Getting Started with the Internet of Things

Part I. Introduction

Thanks to the unrelenting progress of the semiconductor industry, all the digital parts of a computer can be put onto a single chip, called a microcontroller. A 32-bit microcontroller chip costing less than $10 may have more than twice as much memory as the original 8-bit Apple II computer with its 48 KB of RAM, and may run 100 times faster. A hobbyist board that incorporates such a chip, along with Ethernet and a Micro SD card slot, can be purchased for about $60.

Because of such inexpensive hardware and easy-to-use development platforms, it is now possible for hobbyists to create systems that interact with the physical world in every conceivable way. For example, a sensor can measure the humidity in a flowerpot, and a computer-controlled ...