needs to.
    • Load Indicator - this setting determines whether the Dianemo App displays its load indicator whe it is communicating with your Dianemo System when in the Orbiter View. If this setting is ‘ON’ then the load indicator will be displayed. If this setting is ‘OFF’ then no load indicator will be displayed.
    • Polling Frequency - this slider allows you to control how frequently the Dianemo App will check back with your Dianemo System to see if there are things it should alert you to or display on-screen in the Orbiter View.
    • Touch ‘Save Settings’ to save any changes you have made in the Global Settings view. Touch ‘Back’ if you do not want to save any changes you have made.
• Help Tab
  • Touch the ‘Help’ Tab to display online Help about the Dianemo App and also a quick overview of the Dianemo Home Automation system itself for those of you who have not installed Dianemo in your home yet.
• About Tab
  • The About Tab displays the About View which contains information about the App, CHT Ltd and the development team behind the Dianemo App.

Availability

The v1.1 App is available now in the Apple App store as a Free download for all iOS device users. As previously this App contains NO advertising.

Installation

Installation is simple and is carried out the same way as for any other iOS app.

• Connect to the app store either from your PC or Laptop or your iOS device..
• Search for the app "Dianemo"
• On the description page touch on "Free" to install it (you may be required to enter your iTunes store account details - the App is however Free).
• If you downloaded the App on your PC or Laptop you will need to sync your iOS device to install it.

Configuration for v1.0

After having installed the app you first have to set your preferences. Dianemo iOS Orbiter integrates into the standard "Settings" app of your iOS device. Touch the Settings app and scroll down to the "Dianemo" entry. Touch "Dianemo" to change the settings You should at least set the server IP and the server port of the proxy orbiter for your iOS device. If you have installed the App on an iPhone then setting the 'Restrict to WiFi' setting to 'On' will stop your iPhone from using the mobile network accidentally. Poll delay will adjust how frequently the App checks back with the Core to see if there are any updates for the currently displayed screen (usually it is best to leave this setting at its default '1 sec' setting). The 'Image reload on shake' option allows you to trigger a screen reload by shaking your iOS device (useful if the 'Poll delay' setting is set to longer than a few secs). The 'Image load indicator' setting determines whether the App displays am animated progress 'wheel' in the centre of the screen when ever an update is underway.