Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Is anyone using a Raspberry Pi?

Can anyone recommend an easy readable book (raw beginner level) explaining Linux?

Google is your friend. Heaps of tutorials in Linux/unix

they have some FAQs and a forum here...
http://www.raspberrypi.org/faqs

That's probably a good place to start

Dont forget to teach us everything you learn

I have one, but haven't found the time to do anything useful with it yet. I'm planning to replace my Arduino data logger with it at some point and introduce some automation in this year's system upgrade. Maybe even a fish cam.

Thanks DrLuke, BW, and Jake. I'll look that stuff up.

I've been reading Raspberry Pi by Upton and Halfacree and it looks interesting enough. Up till now I've been saving old computers to use in projects but if I can learn Linux, I'll chuck all the old desk tops.

My biggest challenge is trying to grasp Chapter 2, Linux System Administration. I don't have a clue about Linux and all those little files there talking about.

I can do some BASIC but this Linux animal is something else

My Mac has spoiled me. I suppose it's all time on task. I think I have to actually start thinking again

Just to reassure yourself, type the world linux followed by a plain english question in google

something like ...

linux how do I manually install a driver

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=linu ... e&ie=UTF-8

While traveling down to see Attila and Ros's passive green house aquaponics I convinced the Mrs. that we should stop in at MicroCenter and do some window shopping.

Gollieeee! What do you know about that, they carry the Raspberry Pi

Can I, Can I, please?

So now "we" have the RPi Model B, on the condition I make a big dent in the Honey Do List this weekend.
Maybe by Monday I can get the list done. It'll be hard waiting to open the box and play., kinda like wanting to open that Christmas gift under the tree BEFORE Christmas.

I think I can get started by "flashing" (putting an OS on) a card using my MacBook Pro using this info;

http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewt ... =26&t=5561

Don't have a USB key board, but that may not be a problem. I think there is some way to use a USB mouse and an on screen keyboard.

Anyway lots more reading to do. Not really comfortable yet doing this RPi stuff.

Ooops, coffee break over, back to "The List".

Houston- “We have a problem”

Mission Control to Discovery: “Of course you have a problem, you knuckle head. You don’t know what your doing!”

So anyway, I tried downloading the latest distribution from the RPi website. Got it unzipped. Mac does all that for me. I tried to follow the “verification” instructions and ran into problems. Basically I don’t know how to talk Linux in a terminal window. So I posted a help message in their forum:

http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewt ... 8d1726f5bc

At the same time I reached out to a good friend (mate) on the TCROBOTS forum. He quickly figured out what I did wrong and told me what to do. It was the same fix that the RPi forum came back with.

Btw a PC user had a slightly different problem trying to verify the decompressed “image”. You can check that out on the forum if your interested.

So now I have to “flash” this “image” thingy onto a card that will fit in the RPi. Basically, I’m installing a bootloader and operating system on the card.

Wonder how that will go?

Now I want one to see what problems I can have

Hurry up BW, what's the matter with you!

I wanna run and I can't figure out how to crawl yet

I have to earn enough advertising revenue on my blog to get over the $100 that my last transaction cost me, then wait for the next $200 to buy the charge controller I should have bought in the first place, then wait until I build a smok volume controllable cold smoke machine, then build a aquaponics powered boat, then invent a solar still that can handle lots of movement and doesn't weigh anything but still makes enough water for at least one person to live on, then go on an epic adventure for a few days/weeks/months/years, and THEN buy a pi

Actually the pi might be a good central controller for controlling things like the solar panel tracker. Oh yeah, I have to build a solar tracker in there somewhere.

Maybe I'll change the order of some of that stuff

Yesterday I showed My oldest son the RPi board. He just looked at me like I was nuts.

He said "What are you gonna do with that?"

I couldn't tell him that I thought it would just be fun to play around with. So not knowing what to say, I quickly grabbed my Upton and Halfacree book and showed him Chapter 7 A Home Theater PC, Chapter 8 A Productivity Machine and Chapter 9 A Web Server.

Now I can tell him something practical like you are going to do a solar tracker

Let's see, what's the next step in crawling? Oh yea get up on all fours and flash that card thingy

Well, I tried following some directions about flashing the card but I got cold feet when I saw I could wipeout ANY disk.

So I looked around some more info and found a Utube for a Mac.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxAcvEsPkd8

I need to watch it a couple of more times and read the comments before I try it for real.

ALL COMMENTS NEEDED PLEASE.

How old is your son? If he is 16+, just get one of his friends to help. I'm sure one of hem knows what to do.