The Raspberry Pi is a series of low power, single board computers created by the Raspberry Pi Foundation. Originally created to teach kids the basics of computer science and programming in developing nations, the Raspberry Pi was made with an emphasis on low power requirements, low price and ease of use.
However, due to its flexible nature, and low price, starting at just $35 back in 2012, the Raspberry Pi found a home in the hands of tech enthusiasts, modders, and scientists. It has since expanded far beyond its original use case.
Let us take a look at Raspberry Pi projects for beginners, what it has to offer, and what you can do with it yourself.
Hardware
Over the years, the Raspberry Pi Foundation has launched various models of the Raspberry Pi computer. Apart from the normal generations (i.e Raspberry Pi, Raspberry Pi 2 etc), there are also some feature variations, like Model A, B, A+ and B+.
Looking at the common models available, we have –
1. Raspberry Pi (First Generation) – Launched in 2012
Processor – Single core ARM 6 @ 700Mhz
Architecture – ARMv6 (32 bit)
SOC – Broadcom BCM2835
GPU – Broadcom VideoCore IV @ 250Mhz
RAM – 256MB to 512MB, depending on model
Price at Launch – $35
2. Raspberry Pi 2 (Second Generation) – Launched in 2015
Processor – Quad core ARM Cortex A7 @ 900Mhz
Architecture – ARMv7-A (32 bit)
SOC – Broadcom BCM2836
GPU – Broadcom VideoCore IV @ 300Mhz
RAM – 1GB
Price at Launch – $35
3. Raspberry Pi 3 (Third Generation) – Launched in 2016
Processor – Quad core ARM Cortex A53 @ 1200Mhz
Architecture – ARMv8-A (32 bit / 64 bit)
SOC – Broadcom BCM2837
GPU – Broadcom VideoCore IV @ 400Mhz
RAM – 1GB
Price at Launch – $35
4. Raspberry Pi Zero – Launched in 2015
Processor – Single core ARM 6 @ 1000Mhz
Architecture – ARMv6 (32 bit)
SOC – Broadcom BCM2835
GPU – Broadcom VideoCore IV @ 250Mhz
RAM – 512MB, depending on model
Price at Launch – $5
All of the Pi variants have varying numbers of USB ports (most commonly 4 USB 2.0 ports in B+ variant), video out via HDMI or AV/RCA and a set of General Purpose I/O Pins (GPIO).
The Raspberry Pi single board computer can boot various OSes, primarily based on Linux. The newer Raspberry Pi 2 and Raspberry Pi 3 can also boot a specialized Windows 10 IoT Core OS, based on the Windows NT Kernel.
Best Raspberry Pi OS
Raspbian (Official OS by Raspberry Pi Foundation)
Ubuntu
Fedora
openSUSE
Gentoo Linux
CentOS
FreeBSD
Windows 10 IoT Core
Kali Linux
Apart from generalized OSes, there are also specialized OS builds for the Pi, which serve a single purpose usually. For example –
RasPlex (For media streaming and use as Media Box on TV)O
penELEC (For media server usage)
RetroPie (For emulating Retro gaming consoles)
OpenWRT (For usage as a network router)
We can clearly see that the Raspberry Pi is an extremely diverse computing platform, but you, as the normal user, what can you do with one of these bad boys? Let’s take a look at some interesting projects you can achieve on the Raspberry Pi platform.
Raspberry Pi Projects for Beginners
1. Personal Computer
Starting off with the simplest of the bunch. The Raspberry Pi, in essence, is actually a tiny computer. And with that, comes all the functionality one expects in a computer.
For an average home user (usage consisting of internet browsing, music playback, movies, file downloading, document editing etc.), the Raspberry Pi has enough horsepower to handle your workload.
What you Need
Raspberry Pi (at least Pi 2 or Pi 3)
MicroSD Card (preferably minimum 16GB)
USB Power Adapter (most mobile chargers will work fine)
Monitor / TV for display
Keyboard and Mouse
How to Set it Up
Download Raspbian Image from here – https://downloads.raspberrypi.org/raspbian_latest
On your PC or Laptop, install Etcher (available for Mac, Windows and Linux)
Connect your microSD card to your machine
Select the image file in Etcher, and write it on your SD Card
Insert the microSD Card in your Raspberry Pi
Connect the Pi to the monitor, keyboard and mouse and power it on
Once the Pi is setup, you will be greeted with a simple PIXEL UI, presented by the Raspbian OS. You can immediately start using it, as most of the essential software is already preinstalled.
We recommend some extra software you can install for gaining the most out of your desktop computer experience.
RhythmBox – Music Player
TBOPlayer – Video Player
GIMP – Image Editor
Transmission – Torrent Client
There are other open source operating systems available for the Pi, the most popular being Ubuntu MATE. While other OSes have their own advantages and disadvantages, we prefer Raspbian, as it is not only the officially supported OS by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, but it is also the fastest and most optimized OS for the Raspberry Pi.
