The British Computer Society and Royal Society of Edinburgh have developed a series of video tutorials for the Scratch programming language. Well worth looking at if you’re just starting out or want to learn more (there are intermediate videos as well!)
Nocturnal Wildlife Watching with the #RaspberryPi and new IR camera
The new PiNoIR camera (which is like the regular camera module with the IR filter removed) has found it’s way over to the DesignSpark guys. (Well, they’re part of RS Components, so I expect it didn’t take long for it to find it’s way there!) They’ve created an outdoor wildlife camera with the PiNoIR and they’ve had some pretty decent results. Read more here
Get into Java on the #RaspberryPi using graphical interface Greenfoot
David Briddock has written an excellent introduction to the graphical programming environment Greenfoot. It’s aimed at ages 11 and upwards.
It’s not as simple as Scratch (hence the higher age) but looks to be a very interesting environment to learn Java and object-orientated concepts.
Install MongoDB on your #RaspberryPi
Chris Mobberley has written a tutorial on getting MongoDB (a NoSQL database server) up and running on your Pi.
PA Consulting launch #RaspberryPi competition
UK-based PA Consulting Group have announced their 2013/14 Raspberry Pi project competition. Here’s what they have to say:
To create your project, you can use a Raspberry Pi as well as additional hardware up to the value of £100.
The closing date to submit your project is 31 January 2014.
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While the format of the competition remains similar, this year we are challenging entrants to use the Raspberry Pi to help the environment. For inspiration, you may wish to consider some of the winning entries from the last competition:
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An air quality and weather surveillance station made with a Raspberry Pi that takes in information about air quality through attached sensors and uploads it directly to the internet, where it can then be viewed and analysed on a smartphone or tablet.
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A system that enables home owners to monitor the electricity consumption of their home. The electricity-consumption logging system was based on the communication protocol of an off-the-shelf wireless electricity monitor.
There are four categories open:
- School years 4-6 (8-11)
- School years 7-11 (12-16)
- School years 12-13 (16-18)
- Undergraduates
So, if you’re in one of those brackets, what’s stopping you? Remember you have until the end of January to submit your project, so there’s no time to lose!
Where to go to learn how to code!
The Observer has done a nice piece listing the top 10 places to go to learn how to code. Kudos to both Code Club and Rewired State, who get mentions.