Raspberry Pi
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The life of Pi - clever ideas with a tiny computer
21 March 2013 Last updated at 10:05 ET While the Chancellor was delivering his budget yesterday, I was in a room near Cambridge full of young people who may be part of the answer to Britain's economic future. They had all come up with clever ideas to use the Raspberry Pi, the ultra-cheap computer developed in Cambridge, and they were the finalists in a competition held by the technology advisors PA Consulting. I was one of the judges deciding who should win - and it was a tricky task. There was the London primary school with a plan to recycle old computer components to turn the Raspberry Pi into a communications device for schools in developing countries.
Anybody who’s anybody has their own app store these days, so why shouldn't the team behind the Raspberry Pi have one too? The tiny and inexpensive Linux-based PC has today gained the Pi Store, accessible from the web or via a standalone app for Raspbian . So far it looks to be slim pickings with only 23 free titles, but the team is hoping that it will grow into a resource that offers developer tools as well as more consumer-oriented titles.
Raspberry Pi launches its very own app store
The $25 or $35 Raspberry Pi computer is a favorite of coders, who've turned it into a synth and embedded it in a camera grip among other things. Now, the Pi is getting attention from the University of Cambridge Computer Lab. Alex Chadwick, one of a group of students working with Pis at Cambridge over the summer, has published a guide to coding basic operating systems for the computer. " Baking Pi " is meant to help incoming freshmen get familiar with basic computer science before starting school, but it's freely available to everyone. Since the university is also purchasing a Pi for every freshman in the department, it's published a series of these tutorials that are placed alongside more general material. Though it's meant for people with some coding experience, it's possible to follow the 12-part operating system guide without much prior knowledge, and it's a perfect example of how the Pi's creator hopes to get people interested in coding , this time from a major university.
Learn to build a Raspberry Pi operating system, courtesy of Cambridge University
Android 4.0 ported to Raspberry Pi, supports HD video but not audio
A working version of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich has been ported to the credit card-sized Raspberry Pi computer, allowing the $25 device to perform many of the functions of a modern smartphone or tablet, albeit at a somewhat slower pace. According to a post on the project's official blog , the build supports hardware-accelerated video and graphics, but is not yet able to play sound due to problems with porting Android's AudioFlinger system. As Eurogamer points out, it's not the first attempt to get Android up and running on the device — the Raspberry Pi community has been working on ports of CyanogenMod 7.2 (based on Android 2.3) and CyanogenMod 9 (based on Android 4.0) for some time. Still, it's the first time the mobile operating system has been anywhere close to usable for everyday tasks, providing a real alternative to the various stripped-down Linux distributions currently available for the Pi platform.
Back to the Hub Getting Started: Buying Guide - for advice on buying the Raspberry Pi. SD Card Setup - for information on how to prepare the SD Card used to boot your Raspberry Pi. Basic Setup - for help with buying / selecting other hardware and setting it up.
RPi Easy SD Card Setup
R-Pi Hub
Notice: The Raspberry Pi Wiki pages on this site is collaborative work - the Raspberry Pi Foundation is not responsible for content on these pages. Now shipping to customers Update on lead times as of 22nd March 2013: The lead time is around 2 weeks from Farnell and 4 weeks from RS.Google has announced a three-year partnership with UK organization Teach First, which aims to increase students' exposure to science and technology by training teachers and providing equipment. Each year 34 teachers will go through a six-week training program, for a total of 102, with the first group due to start working in classrooms this September. Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt believes that the program could help more than 20,000 students from underprivileged backgrounds. The teachers will be provided funds to "purchase of innovative teaching aides to inspire their classes," including the Raspberry Pi computer and Arduino microcontroller.
Google to provide Raspberry Pis and Arduinos, train teachers for UK schools
FishPi is a tiny, Raspberry Pi-enabled ship that aims to cross the Atlantic
Now that Raspberry Pi's are getting into the hands of folks around the world, we're starting to see all kinds of interesting projects. And in the case of Greg Holloway, his goal is a little more ambitious than most — to use a Raspberry Pi to create an autonomous vehicle that will cross the Atlantic Ocean. The aptly named FishPi project is currently in the proof of concept phase, but the final version will be powered by a 130 watt solar panel and includes features like a GPS, servo controller board for driving the rudder and motor, a compass, and a camera. The current test version is 20-inches long and features the Raspberry Pi itself housed in a plastic sandwich container. There's no word yet on when the FishPi will be ready to take to the seas, but eventually Holloway hopes to create kits so that students and hobbyists can easily create their own autonomous water vehicles.
While the fact that the Raspberry Pi ships without a case might be off-putting to some, it's a clear boon to those with the ability to make the most out of the tiny Linux machine. It's not a surprise, then, that we're starting to see some innovative ways to leverage the hardware, starting with this Super Nintendo mod from Florian of petRockBlog . The mod involves a PCB that acts as a hardware interface for a SNES emulator, so you can play Super Mario Kart with the same controller you practiced your time trials on back in 1992. Meanwhile, modder Ben Heck has been working on something from even further back — a full-on wooden BBC Micro-style case for the Raspberry Pi that gives the computer a keyboard, power switch, I/O ports and even expandability through a cartridge slot. The mod is yet to be fully revealed, but it'll be featured in the next episode of the Ben Heck Show.
SNES and BBC Micro revived by Raspberry Pi modders
RPi Beginners
Back to the Hub . Getting Started: Buying Guide - for advice on buying the Raspberry Pi. Preload your Card - for information on how to make the SD card used to boot your Raspberry Pi.
From eLinux.org Back to the Hub . This page lists the most common problems and suggests some solutions. See RPi_Bugs for problems that are bugs. Power / Start-up A good power supply that will supply 5V is vital.