Finally ditched the old keypad programming method after 12 years

I used to sit there punching in installer codes on a tiny LCD keypad for every single DSC system. Got a PowerSeries NEO job last month in a strip mall in Akron and decided to finally use the DLS programming software on my laptop. Took me maybe 45 minutes instead of the usual 3 hours of button mashing. Anyone else hold out on using software longer than they should have?

2 comments

2 Comments

ramirez.daniel7d ago

Nah, I'm not sold on it honestly. Had a NEO panel crap out on a firmware update through the software once and spent almost an hour trying to get it back online. Keypad took me a couple extra hours but at least I never had to worry about USB drivers or laptop batteries dying mid-program.

skylergrant7d ago

I read somewhere that a lot of guys in the security world are finally making the switch from keypads to software just in the last year or two. It makes sense, the newer systems like the NEO are way more complex and trying to program them with just a keypad feels like using a flip phone in 2024. That 3 hours down to 45 minutes is a huge difference, I bet your back is thanking you for not hunching over that little screen. Did you have any trouble getting the software to talk to the panel or was it pretty smooth?