Category: Linux

May 20, 2019

Introduction to IoT: Building a Budget, Single-Channel LoRa to MQTT Gateway

You don’t need an expensive LoRaWAN gateway to get started with IoT using LoRa. In this tutorial you’ll learn how to build a simple, single-channel gateway so you can experiment with a LoRa to MQTT gateway, and try out the unique properties of LoRa before investing any significant money into it.

Categories Arduino/ESP32/Hardware/IoT/Linux/LoRa/macOS/MQTT/Raspberry Pi

January 7, 2019

Introduction to IoT: Build an MQTT Server Using Raspberry Pi

In the fast-changing world of IoT, there’s no such thing as a universal standard. But over the last few years, MQTT has started to establish itself as the de facto messaging protocol. In this tutorial you’ll learn how to set up an MQTT message server in just a few minutes using a Raspberry Pi. MQTT is a lightweight and simple...

Categories IoT/Linux/MQTT/Raspberry Pi

December 21, 2018

Show Artist & Song Metadata Using Airplay on Raspberry Pi

Configuring a Raspberry Pi so you can stream Airplay to it is remarkably simple. But what if you want to see what’s playing right now? The current artist and song information is sent over Airplay, and in this tutorial you’ll learn how to extract it and send it to a display on the Raspberry Pi. My previous post on configuring Airplay on...

Categories Electronics/Linux/Raspberry Pi

December 17, 2018

How to Backup & Clone a Raspberry Pi SD Card on macOS the Easy Way

Do you struggle to remember how to backup a Raspberry Pi SD card on your Mac? Have you ever found it difficult to identify the physical device on the command line? Do you find online tutorials gloss over important details, or are just plain wrong? This tutorial will explain everything step-by-step, easily and safely. There are plenty of reasons for...

Categories Electronics/Linux/macOS/Raspberry Pi/Unix

December 10, 2018

Apple Airplay on Raspberry Pi in 7 Easy Steps

Do you have an existing hifi system that’s too old to support Apple Airplay? Don’t want to replace it with lower-quality wireless speakers, but want to stream music? It’s a common problem. The good news is, for the cost of a Raspberry Pi you can build an Airplay server so you can stream music directly from an iPhone or iPad...

Categories Electronics/Hardware/I/O/Linux/Raspberry Pi

December 4, 2018

Unleash Your Raspberry Pi! How to Install Headless Raspbian Lite

  Need to free your Raspberry Pi from the desk? Unleash it from monitor and keyboard? Learn how to build a minimal installation of Raspbian Lite running in headless mode so you can install it in a robot… or up a tree! These days it’s actually very easy to set up such a system, using Raspbian Lite and the NOOBS...

Categories Electronics/Hardware/Linux/Microcontrollers/Raspberry Pi

November 26, 2018

Stop Being Afraid Of Regular Expressions: 9 Essential Patterns You Should Learn

Regular expressions have a somewhat daunting reputation. Arguably one of the most useful inventions in computing history, they are nonetheless regarded with equal measures of awe and dread even by some experienced programmers. Why is this? Regular expressions are actually straightforward to understand and use. But their reputation has not been helped by people copying large and complex patterns from...

Categories Linux/macOS/Regular Expressions/Shell scripting/Unix

November 7, 2018

Arduino vs. Raspberry Pi: 9 Crucial Differences You Need to Know

A lot of newcomers ask which is best: Arduino or Raspberry Pi? There’s no “right” answer to that question. It depends entirely on your needs, because even though they look similar and cost roughly the same, it’s like comparing apples with oranges.  There are a lot of differences between Raspberry Pi and Arduino. No-one has the time to read the...

Categories Arduino/Electronics/Hardware/I/O/Linux/Raspberry Pi

October 31, 2018

Microprocessors vs. Microcontrollers vs. SoCs: All You Need to Know

What does the word “processor” mean, nowadays? People use it to talk about a bewildering array of microprocessor technologies, from humble 8-pin microcontrollers to today’s massively integrated, multi-die packages that keep pushing the boundaries of the smartphone revolution.  Once upon a time there were CPUs. And then there were microprocessors (MPUs), quickly followed by microcontrollers (MCUs). And finally there came...

Categories Arduino/Electronics/Hardware/I/O/Linux

September 16, 2018

Advanced Wildcard Patterns Most People Don’t Know

If you’re a macOS Terminal or Linux shell user you may be familiar with simple wildcard patterns. But most people don’t know the more advanced patterns, which occupy a kind of netherworld between simple wildcards and their more complex cousins, regular expressions. In this article you’ll learn about these patterns and their hidden power.   In my article Think You Understand...

Categories Linux/macOS/Shell scripting/Uncategorized/Unix