2. Home Theater PC
What if you do not want to use the Pi for regular usage? What if you want to play music, watch movies, TV Shows. In short, what if you intend to make a media center out of it.
There are primarily two methods, one of them is to set up a Pi as a regular PC, then install corresponding software. The other method, the one we will discuss today, is by far the better method. It is to use a specialized OS made for this very purpose.
There are multiple OSes available for this, including RasPlex, Open Source Media Center (OSMC) and Kodi (XBMC).
What you Need
Raspberry Pi (preferably Pi 2 or Pi 3)
MicroSD Card (preferably minimum 16GB)
USB Power Adapter (most mobile chargers will work fine)
Monitor / TV for display
Keyboard and Mouse
External Hard Disk (for storing your media)
How to Set it Up
Download OSMC Image from here – https://osmc.tv/
On your PC or Laptop, install Etcher (available for Mac, Windows and Linux)
Connect your microSD card to your machineSelect the image file in Etcher, and write it on your SD Card
Insert the microSD Card in your Raspberry Pi
Connect the Pi to the monitor, keyboard and mouse and power it on
Add your media via the User Interface, and you are ready to rock
In this guide, we used the popular OSMC distribution. It is based on Kodi, with native support for OMXPlayer (hardware accelerated playback on Raspberry Pi). It also comes with a slick user interface, making it easy to use and stunning to look at.
3. Network Storage Server
Network Attached Storage, or NAS for short is a very important concept nowadays. The idea is simple, a storage device accessible throughout your network, or even shared on the internet.
It makes great sense to keep your documents, media, photos and other files in a central storage, so to prevent duplication of data on your multiple devices (phone, PC, tablet etc), while still having access whenever needed.
Setting up a NAS on a Pi is not particularly a straightforward process, as it involves manual configuration.
What you Need
Raspberry Pi (preferably Pi 2 or Pi 3), setup with an OS.
External hard disk / pen drive (which you intend to share)
Network connection (LAN or WiFi)
We are assuming you already have a Raspberry Pi setup with Raspbian, for this guide. If you don’t have one already, check out Project #1 for the guide. We are going to set up a Samba Server on our Raspberry Pi.
Bring up the terminal on your Raspberry Pi
Update our Raspbian distribution
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
Install ntfs-3g for NTFS support on our Pi
sudo apt-get install ntfs-3g
Connect your hard disk to the Pi via USB
sudo fdisk –l
sudo mkdir /mnt/NAS
Create a user to login as
sudo useradd pi –m –G users
sudo passwd pi
Edit the fstab, to auto mount our HDD on bootup
sudo nano /etc/fstab
Add the following to the bottom of the file
/dev/sda1 /mnt/NAS ntfs-3g uid=pi,gid=pi 0 0
Reboot your Pi
Install Samba
sudo apt-get install samba samba-common-bin
Edit the Samba configuration
sudo nano /etc/samba/smb.conf
Add the following to the bottom of the file to setup our drive
[NAS]
comment = NAS
path = /mnt/NAS
valid users = @users
force group = users
create mask = 0660
directory mask = 0771
read only = no
Restart the Samba Server and connect the user to the server
sudo /etc/init.d/samba restart
sudo smbpasswd –a pi
That’s how you set up a NAS on your Pi. Now, go onto your laptop / PC / Mobile, from where you intend on accessing the storage from.
Add a network storage
On Mac -> Finder – Connect to Server
On Windows -> Add Network Location
On Mobile -> Use a file manager app like ES File Explorer or Solid Explorer
For the server IP, enter smb://<IP Address of your Pi>. The dialog will prompt for the username and password. Enter them as you configured. Then you will be able to access your files anywhere on the network.
4. Wireless Router
We’re pretty sure you have a WiFi Router in your house. But maybe you want another one. Maybe for guests. Maybe for your personal DNS server. Fear not, you no longer have to buy another WiFi Router for the same. Our trusty Raspberry Pi comes to the rescue.
What you Need
Raspberry Pi, setup with an OS.
