Chris,
For item 8 SECURITY CONTROLLER…
Your drivers sound similar to mine. I need something that:
a) works as an Alarm system whether Vera is present or not
b) is “fairly standard” so it can be monitored either by Vera or by a “regular” Security provider.
c) has a regular Interface (keypad, keyfob or swipe-card etc) that anyone can use without a PhD
d) Can scan a large list of dumb “sensors” quickly for Windows, Doors etc.
e) Can be interfaced to a HomeAutomation system for Automation (as opposed to Control)
I write software for a living, so I really don’t want to be debugging my house. It also tends to annoy the 'mrs 
Can you elaborate on what type of recommendation you’re looking for here?
This is the first Alarm Panel I’ve worked with, so I dont have a broader experience to draw upon for what’s better than what. My house came with the Paradox System, so that’s what I wrote the interface for. It nearly had a GE Concord 4 system, which is also automatable, but that was sub’d out at the last minute. I bought Vera specifically because it was going to be scriptable to this level (even though at the time I bought it, Lua wasn’t there yet). I couldn’t find a system that was as open in that respect (without C programming, and all that comes with that)
For the most part, if the Alarm Panel has some sort of RS-232, Serial-over-USB (as opposed to HID-USB or other) or Ethernet interface… and the Protocol is readily described, and hopefully plain text, then it can likely be adapted… with a little coding/scripting effort. For mine, I did the wiring of the HA Board (Paradox PRT3) since I’m fairly comfortable with this type of wiring.
If you’re going to write a driver, the key is that you have to have the unit, since the Protocol Specs are often a little vague and you need to be able to “see” the real data from the Panel.
There are certainly a lot of cheaper, more common, Alarm systems out there, but this thing is fairly proven and overall I’m happy with it. A side-benefit is that I also have a lot of “wired” Motion sensors (etc) so I can lessen my dependency on the Battery-operated ZWave gear (I have 2 of these and they both eat batteries). I can also go the “other way”, providing sensor data from Vera’s ZWave components into my Alarm panel to give it extra eyes.
After reading some of the Protocol docs from other Vendors, they all seem to have similar features in this respect though…
As a side-note, I have a [Scene-aware] version of my Alarm driver that can be used to remotely Arm, StayArm, Disarm the Panel… kinda ties into the other discussion about door locks. Once I work out how to better “lawyer proof” it, I’ll update the source code that’s been published.
For item 2 OUTPUT TRIGGERS…
My Alarm Panel is hardwired to Vera using a USB-Cable, since they’re right next to each other in the Wiring closet. The Alarm Interface board contains a FTDI Chipset to convert the USB to regular Serial, so it shows up in Vera with no fiddling.
There are a few Off-the-shelf USB-Serial Cables listed in the Wiki pages that can be used if the device your talking to has a regular RS-232 connector. I have one of these attached to my TV, along with a simple Lua-based Plugin prototype, so I can turn the TV on/off (etc).
If you want to talk to something over RS-232/Serial, then you tend to have to write a Lua Plugin to handle it. Some devices, like the GC100, expose “remote” RS-232 ports, and Vera will expose these up for you to “attach” your Plugin to (as the Input/Output). This lets you handle stuff that’s far away from Vera’s location, since it makes the RS-232 Port into something that runs over Ethernet.
It’s also possible, although somewhat arduous right now, to “remote” a Serial port yourself, over Ethernet, using custom firmware on some router models… This is how I connect up my TV, for example, over an ASUS 520 (given some suggestions from others).
