First blog, first post

This blog and this post are long overdue. I thought about starting blogging several times in the past ten years. And the time is now.

Why now

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I've bought a Raspberry Pi when it was announced. Like many of my other geeky stuff, I've turned it on for a day or two, and then it has collected dust in a drawer.

But one day, I wanted to hack on a particular project. Because it's easily portable and doesn't draw too much electricity, my raspi was a great platform to build on. (if you're curious about what this project is, it's an iBeacon and will soon be described on this blog) Update: here is my PiBeacon post.

Since this first project, I've found other stuff to hack about, regarding one of my hobbies: home automation.

Home automation

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This domain has changed a lot these past years, largely due to the opening of communication protocols (X10, Z-Wave, 433MHz) and the emergence of small hacking platforms like the Arduino, the Raspberry Pi and the Beagle Board.

Being able to watch and control parts of your house is now at your fingertips -- literally, with a smartphone.

This is mainly what I'll be writing about: my attempts to know better and manage my home from afar.

About that name

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Er, "hack and cheese", srsly ?

I could tell you that I love to hack and I love cheese. It's true. But no. I just love cheesy puns.