March 2014
Beginner
286 pages
5h 34m
English
Content preview from Learning Python with Raspberry Pi
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Chapter 11
Interfacing with Hardware
Unlike most computers, a Raspberry Pi has a series of General Purpose Inputs and Outputs (GPIOs) that allow you to interact with the world outside. These are the metal pins that stick up next to the SD card. You can use them a bit like programmable switches to turn things on and off, or you can use them to get information from other sources. In short, they allow you to expand your Pi in any way you want. They're widely used by digital artists to create interactive displays and by robot builders to bring their creations to life. With a bit of imagination, there really is no limit to what you can achieve with the Pis GPIOs and a few components.
Since this chapter is all about controlling things outside of the Pi, you will need a bit more equipment to try the examples here. It needn't be expensive though, and you can get started for just a few pounds. Even as you improve, most of the bits you'll need are cheap and easily available both online and in hobbyist stores.
Setting Up Your Hardware Options
Before jumping in and building circuits, the first thing you'll need is a way of connecting to the GPIO pins on the Pi. Since you can't just connect wires straight to the pins (actually you can solder directly onto them, but it's not recommended), there are a few options for accessing them, covered in the next sections.
Female to Male Jumper Wires
These are probably the simplest option. They simply fit over the top of the GPIO pins and allow you to ...
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O’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.Julian F.
I wanted to learn C and C++, but it didn't click for me until I picked up an O'Reilly book. When I went on the O’Reilly platform, I was astonished to find all the books there, plus live events and sandboxes so you could play around with the technology.Addison B.
I’ve been on the O’Reilly platform for more than eight years. I use a couple of learning platforms, but I'm on O'Reilly more than anybody else. When you're there, you start learning. I'm never disappointed.Amir M.
I'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.