MACNA '13 Announcemnets

[RussM]

I'm going to be blunt here, and I'm writing this as a end-user, not as one of the moderators/admins here.

I've been around the block a few times, and have seen situations like this with new products and services countless times. What I see here is a lot of conjecture, theorizing, and too much FUD flying about. (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt), and a significant amount of "reading between the lines". We only have preliminary, high-level information to go on... and in my opinion, the OFFICIALLY-PROMULGATED information we have available is insufficient to base a solid opinion upon. I AM quite excited about the forthcoming advent of Fusion - I see HUGE potential for Fusion; I also do see some potential pitfalls. BUT - I'm not going to let either perspective sway my thoughts at this early juncture. As some of you know, I do have strong opinions on certain topics, and do not hesitate to vocalize them. But, in this case, at this point in time, I have not get formed an opinion. I will wait until I see REALITY, and then develop an INFORMED opinion after - and only after - I know ALL the pertinent details and have evaluated the ACTUAL new offering. I am also not going to contribute to the escalating amount of FUD presented here, which is getting way out of hand. FUD tends to feed upon itself, building strength and becoming a destructive maelstrom.

I urge everyone to sit back, take a deep breath, and WAIT until we all can see the "big picture" of Fusion and what it really entails.

[kurt_n]

...Please guys, I am a tech-guy, I know how cynical I can become sometimes when hearing tech news and trying to read between the lines. That is not the case here....

I told myself last night I was done with this thread, but well... I lied to myself!

In this case, I'm not being cynical. I'm trying to get a question answered, but no one will come out and give a yes/no answer. I'm not even getting a "we don't know for sure yet" answer. All I'm getting is some well worded responses that appear to answer the question, but don't. You're giving people no choice but to read between the lines.

I respect you guys for what you're doing in a painfully small niche market. Hats off to you. But please, please... don't go down the road of many tech companies that aren't up front with their customers and do the marketing tap dance around really basic questions.

[jrlamountain]

Well said Russ. I agree 100% I am looking forward to useing fusion

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

[Terence]

In other news: http://www.neptunesystems.com/macna-...ments-round-up

More good things announced at MACNA - Check it out!

[chris_kitedude]

my discus hordes cant wait for the fishfeeder! dont forget we need a euro 220v version! or is it aquabus powered?

[wwanthony]

I'm going to be blunt here, and I'm writing this as a end-user, not as one of the moderators/admins here.

I've been around the block a few times, and have seen situations like this with new products and services countless times. What I see here is a lot of conjecture, theorizing, and too much FUD flying about. (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt), and a significant amount of "reading between the lines". We only have preliminary, high-level information to go on... and in my opinion, the OFFICIALLY-PROMULGATED information we have available is insufficient to base a solid opinion upon. I AM quite excited about the forthcoming advent of Fusion - I see HUGE potential for Fusion; I also do see some potential pitfalls. BUT - I'm not going to let either perspective sway my thoughts at this early juncture. As some of you know, I do have strong opinions on certain topics, and do not hesitate to vocalize them. But, in this case, at this point in time, I have not get formed an opinion. I will wait until I see REALITY, and then develop an INFORMED opinion after - and only after - I know ALL the pertinent details and have evaluated the ACTUAL new offering. I am also not going to contribute to the escalating amount of FUD presented here, which is getting way out of hand. FUD tends to feed upon itself, building strength and becoming a destructive maelstrom.

I urge everyone to sit back, take a deep breath, and WAIT until we all can see the "big picture" of Fusion and what it really entails.

Russ. Your efforts are appreciate here and on RC. But this post does not change anything. Kurt asked some interesting questions.....period. You take a deep breath if you need one. This is an internet forum....there is nothing wrong with being curious to the approach....and it is fairly clear that things are in the early stages (I think). There are quite a few of us that have mixed backgrounds in IT, marketing, product development, and manufacturing. We read between the lines by nature. We are curious...........

[chris_kitedude]

integrated webcam into the fishfeeder would be nice, lol!

excuse the post. just beein control crazy

[aquamanic]

dont forget we need a euro 220v version! or is it aquabus powered?

It's 6vdc powered. Don't know if the transformer is 110/220 but it probably is. If not, it's a simple problem to solve. The Aquabus is there to provide the instructions.

[Mstefa1]

This is a great point and one I hope you guys raise with any online service you subscribe to, in this hobby or otherwise. I forgot to emphasize in my announcements that we will have end-to-end encryption and this was key part of our design of Apex Fusion.

I completely agree there, but other companies have safety nets built in. If someone gets my credit card number online or hacks the bank I'm not liable for charges. If someone hacks Fusion will Neptune foot the bill for my loss?

My position still remains that if your going to move towards a cloud base model then you need to design cheaper hardware and subsidize the cost. This would also fit into your subscription model your aiming for. I'm envisioning an Apex JR for $99 with $6.99 / month subscription, an Apex Lite for $175 with a $11 / month subscription... etc (above would be based up an 18 month expected subscription). This would also fit the logical progression of moving toward a new platform and keeping the current Apex as it is.

[chris_kitedude]

It's 6vdc powered. Don't know if the transformer is 110/220 but it probably is. If not, it's a simple problem to solve. The Aquabus is there to provide the instructions.

sounds simple. great. any eta on the feeder yet? this fall?

