I’ve had a few Raspberry Pi located around the office plugged into network switches, and I wanted to tidy them up, so this is how you network rack a Raspberry Pi i 1B+, RPi 2 or RPi3.
Archive for June, 2020
HOW TO Rack a Raspberry Pi – RPi1B+, RPi2, RPi3
Thursday, June 25th, 2020
Have I been deaf all the years ? Two DACs ! I’ve been re-awakened…. and MP3 suck!
Tuesday, June 23rd, 2020Finally, after almost 14 years – I’ve completed my new office layout! (Sorry Lindsey for taking so long.. I told you I would get round to it!).
Which has given me the opportunity again, to re-connect my “HiFi” which has sat in the corner of my office, gathering dust – literally?
After re-wiring all the interconnects, making sure the cables are connected the correct way because they are “non-reversible, the signal must flow the correct way”, and re-wiring the bi-wire on the speakers.
I played the Compact Disc “Wish You Were Here” by Pink Floyd <—– the amount of detail and the stereo separation was amazing… it’s like I’ve had my head in a bucket all these years listening to streaming music and MP3s!!!!
This is not just a normal “HiFi” – Cyrus Amplifier, Cyrus PSX-R – connected to Cyrus 782 speakers – Sony CD Transport – feed into three DACs, clock synced.
Cambridge Audio S700 DACs
Cyrus 782
The DACs are Cambridge Audio S700 – Isomagic – designed by John A. Westlake of Pink Triangle (1991) fame, he later went on to work for Cambridge Audio (founded 1968), when Cambridge Audio was a proper HiFi company, not to be confused with the re-branded Richer Sounds brand, since 1994, when it was purchased by Richer Sounds.
I believe John has now semi-retired, but he left us some great legacy HiFi products, and one day I’ll own a Pink Triangle DaCapo DAC!
NHS COVID-19 App for Smart Phones – did it ever work ? – waste of UK Tax Payers Money ? – Fake App ?
Thursday, June 18th, 2020When the GOV.UK stated they were testing an NHS COVID-19 app for smartphones to track and trace, I managed to get my hands on the app for iOS (Apple), and I tested it… in May 2020 using this test kit – this is an nRF52 Development Kit – Bluetooth Kit – connected to a computer, you can “sniff” Bluetooth traffic…
nRF52 Development Kit
I never saw any Bluetooth traffic between iOS devices (Apple) and on a few forums, I asked questions, does it actually work ???? and for weeks I’ve been asking what has happened to the App ???
Today I find out… this:—-
Looks like it’s been abandoned, did it ever work ?
UK virus-tracing app switches to Apple-Google model
NHS COVID-19 app switches to Google/Apple Model!?
I’ll probably be bundled it the back of a black van after writing this, so see you around!
Rainbow Beeswax candles complete for our NHS staff and essential workers keeping Britain going through COVID-19.
Sunday, June 14th, 2020after a week of melting and pouring different coloured layers for the rainbow, here they are
Rainbow Beeswax Candles for our NHS staff and essential workers keeping Britain going through COVID-19.
Project office busy light using a Raspberry Pi Zero W – so Andy does not walk in on a web conference in his pants!
Friday, June 12th, 2020My little project has been completed which I blogged about here
The Problem
Now that Lindsey and I and both working from home, and in two different offices, and spend most days on Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, WebEx etc in meetings with work colleagues or vendors it is difficult to tell if we are “BUSY” engaged in a meeting, and microphone and webcam are on!
also to stop me walking into Lindsey’s office, semi-naked just wearing my pants!
The Solution
A Raspberry Pi Zero W, which is a small wireless computer running Linux, with a LED display, which can be programmed with an Available (green), Busy (red), Away (yellow), Party (rainbow) mode status light!
Lindsey just says – “I could have used a post-it!” – but where is the fun in that!
Busy Status Light it’s Party Time, and it’s POETS day!
Parts required below
Making rainbow beeswax candles Part 1
Thursday, June 11th, 2020So I have a surplus of
- beeswax.
- glass jars.
- coloured crayons.
- candle wicks
- wick pins
and a professional wax melter to make beeswax canldes
so inspired by Kirstie Allsopp’s son on Keep Crafting and Carry – Episode 3
Let’s make Rainbow Candles! Yippee!!!
Photo of a dog rose (Rosa canina)
Tuesday, June 9th, 2020Whilst on a flower related theme…
Whilst on one of our daily walks at lunchtime I came across this spectacular dog rose (Rosa canina), so here’s quick photo.
A dog rose
I love buddleia!
Tuesday, June 9th, 2020It’s out there now, my secret is out, I love the buddleia bushes, or more commonly known as the butterfly bush, even the common pink version which grows wild, maybe it’s the plant which attracts hundreds of insects and butterflies, and takes me back to my youth and “My Creature Club!” – hey if your reading Skeggy! Hello!
more recently there are some attractive colour variants, under the name of buddleia davidii, which are a dark blue or dark purple, and a deeper purple called “Dark Knight”, if you do not like the pink version, and also a white, you cannot mistake them, they are everywhere in the country, and seem to do very well, on old factory works, old building works etc
Buddleja davidii, not in flower yet!
But my favourite buddleia globosa, which is a buddleia bush, with small orange balls! It’s not until you get up close that you can see the florets are the same as a traditional buddleia bush but organised into orange balls!
Buddleja globosa
Buddleja globosa
Buddleja globosa
I have a few in my garden, a B.davidii and also I’m lucky to have two B. globosa, I’ve always planted buddleia in my gardens, but never seen the B. globosa for sale in garden centres, I took 10 cuttings from a plant when I lived in Warren Farm, which was the first time I had ever seen the plant, and it’s taken many many years for the plants to establish and now start to flower.
Bumble bee on Buddleja globosa
and the bumblebees love them as well!
If you do plant a Buddleja make sure you prune it because they can go wild!
A lot has changed in the world of computers and computing in 40 years, since I used that Video Genie!
Sunday, June 7th, 2020Now a lot has changed in the world of computers and computing in 40 years, since I used that Video Genie!
Video Genie
CPU: Zilog Z80, running at 1.76 MHz
16 KB RAM
This is one of the current Raspberry Pi’s, it’s a Raspberry Pi Zero W, and was released over three years ago in 2017.
Raspberry Pi Zero W
CPU: ARM11 running at 1GHz
RAM: 512MB
At least the Video Genie looked like a computer!!!
Anyway, I’m using this small computer, size of a match box, for a new project coming soon!
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