Sometime back I wrote an article that appeared in this space that put forth the hypothesis that HAL was not yet ready for the mass market.  Then it was not.  Many, many of my concerns and issues have been addressed by the version 4 update.  A lot of work went into the development of this system.

I won't say I am going to eat my words...  Yet.  But a tremendous amount of progress has been made.  In addition, as a beta-tester involved somewhat with HAL and the 4.0 development, I have managed to grab a few glances at the near-term future, the "skunk works" if you will.  I am not going to spill any confidences, but I will say I am greatly heartened, and extremely enthusiastic about the future of HAL and the Home Automation concepts.  I will have more to say when the time is right.

Stay tuned...

Until then, let's review my closing comment from that now dated essay.

"I am convinced HAL can truly become a mass market product, a must-have that every homeowner will want. But a lot of work and change needs to happen to get there. We HA enthusiasts need to poke and prod, not only HAL and A.L. but the whole industry and people in it, to address the issues that make HAL unsuitable for that larger audience. I don't expect magic, I don't expect overnight results. But we can get there. Once joe-consumer perceives significant value in having a HAL around, things will begin to happen quickly."