Re: Raspberry Pi and Lua

[sergei karhof <karhof21@...>]

On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 8:18 PM, Steve Litt <slitt@troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> Like everyone else, I'm enamored with the idea of a tiny, fanless,
> $35.00 computer that can be used to do special little tasks. Trouble
> is, I can't find a special task it's capable of doing that I'd like it
> to do. It has too few NICs to be a firewall. It can't plug into a
> normal monitor (or even the old TVs we have around the house), so it
> can't be an OGG Jukebox. I have no need to control my coffeemaker or
> garage door opener.
>
> Adding Lua to this machine makes it pretty much capable of anything
> that can be done within its limited memory, but I just can't think of
> anything I really want the thing to do. Any ideas?

Steve, there are literally dozens of ways it could be used. Some have
already been mentioned in other emails, so I won't go into it. Just
google for "home automation" or "domotics" and you will get ideas
about what you can do.

While microcontrollers have been around for a while, the real novelty
now is that (1) these boards are getting *real* cheap (like never
before) (2) the Raspberry is much more than a microcontroller, as it
can run a full fledged operating system, not just a programming
language that controls the peripherals - in other words, it is a
"true" personal computer and (3) which follows from points 1 and 2,
these boards are right now on the verge of becoming a mass phenomenon,
because of their accessibility in terms of inexpensiveness and ease of
use/programming. In the past, all similar things (e.g. Arduino) never
raised so much "popular" interest as the Raspberry does today. Their
clientele was mostly limited to engineers and electronics hobbists. By
contrast, things are getting fast to the point where someone who does
not even know what a transistor is will be able to fully exploit the
potential of Raspberry and similar gizmos.

Yes, this may be a hype, but remember that often hypes become
self-fulfilling prophecies...

As for the fact that the Raspberry is not the only such product and
does not deserve this much praise, this may well be true, but the fact
remains that the Raspberry is, to date, one of the best products in
its category.
(Just to be clear: I have no business/connection at all with Raspberry
production or sale)