I also have one dedicated to running the RetroPie[2] distribution and I use it for playing old video games.
I have another with an RTL-SDR dongle[3] attached, and running the OP25[4] software, and I use it as a scanner for listening to local fire/police/ems dispatch channels.
I had given some thought to doing a "cyberdeck"[5] project, but honestly it doesn't have much (if any) practical application, and most of the parts and stuff I bought for that have been repurposed for the "AI box" thing instead.
I'm hoping to detect the "tide" in the atmosphere with barometric pressure readings, but I haven't done anything towards that.
I'd also like to have an automated way to pick out high/low temperature for the day. I've got 2 thermometers taking temperatures. There's data loss caused by both sensors quitting and operational issues, so I have a lot to learn and figure out in processing the raw data.
I wouldn't mind building a weather station at some point as well. It's not something I really need but it would be neat. In conjunction with that, I could also use an RTL-SDR dongle to make a receiver for satellite weather data from various publicly available weather satellites.
The other idea I've toyed with is an automatic plant watering system, in service of my aspiration to start growing my own hot peppers (ghost peppers, habaneros, carolina reapers, etc.)
so I have a lot to learn and figure out in processing the raw data.
If you're interested in weather / environmental "stuff" in a broader sense, you might also be interested in a lot of the other data the USG (and others) make available. NOAA, the USGS, etc. put out all sorts of neat datasets. You can get all the obvious stuff (temp, barometric pressure, etc.) as well as water levels in various creeks and lakes and rivers, discharge volume for same, ground conductivity, stuff about lightning, severe storms (tornados, hurricanes, etc.), wildfires, etc., etc., etc. I'm pretty sure somebody creative could find some really interesting applications for all of that stuff.
DO NOT use a DHT-11 or DHT-22 sensor. Absolute garbage. Spring for the Bosch sensors.
As far as processing the raw data, I'm more interested right now in deciding if I should average which two of the thermometer or barometer readings I've got, and also deciding what to use as a high/low temp for the day - I've had some data dropouts and server crashes where I missed the noon/1pm high temp.
I did get GOES satellite data with a RTL-SDR once a couple of years ago. The antenna is more important than they'd lead you to believe, as is where the antenna is - you pick up a lot of fuzz up to some degrees above the horizon if you place the antenna in an urban setting.
I'm doing something similar on my rpi3, but indoor. A few environment sensors + a basic thermostat script to control my box-fan-in-the-window-plus-smart-plug "HVAC" (not that its been anything interesting as far as control during the summer: ON). Data collection is mostly temp, CO2, and PM since I can somewhat calibrate those, plus pulling down the 24 forecasts from NOAA twice a day, all into a sqlite DB with grafana on top. I'm hoping to get some exterior sensors running as well, maybe off a zero or something smaller, but we'll see.
Bonus points, I can tinker with some probably over-complicated timeseries python classes for sqlite.
I've got mine collecting dust in a drawer along with a few other impulsive purchases (why did a buy a jar of ferromagnetic fluid again?). I'm a few months into 3d printing I'm seeing the value of using an RPi as a print server to monitor long prints. Now that I see how it could make my life a little easier I'm more motivated to get it set up.
I don't know if I got lucky or not, but I went into a MicroCenter, because I burnt the RPi 4 I was using for a hobby project and they had the RPi 400 kit in stock. They somehow had one loose RPi 4 2GB. MicroCenter will only sell them in store, it seems.
I just hit MicroCenter with my daughter to build a RetroPie this weekend. They would only sell one per household per day (this was in Georgia). I would've bought a second if it were allowed.
If you live within driving distance of a Microcenter store, it seems like they've had a modest amount of success in acquiring stock here and there. I haven't heard a lot of reports of people getting any anywhere else lately. I managed to score 1 8G model from Elektor earlier in the year, but haven't heard any news about them getting any more in since. :-(
Using a 4 as a wireless bridge. I've tried using them to host servers (mainly storing data) but been burned too many times using sd cards, and once I inevitably add in an ssd/hdd the value of using the pi vs just getting a cheap significantly more powerful x86 system starts to dwindle. Would love to come up with a project that makes good use of the GPIO pins though.
Buried inside a PiDP-11, connected to a VT420. Used mostly for IRC. Though I am considering using it to build a bedside radio/clock/alarm that doesn't report back to FAANG.
I'm running a Twitter bot that tweets out sunrise/sunset timelapses, and also does on-device object detection and classification to tweet out helicopters that fly by the field of view.
It's a Pi 4B with the HQ Cam (6mm lens). The ML models are trained on my MBP, converted to tflite, and run on the pi itself.
The main use case is the timelapses, but after seeing that that most of the helicopters that flew by weren't transmitting ADSB, I figured I could help out the @helicoptersofdc crowdsourcing project (run by someone else) by contributing heli spots in an automated manner that might otherwise go unreported.
Learning. Right now I have my Pi running a Python script that will grab messages placed in an AWS SQS queue and scroll them across an LCD screen attached to the Pi via breadboard.
