... Was one of the busiest discussions I've seen in months. Dragged in (interesting) info/opinions from a stack of members and lurkers.
Due to the nature of the discussion, several people (myself included) predicted the thread would be locked. The thread contained criticisms of the hubitat platform and suggestions for improvement.
As predicted, it's now locked, citing the reasoning as "unproductive". This has happened a few times, threads are locked because someone decides the discussion is over, and when this is questioned, the feedback seems to be along the lines of "oh, that's OK, if you'd like a thread unlocked please just ask". It could be argued there's no need for the additional steps. Just don't lock it in the first place.
We're not children.
I was an incredibly active member of several online forums in my younger years. It was really common back in the vbb board days to have moderators getting drunk on power and weilding the admin powerstick for pathetic or outright childish reasons. Posts were deleted. Threads were locked. People were banned.
Happily it feels a little more grown up here - on the surface, at least. To the casual observer it certainly looks as though the fanbase actively discourage open conversations which highlight genuine concerns.
Disappointing.
/ awaits the arrival of the usual heavy-hitters, and prepares for a spot of boring, predictable thinly-veiled online anger.
Agreed. Initially that thread appeared to be just another whinge about how one user thought Hubitat should operate, but it turned out to be an interesting and active discussion. It may be appropriate to close a thread at times when the initial question has been answered or the problem solved. However the thread concerned was in the Lounge and was closed solely as it had ‘meandered’ a little.
Yes, that was @aaiyar who closed it—very peculiar. It was a very insightful thread for home automation enthusiasts. This forum is more controlled than North Korea if something deviates from the party line. And it’s not just the moderators; I also see regulars scrambling to mark other people’s posts as “Solutions” when there is, in fact, no solution.
I don't know. There were interesting discussions for sure, but also a lot of misinformation shared as confident assertions. It was exhausting in many ways.
Really? This isn't Reddit, it's Hubitat's company forum. I thought they let things go pretty far actually (discussion about corporate takeovers and all).
I'll go first. I can understand both sides of this argument. The thread generated thoughtful conversation and valuable feedback for us to consider. However, when the original poster had to step in around post #153 to redirect the discussion back to the original topic, it became clear that the conversation had drifted significantly. At that point, closing the thread was a reasonable step to preserve its original intent.
As you said, we’re not children here—everyone is generally trying to be helpful and contribute constructively. When a thread is closed, it’s rarely about controlling the narrative or shutting down feedback. More often, it’s simply about keeping discussions focused, productive, and respectful of the original purpose so the feedback can actually be acted upon.
Here is a summary of the key takeaways from the 161-post thread that I’ve already shared with our team:
Dashboard usability and flexibility need improvement.
There are notable gaps in support for European users.
Some important Matter capabilities are missing, including broader driver support.
The absence of an integrated Thread radio is a recurring concern.
@pascal.nohl and others, if I missed something, please feel free to add to the discussion here or start a new thread.
Interesting that you mention this. I wasn’t aware that threads could be marked as solved by anyone other than the original poster or administrators. After reviewing the plugin settings, you’re correct—by default, it allowed other users to mark a thread as solved, even if they weren’t the original poster.
I’ve updated the setting so that only the original poster and administrators can now mark a thread as "solved".
I didn’t start a new thread myself, even though I considered it for a while. I ultimately decided against it, because I felt it wouldn’t fit the calm and factual tone of the original discussion.
Now that "someone else" has opened a new thread on the topic, I think it’s fair for me to share my perspective — again, calmly and constructively.
This is not the first time one of my threads has been closed. From my personal experience, it tends to happen when a discussion gains momentum and is no longer purely positive toward Hubitat — especially when more people start identifying with the concerns raised or become interested in alternatives. In the past, I reacted emotionally and opened follow-up threads, which quickly led to me being labeled a troll. That’s something I wanted to avoid this time.
I want to be clear: I’m not angry or frustrated. I’m simply disappointed — once again. Throughout the entire thread, I tried to be fair to Hubitat, often putting criticism into context and pushing back when arguments became one-sided. But it seems that criticism remains criticism, even when it’s constructive and balanced.
At one point, I explicitly stated that I would personally only continue responding to posts related to my own experience and setup, and no longer to highly technical debates or speculative topics — simply because I don’t consider myself a deep technical expert. That was a personal boundary, not an attempt to shut down or devalue those discussions. Technical exchanges between other members were still perfectly valid and relevant to the thread.
Regarding this specific case, the moderator wrote:
“This thread has meandered away from why one user has decided to stop using Hubitat as an automation platform to discussions on the installation behavior of an OS X app.”
What I find problematic about that reasoning:
“why one user has decided to stop using Hubitat”
The discussion had clearly evolved beyond a single user. More and more participants shared similar experiences: some had already left, some were considering it, others wanted to stay but expressed dissatisfaction with the current direction. That doesn’t make the discussion invalid — it makes it relevant.
“to discussions on the installation behavior of an OS X app”
That app is part of the setup being discussed and plays a key role. It demonstrates that Apple Home is not limited to very simple automations, which is a common assumption. The app helps show that Apple Home can cover a large portion of what people associate with Rule Machine, while offering other advantages. Discussing it was therefore directly related to the topic, not a derailment.
As said, I’m disappointed — and once again, I’m clearly not the only one.
I don’t see it that way, honestly. Your post wasn’t off topic.
It was clearly related to Apple Home and the tools around it. What happened afterwards was more a mix of understandable frustration, some confusion between app-specific behavior, standard App Store policies, and general macOS behavior.
I agree that the tone became emotional at that point — but that’s human, and you never insulted anyone or crossed a line. From my perspective, that wasn’t the cause of the thread being closed, but perhaps it became a convenient pretext.
In any case, I appreciate you clarifying your intent, and I don’t think you need to apologize for sharing your experience.
What makes you think this was the decision of a single user? While there is only one person who can physically close a thread, that role doesn’t make them the sole decision-maker—it simply makes them the one executing a broader, considered decision.
As explained earlier, once you had to step in and redirect the discussion back to the original topic, it became clear to us that the conversation had drifted significantly. At that point, we felt it was reasonable to close the thread in order to preserve its original intent.
If there’s anything further you’d like to add, feel free to do so. You clearly outlined what’s missing and where improvements could be made, and your feedback is much appreciated.
Thank you, @bobbyD. This will help a lot. When a user has an issue and sees other people—who have no connection to or understanding of the issue—mark it as a solution when there isn’t one, it increases frustration and makes it feel like no one is taking the issue seriously or working on it at all.
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