When IBM released the Aptiva in the 90's, they also had an idea to create a whole suite of home automation hardware and software. Eventually it didn't pan out well so they sold off the rights to the 'Home Director' software and hardware much like most of their products, unfortunately. The Home Director was marketed to run with an Aptiva on Windows, and there were many modules and packages you could get, such as:
It appears that as the Home Director neared its life, the emphasis on the Aptiva also was dropped.
Software and Drivers
Directly ripped from the CD-ROM that comes with the Home Director starter pack. You'll need an older version of Windows to run this (if you are considering setting up your home with Home Director stuff, run it on a VM with a compatible version of (old) Windows and ensure the VM has access to the computer's serial port.
Random Musings
As this was fairly early home automation technology (really IBM is a technology company of 'firsts' often done things first before other companies-- this also being no exception), it communicates over your power grid instead of with something like bluetooth or ethernet, however there's to big reasons why it's not so great in our modern times anymore:
If someone was concerned about security in terms of things being connected to the internet, this would definitely be a form of security through obscurity from an obsolete technique. Of course not secure as soon as someone gets local access to the Windows 98 PC running the software...
IBM also in-house integration with Home Director where onsite technicians would wire your house with a bespoke solution (they weren't sold as stand-alone kits). You have to wonder how many houses still exist with "Home Director" integration.
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