For me, projects like this make learning something I am not all that interested in but required to use for work (in this case SQS) much more fun because I get to learn something that interests me (in this case getting an LCD screen to work with the Pi)
Printer server for turning a dumb printer into a network printer.
Sensor and pump control for a self-watering flower bed.
I used to run a server with my unifi controller, NAS gateway, and IRC server, but I found an old office PC that does that for me now with about 10x the performance.
I'm using pi's for these works:
1. A pi 4B running jellyfin and aria2c. I use aria to download files, torrents and stream them on jellyfin. I have a aria2 web frontend for using it from browsers.
2. A pi zero wh running pihole.
3. Another pi zero wh for nginx
Raspberry Pi B: Stream a local ham radio repeater (weather spotters) to Broadcastify
Raspberry Pi Zero: Brachiograph
Raspberry Pi 4B: Octoprint
Raspberry Pi 4B: Home Assistant
Raspberry Pi 4B: NAS (running Kopia as backup target w/ USB HDD, not speed-critical)
Raspberry Pi Zero 2W: ham radio-related software for portable use (e.g. WSJT-X, etc.) using cell phone via WiFi as display/input via RDP
To do: MiniDexed synth module, eInk display driver, network a UPS via NUT, RetroPie, Ham Clock, etc., etc. I've also used them previously as a fax server, digital signage for office lobby, and other things I'm forgetting
Management simplicity, probably. There are many pre-made images you can just flash on an SD card and have run perfectly. Computationally you could very likely run all of the services on a single Pi just as well.
> Raspberry Pi Zero 2W: ham radio-related software for portable use (e.g. WSJT-X, etc.) using cell phone via WiFi as display/input via RDP
I would be interested in a write up about this or hearing more. I let my HAM lapse, but recent got into GMRS. No test required for the license, and way more 'simple'.
The very basics of it are that I'm trying to operate portable using HF (<30MHz, long range), including for digital comms such as FT8. Typically a computer generates the audio-band signals which are transmitted as RF by the radio. Skipping the laptop (less to carry/power), I've installed a few of these ham apps on the Pi, power it from the radio's battery, and use an adapter (Digirig) to give me serial and audio to the radio. I turn on my phone's hotspot, the Pi connects via WiFi, and I use RDP to remote into the Pi, using my phone as the input and display. The Pi Zero 2W is a little under-powered (mostly needs more RAM), but it does the trick.
The simplicity of GMRS can be good, but for me I rarely use a radio to talk locally on repeaters. I like the idea of communicating as far as possible on very little power (QRP) with a small footprint, and the experimentation angle of it all.
I have mine on a shelf. When visitors ask me what it is, I tell them about all the awesome things you can do with it. It's great until they ask me what I use it for currently.
Not creative, I guess, but I use a Raspberry Pi 3 for about 90% of my computing.
It's hilarious to use commandline tools to get a way better and faster experience than with a fancy machine. For example, watching Youtube videos faster, with LoWeRcAsEd titles for videos, and without clickbaity thumbnails, comments, etc.
Having to buy a new machine every X years is ridiculous in this day and age.
I also have a very old pi hooked up to my other TV that is non-networked, and just plays random futurama (Original run only) episodes. No need to decide what to watch, my TV only plays futurama :)
I'm running a Roon end point using RoPieee OS[1] which is connected to my DAC and amplifier. This also allows me to do Airplay or drop any streams on it so I can listen to it either on headphones or speakers connected.
With the digital TV hat and Kodi, it's a fantastic smart TV that has the huge advantage of not actually being a smart TV. Also, TV headend lets you stream TV or Radio to any computer you want -- it's amazingly fast and quite low bandwidth.
I have a pi zero functioning as a doorbell (with camera & opencv)
One pi 3 running moonlight to stream my win10 desktop (with gaming!) over ethernet to my living room tv.
One pi 3 running a display in the hallway. (purpose: grafana/ip cam views/etc)
One pi 3 operating a cnc machine (octoprint etc).
75 comments
[ 4.4 ms ] story [ 173 ms ] threadI also have one dedicated to running the RetroPie[2] distribution and I use it for playing old video games.
I have another with an RTL-SDR dongle[3] attached, and running the OP25[4] software, and I use it as a scanner for listening to local fire/police/ems dispatch channels.
I had given some thought to doing a "cyberdeck"[5] project, but honestly it doesn't have much (if any) practical application, and most of the parts and stuff I bought for that have been repurposed for the "AI box" thing instead.
[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32310799
[2]: https://retropie.org.uk/
[3]: https://www.rtl-sdr.com/
[4]: https://github.com/boatbod/op25
[5]: https://www.reddit.com/r/cyberDeck/
https://github.com/bediger4000/station
I'm hoping to detect the "tide" in the atmosphere with barometric pressure readings, but I haven't done anything towards that.
