I really do appreciate your help, and for all I know Packages might be the solution I’m looking for.
But, we (the HA community) really really really needs better documentation. The following does not help:
Packages in Home Assistant provide a way to bundle different integration’s configuration together. With packages we have a way to include different integrations, or different configuration parts using any of the !include directives introduced in splitting the configuration.
Packages are configured under the core homeassistant/packages in the configuration and take the format of a package name (no spaces, all lower case) followed by a dictionary with the package configuration. For example, package pack_1 would be created as:
The package configuration can include: switch, light, automation, groups, or most other Home Assistant integrations including hardware platforms.
It can be specified inline or in a separate YAML file using !include."
I’m sure that this language makes perfect sense to many people on this forum. I am equally confident that for vast numbers of people, it’s gibbrish.
I read the page and I have only a vague understanding that Packages extends the !include functionality. But “bundle different integration’s configuration” and “way to include different integrations, or different configuration parts” and “are consigured under the core homeassistant/packages in the configuration” and “…package configuration here…” are worse than meaningless – it is super frustrating to read this and think “why am I not understanding this?” I’m sure the implementation works, and the author understands the implementation, and I suspect the author is not wrong in what he/she is saying. And yet, it is simply not helpful.
The link I sent previously directed you specifically to what you asked for: how to create packages with a !include setup by using a packages folder with separate files in it for individual packages.
Here’s a part of the last package setup I’m still using - it’s the content of a file called ‘igrill.yaml’ in my ‘packages’ folder that I’m referring to from the configuration.yaml like this:
You can see the various domains that are addressed in this file, like input_select, input_number, sensor, or automation.
And, BTW, I’m part of the ‘we (the HA community)’ as well - so, your call for better documentation might be a valid one, but we’re all in the same boat here.
And I hope you know I was absolutely not directing my rant against you.
I am grateful to you and admire your generousity to help strangers.
I just feel like absolutely everything I want to do it extremely complicated. I understand that what I want to do is not easy, and wasn’t even possible a decade or two ago, and I am tremendously grateful for HA’s existance – and for the people who develop, add to, and support it.
Thank you yet again for sharing your solution – I will keep at it as best I can.