Curl is a popular tool for fetching web pages that is available on a huge range of platforms. To query the state of a device using curl:
# curl -u 'admin:555-0001' http://192.168.0.101/
<html><head><title>Juiceboss unit 555-0001</title>
</head>
<h1>Juiceboss unit 555-0001</h1>
<p>Switch: 0<form action="/1" method="post"><INPUT type="submit" value="Turn on"></form>
</p>
<p>Voltage: 7.8</p>
<p>Uptime: 3</p>
<p>Firmware version: 501 2010/06/10</p>
<hr>
<p>This is the local page for Juiceboss unit 555-0001. You can control this unit from anywhere, and add useful features, at <a href="http://juiceboss.com/555-0001">http://juiceboss.com/555-0001</a></p>
</html>
To turn the switch off:
# curl -u 'admin:555-0001' -d '' http://192.168.0.101/0
and on:
# curl -u 'admin:555-0001' -d '' http://192.168.0.101/1
Wget is a free software package for retrieving files. To get the status of the device:
# wget -q -O - --http-user=admin --http-password=555-0001 http://192.168.0.101/
To turn the switch off:
# wget -q -O - --http-user=admin --http-password=555-0001 --post-data='' http://192.168.0.101/0
To turn it on:
# wget -q -O - --http-user=admin --http-password=555-0001 --post-data='' http://192.168.0.101/1