Alexa skill to query site info??

So I’ve had an Alexa Echo Dot sitting in my living room for several months. Use it to turn on/off some things, get current time, weather (NWS) but not much else.

Curious if anyone has tried creating a skill to provide data from your weather station for it yet.

Looks fairly easy and I was going to give it a shot during my end of year vacation, but I found too many other things to do during that time.

Just checking to see if someone has messed this that yet or not.

I also have an Alexa dot integrated with some home automation - thermostats, lights, audio receiver etc. I played around with an AWS developer account for thermostat integration and it was a fiasco :). Created a modified skill for the thermostats but it was not trivial. I’m going to take a break from skill creation for a while :slight_smile:

This is a skill set I have been meaning to try and get working for my WXstation also.
I hope to find some time this weekend to attempt to get something running
Just need to remember my AWS login

I just got some Echo Dots for Christmas and would also be interested in getting them to work with WD or my website.

Cool replies. I will see if I can put some time into this.

To be honest, the Echo Dot is actually a lot more useful than I thought it would be at first. I was asked by a long time freind a couple months ago how I was using my Alexa device and I told her I didn’t have one, and really didn’t see how it would be something I would be interested in. Most of the advertised uses really have no use for me. Streaming for me is better done using headphones (to cut out the rest of the noise in the area) as in the living room for example, there are typically multiple people talking, TV’s and other distractions.

But I have found that it’s automation is pretty cool and useful. I got one about a month before Xmas and then got my first remote switch. It was pretty cool to put the Xmas lights on it and to simply be able to say “echo turn off christmas” and lights went off. My wife didn’t like it, but it was fun for a while. I have since moved the switch to a lamp in the corner of the living room and it really makes it easier to turn it on/off when I am up later or get up in the middle of the night.

For Xmas, I got a second Echo Dot although the intention was to get another switch instead as I really didn’t see any point in having two. But I got another switch, put the echo in my office/bedroom and put the switch on a lamp in the room. This instantly became very useful as I current have restrictions on using my left arm and I can’t reach over and easily turn off the light switch before I go to bed or get up. Now I can just tell the Echo to turn on/off Bedroom and I can control the light.

I can also easily get the time, local NWS weather etc… while lying down in the dark. You can set timers, alarms etc… and get some searchable data though I think Google Home does searching a lot better.

I found a very useful tool that I know others can use that have disabilites which is to use an Alexa Skill for Ask My Buddy, which allows you to setup contacts to contact if you ask the Echo to send an alert to XXXX and it will send an email, text and phone call to that contact. Kind of an inexpensive Medical alert button.

What I haven’t found yet, is any remote thermometers that you could simply plug into an outlet and then query from the Echo. Would be kind of cool to have one in several rooms and perhaps outside for a simple idea of what the temps are.

I can add temp stations to my Davis station, but they are pretty expensive and large which is not quite what I have in mind.

I’m guessing that a low cost WX station with temp remotes might be a less expensive solution.

So I am going to work in creating a skill to at least get weather data from my own Stations (from the web server not directly from the station) first, and then can look at a less expensive WX station for the other “toy”.

My end of year vacation is over, but I think I can put some time into this and will see what I come up with.

I also plan on getting one or more Google Home devices. I’ve played with one just after Xmas to help a Neighbor install one (really very easy) and it’s search and data capabilites greatly surpassed the Alexa Amazon echosphere. It is a later comer to the market though and automation is still limited unless the devices have IFTTT support and even then that can be a bit slow. But I can see it getting better.

Current Devices:
2 Echo Dots (Living room, Office/bedroom)
1 Wireless WeMo switch (Living Room)
1 TP-Link WiFi Plug (Office/Bedroom)
1 EcoBee3 Thermostat which still needs to be installed. I need to get it installed because the common wire is not available at the spot where the current thermostat is located.

So, have you ever made progress with this?
I

Hi,

If you upload to Weatherlink.com, there is an Alexa skill that I have been playing with. It appears to work fine.

Dennis

There is already an echo -Alexa skill I posted it a while back. I will see if I can find the post.
It used weather underground and your station ID to get the info from your wx station. It still works but with wundergroud making changes I do not know for how long it will work.

Windgust

The WU skill is only for the USA :frowning:

I have made a skill that reads my current out text file, i cannot publish to amazon though because theres an error when you close, cancel or ask for help, i dont mind so much as it works for me as a dev skill

Ahhh, thanks guys! I

I know this is an old post. But, I thought I would re-activate it. I am using Davis 6100 Weatherlink Live for my station.
I also have 2nd. gen. Alexa Dots in almost every room. I can say, “Alexa, ask weatherlink live for my current conditions.” She responds with: "Currently at Evansville Weather it is … and she reports indoor/outdoor temp and humidity, rain, wind, humidity, barometric pressure, etc. I also have an Echo Show 5 in my office. while verbally reporting the conditions, she also shows them on the screen.
I also have added several smart plugs to Alexa, as well as a Sonoff Dual switch to my bedroom ceiling fans. I can now control the fan, and light verbally from bed. VERY handy! I haven’t invested in a new thermostat yet due to cost, and mine is already programmable. Echo Show in the kitchen, so my wife can look up recipes, etc. With a “made in China” battery pack for poolside use. and just got 2 “smart” garage door openers that are Echo compatible. I’m still learning all the ways that Alexa can control an Amazon Fire Stick on the TV.

What else is everyone using Alexa for, and are there any other good commands to get weather info from her?

Bill, you are not too know, but the author of this thread sadly has passed away (not recently though I might add)

WOW! I am sorry to hear that. I have been gone for almost 10 years. It is really sad to hear that some of the biggest contributors here have passed away. On the bright side, we all know that their weather from now on will be Heavenly.
Perhaps we should start a separate section where we can all pay tribute to those that have gone beyond the clouds, so that we can all pay our respects to them?