ActionTiles alternative?

#1

I’m looking for a browser-based interactive dashboard for SmartThings, mainly for guests and the mrs when Alexa isn’t playing ball.

ActionTiles looked promising. But I’m put off by their lack of hackibility (especially tile customization) and slow development.

I’ve figured out roughly how to work with tiles in WebCoRE and it looks very very promising. The one issue I see at the moment is making https://dashboard.webcore.co/ appear without navigation, and just the tiles.

Is anything using WebCoRE as a wall mounted or similar dashboard? Where can I read up more about tiles for WebCoRE (the wiki is empty and forums okay but still sparse when it comes to tiles).

#2

So the dashboard was never intended to be how it currently is. After some users started expanding on piston states to an extreme level and then tiles were born. What you will be interested in is visors. It’s currently in the works so there isn’t much to say about it but imagine action tiles and windows 10 tiles had a baby.

#3

Interesting. My feel is webCoRE is already stronger in the dashboard space (from what you’ve said… by accident!) than ActionTiles in many areas and just needs a couple of bits to make it viable for non-hackers:

  • interacting with tiles: slider/colour picker/radio and other controls
  • flexible tile sizing, layout and flow options
  • lockdown mode to allow only tile interactions

For now I’m going to experiment with iframing this (so I can strip some UI) and putting it up on the wall.

#4

All of this is subject to change but here is what adding a tile could look like

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#5

Cool! Looking at the screenshots it’s not obvious how everything hangs together, however I must say that I think SmartThings has some good ideas with their tiles, allowing device handlers to present information and offer interactions in lots of different ways: http://docs.smartthings.com/en/latest/device-type-developers-guide/tiles-metadata.html

#6

The main page where tiles are displayed is just a big blank grid. Not worth screenshotting. I was showing the different options when adding a tile. But like I said there is a lot of work to still go into visors. That is a static page so it doesn’t represent my available devices.

#7

A very very early play with tiles is visible at dashboard.webcore.co/visors

It is about 5% done.

#9

Let me me know how your Iframing comes out. I was thinking about this. I really want an interface with tabs. Maybe by room or by type.

#10

Daniel, I like your comment about having it restricted, if needed. From the other screenshots, I can see a pin might be available, public facing, and read-only. It would be cool to have a couple of these mounted on the wall with a cheap screen, although I’m not great with that sorta stuff, especially where to get the electricity from, but it would look very cool…

#11

So it’s going to be impossible/tough/extremely hacky to get this working in an iframe or another method to hide everything but the piston tiles.

dashboard.webcore.co returns headers and directives preventing iframing and scripts. I tried some hacks / XSS to see if I could get the tile title to be written out as Javascript or include an inline script but this is prevented.

My aim is to get it working on an iPad in some kind of ‘kiosk’ mode. The only remaining hacky solution I can think of is to have something like a browser extension that’ll inject script into the page… but I wouldn’t know where to start on iPad with that.

Any chance we could have a way to safely iframe this and allow manipulation? I’m thinking CORS control.

It’s a shame each user doesn’t have a subdomain, as this would let security be relaxed for individual subdomains, sandboxing them like a web host does.

#12

Hi Daniel,

We encourage feedback for ActionTiles on our own Feedback Forum at https://ActionTiles.com/feedback

For example, there’s a Topic focused on WebCoRE integration and participation and Votes would help us gage interest levels: http://support.actiontiles.com/forums/12-actiontiles-forum/topics/2475-run-webcore-pistons-from-actiontiles/

  • Indeed, ActionTiles was designed for mass market DIY use (i.e., the “greater SmartThings market”) and thus “hackability” is not a core principle of our product.

  • Customer survey feedback has confirmed that the highest priority item on the wishlist is “customizability”, which we have and are continuing (and will always…) take significant strides towards increasing. Our latest release (v6.7) added granular Tile Size options per Panel, Tile grid multiple options per Tile, 4 “intent” Styles per Tile, font sizing, etc… It lays the foundation for the obvious: Theme customization… and much more.

