The UK Coding Club initiative has just released a bunch of lesson plans, source code and information useful for teachers taking their students through the beginnings of Python. Read more here
Voice Controlling a #RaspberryPi
Steve Hickson has blogged about, and released the code for, his speech control software. It uses the Google voice API and you basically say “Pi”, wait for a confirmation and then tell it what to do.
There’s a video and more info on downloading/installing it over on his blog. Read it here
Moway Robot and #RaspberryPi
Spanish company mOway Education have released a Raspberry Pi version of their software which works with Scratch. The mOway robot itself is a two-wheeled sensor-loaded car and communication is handled using RF with a dongle plugged into the Pi. This is the first time I’ve seen this approach and I have to say it’s an intriguing alternative to the traditional wifi method. Read more here
The robots themselves retail in the UK for about £180 (which isn’t too bad if you consider the amount of time and materials you would need to do it yourself). You can get them from Data Harvest and Quriosity.
School in Delaware, USA adds #RaspberryPi to Summer School
The Jefferson School has added a computer segment to its summer school. The Delaware-based school will be teaching students how to set-up and use the Raspberry Pi in a week-long summer school from July 22-26. Read more here including an interview with instructor Eric Roberts
Fantasy fiction project uses #RaspberryPi to distribute story portions
Taken from TechRadar.com:
Piggybacking on weirdly named and unsecured wireless networks is one of the joys of city living. But if you try to siphon off some Wi-Fi while walking around Bristol in the next few days, you might find yourself accessing not your own email, but a whole alternative universe. The city is currently home to an experiment in digital storytelling called These Pages Fall Like Ash. Participants download portions of narrative to their smartphones from Raspberry Pi terminals concealed in various locations. Of course, you’ll need a guide to find and understand these, and that comes in the form of a beautiful wood-bound notebook that you receive when you purchase your ticket. The story is based on a collaboration between academic Tom Abba and art collective Circumstance, with input from fantasy authors Neil Gaiman and Nick Harkaway. Does it work? Well, when we tried it out, we found a few glitches with the terminals – and our iPhone battery choked before we could get the whole story. But the idea of a secret city layered over familiar streets is seductive and beautifully executed. These Pages Fall Like Ash continues until May 8 but has sold out. However, the creators have plans for similar events in other cities – we recommend joining in if you get the chance.
The project itself is housed on it’s own domain – pagesfall.com
Wall Box SONOS Controller – a #RaspberryPi 1950s Jukebox
Steve Devlin has been working on converting a wall-mounted 1950s juke box so that it works with a Raspberry Pi. His blog contains all the details about how he did it. Read his blog