Lee Odess’ Post

Building a Stable Network for Smart Homes and Small Offices: Foredge Small Switch Solutions   In the world of smart homes and small offices, a stable and reliable network is the foundation of everything. From controlling devices to ensuring smooth communication and seamless workflows, your network needs to keep up with the demands of a connected lifestyle. That’s where Foredge’s small network switches come in—providing the perfect solution for high-efficiency connectivity and device management.   How do Foredge small network switches support smart homes and small offices?   Efficient Device Management: Whether you’re managing smart home devices or office equipment, Foredge small network switches make device management easy. With features like automatic device recognition and intuitive setup, you can quickly connect and manage all your devices without the hassle.   Reliable, High-Speed Connectivity: Foredge small network switches ensure that your devices stay connected and function without interruptions. Whether it’s a video call in the office or controlling your smart thermostat at home, you can count on consistent, high-speed connectivity for smooth daily operations.   Seamless Integration with Smart Devices: Foredge switches are designed to integrate seamlessly with a wide range of devices, making them the perfect fit for both smart home setups and small office environments. No more worrying about compatibility—just plug and play.   Low Maintenance, High Performance: With minimal setup requirements and easy-to-use interfaces, Foredge switches reduce the complexity of network management. You can focus on what matters most—whether that’s productivity at work or comfort at home—without worrying about network reliability.   For smart homes and small offices looking to streamline operations, Foredge’s small network switches provide a reliable, efficient, and scalable solution to keep everything running smoothly.   Ready to enhance your smart home or office network? Foredge small switches are here to help.   https://lnkd.in/g_D84kr9   #SmallNetworkSwitch #SmartHomeNetworking #SmallOfficeNetworking #Foredge #DeviceManagement #HighSpeedConnectivity #SeamlessIntegration #ReliableNetworking #SmartTech #EfficientNetwork

Managing access across coworking spaces, multi-floor offices, or mixed-use sites works best when systems operate as one. Integrating Salto’s cloud-based platform with Gallagher Security’s Command Centre gives building managers a single, reliable system that’s easy to use, scalable, and responsive in real time. Mobile credentials allow staff, visitors, and residents to use their smartphone or Apple Watch instead of physical keys. Access can be managed remotely, providing clear oversight and control from any location. This integration makes it simpler to maintain security, improve efficiency, and adapt as spaces change. #AccessControl #ConnectedBuildings #SecurityIntegration #TeamAmthal

Integrating Salto’s cloud-based platform with Gallagher Security’s Command Centre allows staff, visitors, and residents to use their smartphone or Apple Watch instead of physical keys.

The smart access control market is shifting as small businesses are on the rise. Think home offices, gyms, clinics and retail shops — they need affordable, scalable and remote-friendly solutions. Want to know what small businesses are looking for and pitfalls to avoid in this market? Click here to read the article by Jason Fishbeck of Automated Environments: https://brnw.ch/21wWR14 #Security #SecurityIntegrators #AccessControl #SmallBusiness

ASIS International: "Frictionless Access: Why a London Office Building Turned to a Mobile Wallet Solution As the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread, many London employers closed their offices and implemented remote work policies. Some of those policies continue today. But more employers are looking at ways to get employees back into the office, and office real estate owners are sweetening the deal by creating “best-in-class buildings,” says Mark Caldwell, asset manager, AshbyCapital. The JJ Mack Building in the Farringdon area of London is a testament to that philosophy. The 10-story multitenant building constructed in 2022 has more than 200,000 square feet of office space accompanied by several thousand square feet of patio and retail space—including a wraparound patio on the seventh floor with views of the Museum of London. Traditional access control systems have relied on key cards, badges, and fobs to validate that their carriers are allowed to enter certain areas of a corporate campus. But these credentials can be time-consuming to issue and unsecure, says Danny Venturelli, head of customer success at Smart Spaces, a smart buildings software provider that has worked with AshbyCapital for more than seven years. When the JJ Mack Building project came onto the horizon, Venturelli says Smart Spaces rolled out 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. The plus was no waste from plastic key cards and a less onerous deployment process, but a big drawback was the user experience. People complained that there was a delay in connecting mobile devices to the readers, the access control application had to remain open on the user’s mobile device, and keeping Bluetooth on continuously was a major drain on mobile device battery life..." https://lnkd.in/eHJcgHC4

The Dusty Switch in the Corner Every office has one. A small, slightly dusty network switch tucked behind a conference room display, humming quietly like it knows exactly what it’s doing. The lights blink with perfect confidence, as if the device has seniority over everyone in the room. No one remembers installing it. No one remembers approving it. Yet it sits there, plugged in, moving traffic with the authority of something that clearly belongs. The link lights glow green, the connection is stable, and everyone assumes green means safe. That little switch is harmless until it isn’t. It reminds us how comfort sneaks into security. Once something looks normal, people stop asking questions. The green light becomes the office version of a familiar face, trusted without reason and never examined too closely. The switch itself is not the threat. The risk is what it represents. Between the hum of routine and the illusion of control, we forget that most tools start watching too late. They wait for data to move or patterns to form. By then, the device is already alive inside the network. Security has become an act of faith instead of evidence. The truth begins earlier. It lives at the physical layer, where electricity tells the story. Every device has a rhythm in the way it wakes, draws power, and communicates. That rhythm is as unique as a heartbeat. It cannot be faked because it lives in the physics of the device. CybrIQ listens to that heartbeat—the moment a device connects, before trust is granted, before the network says hello, before the system decides everything is fine. The idea is simple. When a new device connects, CybrIQ measures its electrical signature and compares it to what is known. If the pattern matches, it joins. If not, it waits quietly in the corner until someone decides what it is. It’s the digital version of checking identification at the door instead of chasing guests once they’re already inside helping themselves to coffee. Every organization has a version of that forgotten switch. Maybe it hides behind a printer, under a desk, or in a wiring closet no one has opened since the last remodel. People assume someone else knows what it is. They assume it’s fine because it’s always been there. That’s how security becomes an inheritance of assumptions. We protect what we can see and quietly hope the rest behaves. Real trust starts earlier—before the device speaks, before the network welcomes it, before the green light convinces everyone to stop thinking. It starts with knowing the difference between something that belongs and something that simply fits in. The dust on that switch isn’t just dust. It’s complacency that builds over time, a quiet reminder of how comfort replaces curiosity. So next time you see equipment quietly blinking behind a screen, ask a question. The answer might remind you that in security, what you don’t see can still connect, and what connects without being seen might already be writing its own story.

