How to connect your home appliances to the Internet of Things

There seems to be a growing drive by businesses to promote their own particular view of the "Internet of Things" and to then act as the gatekeepers - making sure all traffic (and thus presumably control) runs through their servers. I have some sympathy - it does look like a strong business model in an age when micro electronics are commodities and priced accordingly.

This is why I am a fan of the EVE approach [ http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ciseco/eve-alpha-raspber... for a cows point of view] where ones "things" can connect without third party intervention (or control).