I'd also like to have an automated way to pick out high/low temperature for the day. I've got 2 thermometers taking temperatures. There's data loss caused by both sensors quitting and operational issues, so I have a lot to learn and figure out in processing the raw data.
The other idea I've toyed with is an automatic plant watering system, in service of my aspiration to start growing my own hot peppers (ghost peppers, habaneros, carolina reapers, etc.)
so I have a lot to learn and figure out in processing the raw data.
If you're interested in weather / environmental "stuff" in a broader sense, you might also be interested in a lot of the other data the USG (and others) make available. NOAA, the USGS, etc. put out all sorts of neat datasets. You can get all the obvious stuff (temp, barometric pressure, etc.) as well as water levels in various creeks and lakes and rivers, discharge volume for same, ground conductivity, stuff about lightning, severe storms (tornados, hurricanes, etc.), wildfires, etc., etc., etc. I'm pretty sure somebody creative could find some really interesting applications for all of that stuff.
As far as processing the raw data, I'm more interested right now in deciding if I should average which two of the thermometer or barometer readings I've got, and also deciding what to use as a high/low temp for the day - I've had some data dropouts and server crashes where I missed the noon/1pm high temp.
I did get GOES satellite data with a RTL-SDR once a couple of years ago. The antenna is more important than they'd lead you to believe, as is where the antenna is - you pick up a lot of fuzz up to some degrees above the horizon if you place the antenna in an urban setting.
Bonus points, I can tinker with some probably over-complicated timeseries python classes for sqlite.
Time to first graph was quickest with influxdb for me.
Zerotier and nats.io connect the things.
I want to sprinkle some pico w's around for door/window position monitoring.
[1]: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/27/chipageddon-ho...
* Kiwix server hosting Wikipedia offline among other info
* RetroPie
Present:
* Home Assistant (home automation)
* Zigbee2MQTT (non-propriety home automation hub)
* Pi-hole (ad blocker via dns)
Future(?):
* WireGuard VPN
* Micro weather station reporting
* FlightAware station (tracking Airplanes flying nearby)
https://obsolescence.wixsite.com/obsolescence/pidp-11
https://twitter.com/dcskycam/with_replies
It's a Pi 4B with the HQ Cam (6mm lens). The ML models are trained on my MBP, converted to tflite, and run on the pi itself.
The main use case is the timelapses, but after seeing that that most of the helicopters that flew by weren't transmitting ADSB, I figured I could help out the @helicoptersofdc crowdsourcing project (run by someone else) by contributing heli spots in an automated manner that might otherwise go unreported.
I also have a 3B+ running pihole on the LAN.
I bought a nice case and M.2 SSD for it, and it has been running happily for almost two years.
https://pilabor.com/series/raspberry-pi/media-player-with-li...
For me, projects like this make learning something I am not all that interested in but required to use for work (in this case SQS) much more fun because I get to learn something that interests me (in this case getting an LCD screen to work with the Pi)
Sensor and pump control for a self-watering flower bed.
I used to run a server with my unifi controller, NAS gateway, and IRC server, but I found an old office PC that does that for me now with about 10x the performance.
Raspberry Pi Zero: Brachiograph
Raspberry Pi 4B: Octoprint
Raspberry Pi 4B: Home Assistant
Raspberry Pi 4B: NAS (running Kopia as backup target w/ USB HDD, not speed-critical)
Raspberry Pi Zero 2W: ham radio-related software for portable use (e.g. WSJT-X, etc.) using cell phone via WiFi as display/input via RDP
To do: MiniDexed synth module, eInk display driver, network a UPS via NUT, RetroPie, Ham Clock, etc., etc. I've also used them previously as a fax server, digital signage for office lobby, and other things I'm forgetting
I would be interested in a write up about this or hearing more. I let my HAM lapse, but recent got into GMRS. No test required for the license, and way more 'simple'.
The simplicity of GMRS can be good, but for me I rarely use a radio to talk locally on repeaters. I like the idea of communicating as far as possible on very little power (QRP) with a small footprint, and the experimentation angle of it all.
It's hilarious to use commandline tools to get a way better and faster experience than with a fancy machine. For example, watching Youtube videos faster, with LoWeRcAsEd titles for videos, and without clickbaity thumbnails, comments, etc.
Having to buy a new machine every X years is ridiculous in this day and age.
https://blog.line72.net/2019/08/02/announcing-realtime-bus-t...
[1]: https://ropieee.org/
Pi 4+ with case was about $100, the stick only $40
Also Combian 64 is very cool https://cmaiolino.wordpress.com/
* Adblocking DNS on unbound and nsd with policies to serve different results on WG mesh
* Tiny Tiny RSS
* Gitea and Youtrack
* Some home-built apps with Grafana and Postgres
* Homechart
* Wireguard mesh for deployment and on-the-go access to those services
Everything is managed through a Nix flake and deployed through deploy-rs.
Nextcloud, Zabbix and Docspell are running on an old laptop which I plan to migrate to a Pi4 when I can get my hands on it.