  • “Custom CSS” is now appearing on the horizon, as our the design of our customization engine ensured that possibility would not be forgotten.

As for “slow development”…

ActionTiles has had 5 major releases since our Launch; some with significant new features, and others with more under-the-covers foundation work. As a 2 person company we’re certainly not going to meet the pace of development that some potential customers desire; though, frankly, when compared to the rate of progress at SmartThings with a staff of nearly 500, we’re pretty pleased with our progress and stability at this point of time. The future is bright!

Thanks for your feedback,
…Terry of Thingterfaces LP.

#13

Hi Terry

I appreciate your reply, and I hear you about having a focussed approach. I bought a license as I like what you’re aiming for.

My original comment lacked some detail so let me try to expand.

The “greater SmartThings market” is a good market to target. But how did SmartThings build momentum? By having both a low barrier to entry and being hackable through custom device handlers, smart apps etc.

If SmartThings had just been their mobile apps, hub and branded devices it wouldn’t have got where it is today. Early adopters are more tech savvy, put up with buggy/thin first versions of the product, fill in gaps by coming up with their own hacks, and generally pull in others to the platform.

ActionTiles today has zero hackability and a simple, low barrier to entry. Early adopters like me who are willing to put up with early products ask for something in return: trust us with ways to hack and we will speed up your development and pull people into your platform.

ActionTiles has an opportunity to copy the SmartThings model for the smart home dashboard. However it is severely held back as it has zero hackability and thus no (in relation to its competitors) tech savvy early adopters to evangelise, learn from and pull in to develop new things as a true platform.

WebCoRE’s coming dashboard offering looks promising, and as platforms like Home Assistant become simpler and yet hackable ActionTiles will have no ground left to stand on.

I think you’ve done great work so far in pushing forward this part of the market, this is just my view of how things will develop in this exciting area.

Best regards,

Daniel

#14

…have you seen something that I haven’t? Are there released beta pictures anywhere?

#15

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#16

Ya I’ve seen that before! But that’s been around a while now, it just seemed like the previous comment was hinting at something more…

#17

Search for ‘tiles’ in the old examples thread:

These are currently displayed on the webCoRE dashboard, but will eventually move over to visors

#18

Some great perspectives and things to think about Daniel… thanks for writing!

WebCoRE is amazing and obviously becoming a part of more and more SmartThings’s (and ActionTiles’s) customers “toolkits”. We’re paying attention and looking forward to being a part of the evolution - continuing revolution - of 3rd party apps delivering incredible utility and power to ST users across the range of skill levels.

We’re all a part of making SmartThings’s “platform” visions a reality; though I think we all are doing a lot more trailblazing than they imagined!

Happy Thanksgiving, y’all! :turkey:

#19

Posting, in part, so that I can find this topic again. I too thought ActionTIles looked promising and bought a license but when a truly simple request (to be able to embed html in a tile) was met with incredible resistance (and, had been requested months before by another user with no progress), I realized that I too needed to look elsewhere. There seems to be a misconception that the users of this tech want absolutely no control over things when, in truth, the opposite is true - ANYthing that can be exposed to the user needs to be.

I’ll be coming back to check my options out, it’s really great that an alternative is available.

#20

Ditto that. I haven’t found the ActionTiles support forum particularly helpful, nor the developers particularly excited to implement user-requested features, which is unfortunate. I don’t see why simple things like CSS customization haven’t been opened.

#21

I also bought a licence and got disappointed with Actiontiles .
Coming with the excuse that they are only a 2 persons company and that is the reason why the development is slow is pathetic… Open the development to the community and you sort that gap.
Or hire more people.
You mentioned that you had 2.major releases but the question is what is there that is tangible and is what your customer base is demanding?
Your customers asked simply for true customisation… Remind you that that partly existed in smartiles…