CHIP

Fixing my CHIP

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chiplogoI mentioned getting my CHIPs from NextThing aq bit ago, but I have not really done much with them. I noticed a bit of an issue keeping them powered when I set them up and assumed I had been using a power supply that wasn’t ideal. I believe it was the one off of the Chromecast on the TV, just because it was handy. It turns out, this is not the case, there is actually an issue with the software of the CHIPs that have shipped so far. I don’t beleive it affects all of them but it’s probably a good idea to update anyway.

It’s a pretty simple process, you can review the boot repair process here. The main issue you may have is that it requires you be running Ubuntu (or really just Linux). You can get a live image and load it using a USB drive though, and being familiar with Linux is useful for working with the CHIP itself since, it runs Linux.

I’m already running Ubuntu on my Laptop, so no issues for me there, my issue was actually getting something to short the pins for FEL mode. I didn’t have any breadboard wires handy at the time. I tried a paperclip as suggested but it was too large to stick in the pin holes. Instead I found a piece of wire to strip off. The point is, almost any melat strip would work to conduct between the pins.

You may also want to try flashing the whole image. Details on this process can be found on the NextThing’s website. It’s the same basic process of fixing the boot but you need to do more work yourself instead of just running a pre made fix app.

I’ve been trying to find some good plans and ideas for my CHIPs. There are some good ideas listed here.

I wanted to try turn a USB camera into a Streaming camera, but I can’t locate any of the USB cameras I used to have.

This Web and Bluetooth Sniffing device seemed neat, though once I started looking at it it looks more like it just tracks Wireless APs in the area, I’m more interested in building a network monitor.

This homemade Amazon Echo clone is pretty neat, and seems like an interesting project to work on that involves some hardware set up as well as software.

CHIP – the $8 Computer

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CHIPS!

CHIPS!I just want to start here by saying CHIP is kind of a shitty name for a computer thing, there is no effective way to do any sort of search for “Chip computer” since “computer chip” has been a thing for eternity and gives the same results. This thing really needs a re-branding or something.

I’m also not entirely sure it’s still an $8 computer, It looks like they are charging $9 now on their website, and there is shipping costs involved.

Anyway, I’ve received two of these cheap computers from my Kickstarter contribution. I have a third one coming in 4-6 months that will include a VGA adapter. For some reason all of the peripherals are delayed. I wanted to get a December release CHIP and they offered the option to buy more once the Kickstarter ended, so I ended up with two.

CHIP is essentially a micro computer in the vein of the Raspberry Pi, though it’s more like a Pi Zero than the larger models. The main advantage the CHIP has over the Pi Zero is that it has built in WiFi and Bluetooth.

I’m not entirely sure what I want to do with these yet, though I have some ideas. They are almost as cheap as my Arduino clones (probably cheaper once I add WiFi to an Arduino), and they have a slightly more versatile interface since it’s running Debian Linux. It would be really simple to add a basic web server to this device.

The board itself seems sturdy enough. It comes in a plastic cradle that covers the bottom and three of the 4 ports are on one end which is convenient. There is a normal USB port, a micro USB for power, and a headphone style jack that has an A/V breakout cable to hook it to a monitor and speakers. The molex style battery connector is on the opposite end. The base set up only has composite output for video, the breakout cable gives you a standard Red, Yellow, White set of hook ups.

CHIP Desktop

I hooked both of my CHIPS to a TV so I could easily connect each to the WiFi in my house. Once they are online the video isn’t really necessary since I can SSH to them over the network using Putty.

On a side note, the default SSH log in information is username: root, password: chip .

I have not done much else with it yet, but it’s a nifty little device. I have a vague idea of building a Podcast radio for my car out of one with some push button controls but I have not checked if there is a CLI based podcatcher available, or even a CLI based audio player I could tie push button commands to.