# Raspberry Pi, Anyone?

Category: Geeks r Us

## Post 1 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Monday, 04-Nov-2013 19:35:56

Has anyone gotten this Linux driven device? It appears to be very cool, and I want one for Christmas. Should I get it?

## Post 2 by starfly (99956) on Monday, 04-Nov-2013 21:40:03

I am not sure about its accessibility, I would see if it running orca or if a fork of android running talkback.

## Post 3 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Tuesday, 05-Nov-2013 7:54:08

You can put whatever Linux distro you like on it, provided it supports the ARM archetecture. They have an accessible Arch Linux variant, equipped with Espeakup.

## Post 4 by The Roman Battle Mask (Making great use of my Employer's time.) on Tuesday, 05-Nov-2013 10:11:09

I got one and love it. I run the standard raspbian distribution and only access it through SSH. I use it as a network storage device when plugged into an external USB drive, print server, and lower power way to download torrents.

## Post 5 by brandonmcginty (Generic Zoner) on Tuesday, 05-Nov-2013 17:36:40

Various thoughts below. Your mileage may very. Please PM with questions if any of this is confusing or unclear.
Same as The Roman Battle Mask. I've got one sitting here running the Debian distro with access via SSH.
If you get one of these, you're going to want to be familiar with the command line. It's not a blazing fast machine, so to me at least, the GUI with Orca is out. However, there are plenty of apps that are purely text-based, (don't require Gnome or any "desktop" system.)
If you can, you might want to get a preloaded SD card, as creating a raw image on the card via windows can be painful.
If you intend to use the Pi as a portable device, you will want a better case than the cheap plastic one. The holding slots aren't sturdy enough for movement (though it works fine sitting on a desk).
I'm trying to get espeak and speakup installed, so I can use it from the keyboard.
There are some weird issues with sound at first, but googling RPi firmware update and following the instructions will fix those.

## Post 6 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Wednesday, 06-Nov-2013 5:23:52

I yould think that taking it places would be a tad bit difficult, since you'd have to take the keyboard, power supply, wireless dongle, speakers, and the unit. But it would be worth it, that's for sure.

## Post 7 by hardyboy09 (I'm going for the prolific poster awards!) on Wednesday, 06-Nov-2013 22:46:58

What is this device?

## Post 8 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Thursday, 07-Nov-2013 12:10:38

It's basically a motherboard that you connect things to. You basically need a keyboard, screen, sound (speakersheadphones), and a power supply.

## Post 9 by hardyboy09 (I'm going for the prolific poster awards!) on Thursday, 07-Nov-2013 18:20:06

Oh, and why would someone want something like this? It's basically like a PC starter kit?

## Post 10 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Thursday, 07-Nov-2013 18:41:20

Kinda, but not really. It's cheap, yes. You'll need some parts, yes. But your not actually building the PC. I'm not sure I can accurately describe much further then that, to be honest.

## Post 11 by brandonmcginty (Generic Zoner) on Thursday, 07-Nov-2013 20:38:03

Just my thoughts, again.
I'm trying to give some general example use-cases.
Please chime in if anyone thinks of any others.
It's an extremely cheap, usable platform for computing purposes.
Can't afford a laptop, or don't need the power therein? Then this could work as a replacement, with some planning. (Thinking about the above posts, it would be some work to get a portable battery, and the cabling for a wireless dongle, a USB hub, the power, headphones, and a keyboard. I believe it would be lighter than some laptops, and given long enough cables, you stick the Pi in a bag, leave the power supply with it, and just pull out the keyboard. Nothing on a desk accept the keyboard, and/or a braille display. That's what I was envisioning above.)
Need a machine to sit on your network and download updated content from the net (like torrents mentioned above)? Cool. That's a small power drain for something that doesn't have to be highly per formant, and that can run constantly.
Want an alarm clock, or an internet radio, without the noise and heat of a general-purpose computer? You've got it. This thing makes no noise that I can hear.
Want to connect into your network remotely? Plug the Pi in, forward port 22 to the Pi, and you can access anything on your network from another location.
Don't get me wrong. If you're happy with your current setup, or you don't like tinkering, or you think every machine has to be quad-core, or ...,
then this might not be the thing for you.
Just a fun project with multiple uses.
As an aside, I'd love to see these become a tad beefier, and be able to power software-defined ham radio setups. Talking menus and infinite saved configs anyone?

## Post 12 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Saturday, 09-Nov-2013 9:14:49

I plan to use it primarily as a server and a remote access option for my home network.

## Post 13 by hardyboy09 (I'm going for the prolific poster awards!) on Saturday, 09-Nov-2013 20:54:19

I just finished reading about them. Pretty interesting concept.

## Post 14 by chaman_1167 (Generic Zoner) on Friday, 06-Dec-2013 20:27:36

A group was started just over a year ago and some members have actively worked long and hard hours to make a lot of the distros accessible. The website for this mailing list is
www.raspberryvi.org'''

## Post 15 by Shell Script (I just keep on posting!) on Sunday, 08-Dec-2013 14:35:59

Thank you for the resource.