Accessibility beyond the screen: what smart home tech teaches us about building inclusive digital experiences Reading a Wirecutter article by The New York Times about assistive smart home technologies (the link in the comments) reminded me how designing for accessibility changes lives far beyond digital products. 🤔 What works & what raises questions: · Smart speakers / IPAs help people with intellectual disabilities gain more control over daily life, improve speech intelligibility, reduce dependence. But many struggle with remembering exact voice commands, articulation, or lack training/support. · Home automation controls using voice and tactile modes are more inclusive — people with different disabilities need different ways to interact depending on context. · Safety-focused systems (like SafeAccess+) show how monitoring + descriptive feedback can help vision or mobility impaired users feel safer. · Smart doorbells / smart locks offer independence and security, but bring up privacy, usability, and sometimes inaccessible interfaces. 💡 Lessons for web accessibility: · These assistive technologies and their challenges mirror what many websites face: · Relying on a single mode of interaction (mouse only, or visual only) excludes people. We need multiple input paths (keyboard, voice, touch). · Instructions must be clear, forgiving: voice commands get mis-heard; similarly, error messages / instructions on websites must be human-friendly and accessible. · Providing training or onboarding helps: showing users how to use features; making accessible documentation. · Privacy, trust, data usage transparency: people care how their data (voice, video) is handled. On the web, accessible privacy policies, making security flows understandable matter. 🚀 Why this matters for inclusion: · Accessibility is both ethical and practical. When people can use your product easily, satisfaction + retention go up. · Accessible design often benefits many: families, older adults, people in temporary conditions (injury, etc.). · Doing it well means designing with real users, testing with diverse groups, not just “meeting standard X.” A smart plug that lets someone switch on the light by voice, a smart lock that can be opened through an app, or a voice assistant that reads the news aloud — all these tools do one essential thing: they give people independence. And that’s the same goal we have in web accessibility. When we make a website navigable by keyboard, when we write clear link text, or when we provide captions — we’re doing exactly what those smart devices do: removing friction, giving control, and letting everyone participate equally. Accessibility, whether in the physical or digital world, is not about compliance. It is about freedom, dignity, and usability for all. #Accessibility #InclusiveDesign #A11y #UXDesign #DigitalInclusion #AssistiveTech #WebAccessibility

By Mark Fiebert Key Takeaways - Device-Centric Planning: Choose a primary device and organize ergonomics, accessories, and cable management around it to boost comfort, focus, and daily productivity. - Tailored Ergonomics: Match tools to workflows—use a monitor stand for desktops, a docking station for laptops, and a flat, stable surface for drawing tablets. #Office

Key Insights from "A Step-by-Step Guide to Wi-Fi Troubleshooting for Your Home Office" Maintaining a reliable internet connection is essential for productivity, especially when working from a home office. Here are three key takeaways from our latest guide to wifi troubleshooting and home networking that can help you identify and resolve common connectivity issues efficiently: 1. Start with the basics: Confirm whether the dropout affects multiple devices to pinpoint if the problem lies with your device or the home network components like your router or modem. Power cycling your modem and router in the correct sequence can clear minor glitches without resetting your settings. 2. Diagnose deeper: Check modem and router indicator lights and test your connection with a wired Ethernet cable to differentiate Wi-Fi issues from ISP or modem problems. Use built-in diagnostic tools on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices to perform network diagnostics and identify packet loss or channel congestion. 3. Optimize and maintain: Improve router placement by keeping it central and elevated in your home office, separate your 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz network names, and choose less congested Wi-Fi channels to reduce interference. Regularly update your router firmware safely via the admin page and back up your settings to sustain reliable internet connectivity. Have you encountered recurring internet drops in your home office? What router tips or network diagnostics methods have worked best for you? Share your experiences or ask questions below to keep the conversation going. Let's keep our connections stable and productivity high! Connectivity matters. 🚀 https://lnkd.in/gTmnDX77

This is an incredible statistic: "Businesses leased 23.2 million square feet of additional Manhattan office space during the first nine months of 2025, according to real-estate services firm CBRE Group. That is the largest amount of new workspace rented for that period in 19 years." The last time this much office was leased in NYC, Temperature by Sean Paul was topping the charts, there were no smartphones, and George W. Bush was president. I feel it every day in my job, but also just walking around the city. As Borat would have said in 2006..."very nice." https://lnkd.in/e8AN4-aJ