7.5 Testing Out the Web Client

With the X10 computer interface working and plugged into the serial port of the computer, fire up a development server of the Rails 3 code via this:

Open a web browser on the local machine and enter the following:

http://localhost:3000/command/on

If everything is coded correctly, you should see The light should now be on. in the browser window, as shown in Figure 25, ​The browser should indicate the proper status of the light​.

---

Figure 25. The browser should indicate the proper status of the light.

More importantly, Heyu should have executed the on command for the X10 device coded with the H3 house code. In other words, the light should have turned on. Turn the light off by submitting the off command:

http://localhost:3000/command/off

If the light turned off, congratulations! You have wired up and programmed everything correctly. When you’re ready to expand the Rails application to handle even more commands, just add more if @result == statements to the CommandController class containing the command you want Heyu to transmit. These commands could range from dimming lights to 30 percent, turning an appliance on for a specified duration, or managing a combination of power on/off events.

If you’re interested in learning more about programming web applications using the Ruby on Rails framework, check out Programming Ruby: The Pragmatic Programmer’s Guide [TFH09].

Now that the web application server is working, it’s time to build a mobile client.