Raspberry Pi

Its a very compact, low-cost computer that made its debut in 2012. It is approximately
the size of a credit card a little larger than 3x2 inches. Even though it is small, users
can connect it to a monitor or a tv as a display. It can receive a regular keyboard and a
mouse. I have personally witnessed middle school students, in my school district, being
taught how to program and work with type of computer. It is said to have full capabilities
as a desktop computer. So one could expect to be able to create word processing and
spreadsheet documents. But it powerful enough to more. Thus the popularity of
Raspberry Pi. It is now a Raspberry Pi nation with its own foundation, user groups,
twitter accounts and journals supported by people worldwide who enjoy and believe in
its use.

Cost
To purchase Raspberry Pi expect to pay anywhere from $25-69 depending on which
version you buy. More on that note a bit later. There have been people whove built
their own Raspberry Pi computer and spent three-four times the asking price. However,
additional purchases may be needed to run the system the way some users desire.
Purchases topping around $150 have spawn a bit of debate about Raspberry Pi being
genuinely low-cost. However, the value of computing for around $150 still a minimal
investment. Amazon has quite a few Raspberry Pi2 computers and kits listed on their
site. But purchases can be made directly from the Raspberry Pi site.

Capabilities
Of course Raspberry Pi has basic computing functionality. But even more incredible is
its capabilities that allow users to internet serf and play high-defnition video games. A
claim by the Raspberry Pi community is that this computer has been used in a wide
array of digital maker projects, from music machines and parent etectors to weather
tations and tweeting birdhouses with infra-red cameras.

Versions
As to be expected Raspberry Pi has evolved since 2012. Following are the models:
Raspberry Pi Model B+ and A+
Raspberry Pi Model B

Comparison (According to the RaspberryPi.org site, this is a

breakdown comparing the models)

These are the current models of the Raspberry Pi available: the Pi 2 Model B, and the
Pi 1 Model B+ and A+. The Model A+ is the low-cost variant of the Raspberry Pi. It has
256MB RAM, one USB port, 40 GPIO pins and no Ethernet port. The Model B+ is the
final revision of the original Raspberry Pi. It has 512MB RAM (twice as much as the A+),
four USB ports, 40 GPIO pins, and an Ethernet port.
In February 2015, it was superseded by the Pi 2 Model B, the second generation of the
Raspberry Pi. The Pi 2 shares many specs with the Pi 1 B+, but it uses a 900MHz quadcore ARM Cortex-A7 CPU and has 1GB RAM. The Pi 2 is completely compatible with
first generation boards, and is the model we recommend for use in schools, due to its
flexibility for the learner.
The Model A was the initial low-cost variant of the Pi. It was replaced by the smaller,
neater Model A+ in November 2014; it shares the same specs as the A+, but has only
26 GPIO pins. The Model B was the previous incarnation of the B+; again, it shares
most of the same specs, but has only 2 USB ports and 26 GPIO pins.
It seems that the Pi2 Model B has an advantage with the 900MHz quad-core ARM
Cortex-A7 CPU and has 1GB RAM.

Student Raspberry Pi Projects

Getting started with Scrath is the project I chose. As I embarked on the Hour of Code
activity in the last module, I became aware of Scratch and I remain curious so this will
be my entry for Scratch. I like that there is no additional equipment or software needed
beyond the Raspberry Pi computer. The description of this project ensure that
participants will be able to create animation and games without actually having to write
code. This project promises to be very basic with a drag and drop interface. I have set
up for the premier of Hour of Code on our campus for the second week in December.
Im hoping to sustain interest. Perhaps this will be a good project if we could borrow a
few of these computers from our middle school to see where this goes.

https://www.raspberrypi.org/learning/getting-started-withscratch/