USB WiFi Adapter (Selective Models only), we suggest Edimax Wireless 802.11 b/g/n nano USB Adapter
How to Set it Up
Install the router software
sudo apt-get install isc-dhcp-server
wget https://github.com/jenssegers/RTL8188-hostapd/archive/v1.1.tar.gz
tar –zxvf v1.1.tar.gz
cd RTL8188-hostapd-1.1/hostapd
sudo make
sudo make install
Configure the ISC-DHCP Server
sudo nano /etc/dhcp/dhcpd.conf
Comment out the following lines
option domain-name “example.org”;
option domain-name-servers ns1.example.org, ns2.example.org;
Uncomment this line
#authoritative;
Next,
We define the parameters of the DHCP servers
subnet 192.168.0.0 netmask 255.255.255.0 {
range 192.168.0.101 192.168.0.150;
option broadcast-address 192.168.0.255;
option routers 192.168.0.1;
default-lease-time 600;
max-lease-time 7200;
option domain-name “local-network”;
option domain-name-servers 8.8.8.8, 8.8.4.4;
}
Next, we edit isc-dhcp-server
sudo nano /etc/default/isc-dhcp-server
Update interfaces to INTERFACES=”wlan0”
Update /etc/network/interfaces
sudo ifdown wlan0
sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces
Configure HostAPD
sudo nano /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf
You can change the SSID and WPA passphrase in this file
Enable Network Address Translation (NAT)
sudo nano /etc/sysctl.conf
Add the line net.ipv4.ip_forward=1
sudo sh –c “echo 1 > /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward”
sudo ifup wlan0
sudo iptables –t nat –A POSTROUTING –o eth0 –j MASQUERADE
sudo iptables –A FORWARD –I eth0 –o wlan0 –m state –state RELATED,ESTABLISHED –j ACCEPT
sudo iptables –A FORWARD –I wlan0 –o eth0 –j ACCEPT
Starting your wireless router
sudo service isc-dhcp-server start
sudo service hostapd start
Final configuration
sudo update-rc.d hostapb enable
sudo update-rc.d isc-dhcp-server enable
sudo sh –c “iptables-save > /etc/iptables.ipv4.nat”
To the file /etc/network/interfaces, add this line
up iptables-restore < /etc/iptables.ipv4.nat
That’s it, now you have your very own Wireless Router. Reboot your Raspberry Pi, and check out the marvel you just created.
5. Retro Gaming Console
Want to revisit all your childhood games, those countless hours spent mashing buttons, looking at our TVs. RetroPie brings back all the nostalgia into the modern world.
RetroPie supports multiple consoles, including
Amiga
Apple II
Atari 2600
Commodore 64
Dreamcast
Game Boy Advance
Game Cube
Game Boy
Genesis
Neo Geo
Nintendo DS
Nintendo Entertainment System
Playstation 1
Playstation 2
Playstation Portable
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Wii
Setting up RetroPie is a very easy process, as simple as setting up Raspbian.
What you Need
Raspberry Pi (at least Pi 2 or Pi 3)
MicroSD Card (preferably minimum 16GB)
USB Power Adapter (most mobile chargers will work fine)
Monitor / TV for display
Keyboard and Mouse
Game Controller (Optional)
How to Set it Up
Download the newest RetroPie Image from here – https://retropie.org.uk/download/
On your PC or Laptop, install Etcher (available for Mac, Windows and Linux)
Connect your microSD card to your machine
Select the image file in Etcher, and write it on your SD Card
Insert the microSD Card in your Raspberry Pi
Connect the Pi to the monitor, keyboard and mouse and power it on
6. Programming and Education
While we are at it, why not use the Raspberry Pi for its original purpose. The Raspberry Pi was originally designed to teach computer science and basic programming to children in developing nations. Infact, the OS Raspbian comes with a very good library of IDEs and tools to get you started out of the box.
Raspbian comes loaded with
BlueJ
Geany
Python
Node-RED
Greenfoot Java
Scratch
Wolfram
Sonic Pi
That’s a healthy set of nifty IDEs to get you started. And when you want to expand, the Pi will run common IDEs like CodeBlocks and Eclipse without breaking a sweat.Home Automation
At this day and age, the buzzword is Internet of Things. As a concept, it is a very simple thing, the appliances in your home, all connected to the internet, being able to communicate with each other, run as needed and be scheduled and controlled remotely.
Imagine your microwave heating your food as you enter your room, the lights in your hall lighting up automatically, and music playing to your senses. That is the kind of thing home automation prevails, and Internet of things allows for.
For setting up a Raspberry Pi as an IoT controller, we have a choice of OSes
Windows 10 IoT Core
Android for Things
So, how does it actually work? You have an array of sensors/cameras/IR blasters set up in your house, or even have them trigger manually as per your need. Using a Raspberry Pi intermediate, you can control your lights, fans, appliances just via a signal through the interweb, say an app on your phone, or according to time schedule, or through sensor data.
What Else?
The magic of the Raspberry Pi does not end there. There are various other usages, including Robotics, turning your TV into a Smart TV, Smart Mirrors, Home Security, bunching up Pi’s into a supercomputing platform and so much more.
Infact, if you can dream it, you can probably make it on the Raspberry Pi.
Conclusion – Raspberry Pi Projects for Beginners
We had a comprehensive look at the Raspberry Pi single board computer today. What started out as an innocuous looking microcomputer, is all over the world today, having its roots deep in the enthusiast community.
According to the Raspberry Pi Foundation, over 10 million Raspberry Pi’s have been sold by 2016, making it one of the highest selling computers worldwide.
With such flexibility and varied usage, coupled with a simple to use board and cheap price, starting at just $5 for the Raspberry Pi Zero, it is easy to see why the Pi revolution took the world by storm.
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