[RussM]

Russ. Your efforts are appreciate here and on RC. But this post does not change anything. Kurt asked some interesting questions.....period. You take a deep breath if you need one. This is an internet forum....there is nothing wrong with being curious to the approach....and it is fairly clear that things are in the early stages (I think). There are quite a few of us that have mixed backgrounds in IT, marketing, product development, and manufacturing. We read between the lines by nature. We are curious...........

I am not trying to discourage any questions or curiosity. What I am greatly concerned about is people taking other users' theories/conjecture/interpretation (or misinterpretation as is sometimes the case) as fact. The only person in this thread so far who has real answers is Terence - and that's the only source for info (meaning direct from Neptune Systems) I am going to consider.

[aquamanic]

any eta on the feeder yet? this fall?

Q4 is what Neptune said at MACNA.

[wwanthony]

I am not trying to discourage any questions or curiosity. What I am greatly concerned about is people taking other users' theories/conjecture/interpretation (or misinterpretation as is sometimes the case) as fact. The only person in this thread so far who has real answers is Terence - and that's the only source for info (meaning direct from Neptune Systems) I am going to consider.

I hear you. You can be concerned....that is your prerogative. Marketing speak leads to speculation; which comes with the territory early in the product development cycle. We are a smart bunch here. A forum is a forum.

Terence is doing a fine job sharing what he can at this point.

[Trueerfan]

I am in sign me up. I welcome change unlike some people. If this will make programming my lights, pumps etc easier then HECK yeah sign me up. I have still yet to set up email and text alerts so if this does what your saying, give it to me give it to me give it to me.......

[jvelkgrove]

I'm in as well, cant wait to see all of the new and exciting stuff to play with.....

[MatroxD]

integrated webcam into the fishfeeder would be nice, lol!

excuse the post. just beein control crazy

Lol, that would be sweet!

Only problem I think is that it would become redundant. Lol, because it's not under water. What would be awesome would be maybe an extension that you could mount an underwater camera to. Then watch the fish go nuts!

Fellow control nut here!

From Note 2 on Tap 4

[HeneryH]

I can't even get through all of these posts but.. If someone is asking for confirmation the Apex firware will remain robustly supported by the Apex engineering team well then... you'll never get the confirmation that will make you happy.

Kind of like someone promising that an asteroid won't hit earth next year.

[MatroxD]

It's 6vdc powered. Don't know if the transformer is 110/220 but it probably is. If not, it's a simple problem to solve. The Aquabus is there to provide the instructions.

That sounds cool. I didn't see from the information Russ gave any dimensions. I am wondering them so I can measure of it will fit in my canopy easily..??

I know it's jumping the gun, just excited! One less thing to worry about and one more nice little gadget to have!

From Note 2 on Tap 4

[napexuser123]

I would like to see a version of the "Cloud Based" Fusion made available to the tech savvy Apex owners to host it themselves.

Personally I am not willing to pay for a subscription but would be willing to pay a one time fee for the software to host on my own. I hope you are considering this as it would allow the tech savvy folks to self host without a monthly subscription.

Regards

[RussM]

I didn't see from the information Russ gave any dimensions. I am wondering them so I can measure of it will fit in my canopy easily..??

The main body of the prototype I saw at MACNA looks just like the LifeGard feeder. Here are the specs on that model: http://www.lifegardaquatics.com/prod...duct.php?id=87 The production AFS might or might not be the same.

[chris_kitedude]

Lol, that would be sweet!

Only problem I think is that it would become redundant. Lol, because it's not under water. What would be awesome would be maybe an extension that you could mount an underwater camera to. Then watch the fish go nuts!

Fellow control nut here!

From Note 2 on Tap 4

i have an idea for that allready. transparent pvc piping. reefglass with a 2x optic sealed on that. the inside will host a cheap foscam hd version. cant wait, lol

[MatroxD]

The main body of the prototype I saw at MACNA looks just like the LifeGard feeder. Here are the specs on that model: http://www.lifegardaquatics.com/prod...duct.php?id=87 The production AFS might or might not be the same.

Thanks Russ,

From the videos I have watched, they look the same except for the branding. Hopefully it will be, as that one from the dimensions will work well.. :-)



From Note 2 on Tap 4

[MatroxD]

i have an idea for that allready. transparent pvc piping. reefglass with a 2x optic sealed on that. the inside will host a cheap foscam hd version. cant wait, lol

Lol, it may be because I'm tired, but I can't visualize this one.? So the camera "in" the tube? And maybe it's because I'm not getting which camera?

I am thinking of the units that I have read about you and others using lately Chris.. They seem larger than the pvc piping I am thinking about..


From Note 2 on Tap 4

[dybs]

BRS takes a look.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotat...&v=Q955hJjekQE

It's probably weird that I even noticed this , but the Apex Fusion page in the video had an IP of 192.168.x.x. Just curious, was this a computer running Apex Fusion that you had at MACNA, or was this running off the Apex web server with the new firmware? From everything I've seen so far, I thought the Fusion interface would only be available through the web app, and the internal web server would keep the existing dashboard.

[RussM]

It's probably weird that I even noticed this , but the Apex Fusion page in the video had an IP of 192.168.x.x. Just curious, was this a computer running Apex Fusion that you had at MACNA, or was this running off the Apex web server with the new firmware?

You have a sharp eye! I noticed that too while at MACNA. As you've read, Fusion "resides" in the cloud. The Upcoming firmware enables the communications channel between the Apex and the cloud-based Fusion server(s). So it was likely a server there in the booth that the Apex and the demo computers & tablets were talking to - the Fusion services doesn't run on the Apex itself.