Raspberry Pi Official Magazine #140

This month is special for me. This month we cover learning to code with Raspberry Pi (page 34). Teaching kids of all ages how to code is what Raspberry Pi, and by extension, The MagPi exists for. Coding is close to my heart, ever since I was pushed in front of a BBC Micro Model B at school. And I’ve written a Python tutorial that shows you how to create a to-do list (page 42). It’s great to go over all the basics of Python all over again. If you are already a coding ninja then there’s plenty of fun to be found in making things with Raspberry Pi and code. In particular, I really enjoyed KG’s exploration of using floppy disk drives and CD-ROM drives with Raspberry Pi (page…

Over the years we’ve found that however senior you are as a software or hardware engineer, tinkering with a Raspberry Pi or Pico is pretty universal. We’ve featured projects from engineers at Raspberry Pi in the past but it’s true in other companies – like Sandeep Mistry from Arm who works within the IoT Line of Business (LoB). He creates projects that illustrate what folks can do with Raspberry Pi technology. “I’ve been making things from a young age.” Sandeep tells us. “It started off with building things like LEGO, then moving onto higher tech things after getting the opportunity to attend the Virtual Ventures summer camp (carleton.ca/vv). I was very fortunate that the high school I went to offered courses in computer science, so I had the opportunity to…

Give a plant a personality “[A favourite project of mine] was using Pico W to create a plant that texts you when it needs water, after it’s been watered, good morning/night, and random jokes,” Sandeep says. “It was the first time I used MicroPython, and it was fun to use the Pico W to give a plant a personality.” ▶ magpi.cc/picoplant Create a USB microphone Pico can do a lot with its PIO capabilities – and it also has an ADC (analogue-to-digital converter) onboard. Combining the ability to connect to a system as a USB device while also listening to a microphone means you can create a custom Pico-powered mic. It’s an interesting and fairly cheap way to add a mic to a computer. ▶ magpi.cc/picomic See sound in real…

MAKER Metal industry professional and tech experimenter Davide loves being able to take his mobile lab from place to place – on two wheels bagbuilds.com Like many readers of The MagPi, an early fascination with computers led maker Davide Marchetti to teach himself as much as he could about programming and electronics. His fascination with tech was enhanced through hands-on projects such as creating a hydroponic greenhouse system and building an Arduinocontrolled pantograph. Davide recently embarked on projects covering 3D printing and wireless communications, leading him to explore the wonderful possibilities of Raspberry Pi. The Backpack Cyberdeck is a selfcontained, Raspberry Pi 4-powered, portable lab he can take anywhere with him on his bike. “Even when I travel, I want all my stuff with me for all occasions and always…

01 Download and print (or design your own) backpack frame from Davide’s online STL files at magpi.cc/bagbuildsgit. The frame will fit a standard backpack size and shape. 02 The cyberdeck setup is controlled by Raspberry Pi 4, with all-important heat dissipation components to keep the bundle of electronics cool and running optimally 03 The frame sits snugly inside the bag. Multiple USB devices and efficient and stable power packs support the array of sensing and communications hardware…

MAKER Rob Miles has been playing with hardware and software since almost before there was hardware and software. magpi.cc/redtelephone In the 1970s, people either headed for a phone box to make calls or signed a telephone contract with the General Post Office. If they did the latter, they’d invariably end up renting a shiny GPO 746 Rotary telephone available in a variety of colours. Callers would stick their fingers into the number holes, turn the dial anti-clockwise until it reached the finger stop, and let go. After the right number of digits, their call would connect. Until button-press phones arrived this method was standard, and Rob Miles loved it. “The old phones were a huge part of my life when I was younger,” he says. “Everybody had one. And everybody…