Best convention for naming rooms, devices and switches

androidfroyo

Hi All

 I'm a proud and brand new owner of Homey . Nothing too fancy now just aeotec swtiches (mostly programmed or wired to lights) , 2 motion sensors and smart lock. I've been playing with homey logic for a while and I have a few questions

1. Is it generally good practice to name the device with the name of the room?

For example I have a button in my aeotec switch that I call "Living room light" because it is wired to turn on the main light in living room. and the room it is in is called Living room. I have other lights in the living room of course.

Is it correct that when I say "Homey turn on living room light " it will turn on that specific light but when I say homey turn on lights in living room it will turn on all lights in the living room? 

2. Naming of device vs flow

I have a button in the living room that I want to press to turn everything off in the house. 

I call that device "All off" is that a good name? Then I have a flow that is also called "All off" , If device:all off is on, homey will turn off all devices.

To further complicate matters I have google assistant and home.

If I setup a google shortcut that will send

"tell homey all off" is homey going to trigger the button? the flow? Or some hard coded all off in homey? 

what if the google shortcut sends

"tell homey turn on all off" ? - Does it then trigger the device on, which then triggers the flow?

Thanks for helping a confused newbie.

Rocodamelshe

androidfroyo said:

1. Is it generally good practice to name the device with the name of the room?

When u do that u could get a conflict. If am not wrong Homey is also giving a warning for it.

androidfroyo said:

For example I have a button in my aeotec switch that I call "Living room light"

Best never use the word "light" for a device name because that's a standard thingie in Homey.

androidfroyo said:

I call that device "All off" is that a good name?

It's not a good name in my opinion. "off" i a term used by Homey and can give conflicts.

androidfroyo said:

 Or some hard coded all off in homey? 

Yep. Not specificly "All off" but "All lights off" is a trigger yes.

androidfroyo

Hmm thanks a lot for your answer.

Really helpful.

Can I trouble you with a followup question.

What would you recommend for a button that turns on the main light in the living room?

Or one that turns every device off?

Willem

Why don't you ask Homey to do that for you? Just make a little flow that switches all you devices off as your're leaving the house or going to bed by asking Homey. As a backup, I use a Philips HUE TAP button to switch my lights in case Homey should not responding, but thats only seldom.

androidfroyo

I can't use presence cos I have family members that don't use it.

Anyway this is a q more on principles of flow creation.

Rocodamelshe

Actualy u can name the devices to whatever suits u best. I even have devices called Ancilla and Sandra. Re-name them whenever u like and finally u have the names u realy want for them.

androidfroyo

Rocodamelshe said:

Actualy u can name the devices to whatever suits u best. I even have devices called Ancilla and Sandra. Re-name them whenever u like and finally u have the names u realy want for them.

The problem is the devices and flows I tend to want to call them logical names. 

e.g. A light switch in bedroom I would call the device "bedroom light switch". Or a flow to turn off all devices I would call the flow "All off". But apparently it's a bad idea because some of these words are special in Homey?

I've found that in general naming them this way usually works..but sometimes it doesnt and i wonder if it is my naming. 

I can call it unique names but then i cant remember what it does. 

Rocodamelshe

Ok. But the icons show u what they do aye?

androidfroyo

Rocodamelshe said:

Ok. But the icons show u what they do aye?

Do they? They are a light but which one ? Hard if name is not meaning full.