Us, is really just "Me": Davey Shafik. I am a software engineer with over twenty years of experience building the web. I started building computers when I was 12, and I stopped when I got old to realize I wasn't good with hardware. However, in the last 5 years, I was responsible for software that ran on more than 1/3 of the entire (identifiable) internet concurrently. I am also a professional writer, and published author. You can read more about my professional career on my own site.
A love for programmable robots (like the Sphero, and Cozmo) and connected things in the physical world as teaching aids, has lead me to the Internet of Things — or more specifically, Smart Home Technology.
As part of my journey in technology I realized that with my ADHD, too much flexibility and customization options ultimately led to more time tinkering and less time doing things with my tools; and so after a decade using Windows, then Linux, I settled on the Apple walled garden.
Since then, I have come to appreciate the trade-offs between the simplicity and capabilities of their products, as well as between the convenience and privacy of their offerings. Which is why I have settled on Apple HomeKit over the offerings from Google, Amazon, and Samsung as my smart home platform of choice.
In 2016 I started to get into smart home tech, however I was renting at the time so all modifications had to be temporary. This year, I purchased my first home and I factored in a lot of smart home upgrades as part of our initial renovation budget.
My Home
I currently live in a ~3600sqft two-story house, located in the Pacific Northwest. We are fortunate enough to have a three-car garage, an outdoor shed, and an outdoor entertainment space.
Being built in the last decade or so means that it is fairly modern and I was fortunate enough to be able to convert Ethernet-used-for-phones into Ethernet-for-real in almost every room in the house with little cost and effort — this made installing a prosumer wireless setup (Ubiquiti UniFi) fairly easily, to ensure a rock solid smart home network.
It also means that all the electrical is still up to modern code, and I made the choice to upgrade every light and exhaust fan switch (45 to be exact!) to be smart.
This site will primarily document the products that I have purchased and deployed within my home, either as part of the initial renovation or since we moved in, all based on my Smart Home Philosophy.