Hacking Raspberry Pi

Timothy L. Warner has helped thousands of beginners succeed with technology in business and in schools. Until recently a digital media specialist with Pearson Technology Group, he worked in various facets of information technology, including systems administration, software architecture, and technical training. He is the author of The Unauthorized Guide to iPhone, iPad, and iPod Repair.

Table of Contents

 

Introduction   1

What’s in This Book   2

Who Can Use This Book   4

How to Use This Book   5

    Task: This Is a Task   5

There’s More Online… 5

 

PART I  HARDWARE FOUNDATIONS

 

Chapter 1 What Is the Raspberry Pi?   7

Why the Pi?   8

Hardware Versions   9

Is the Raspberry Pi Open Source?   14

  Open Source Licenses   15

  Open Source and the Raspberry Pi   15

How Can I Purchase a Raspberry Pi?   16

 

Chapter 2  Hardware Components Quick Start   17

Understanding Pi Hardware Terminology   17

The Hidden Cost of Owning a Raspberry Pi   20

  A 5V Power Supply   21

  SD Card   23

  Powered USB Hub   24

  Ethernet Cable   24

  Monitor   25

  Cables   25

  USB Keyboard and Mouse   26

A Tour of the Model B Board   27

  Networking   27

  Video and Audio   27

  Storage   29

  Power/Status Information   29

  Camera   30

  Processing   31

  Expansion   31

Next Steps   32

 

Chapter 3  A Tour of Raspberry Pi Peripheral Devices   33

Circuit Prototyping Equipment   34

Single-Board Microcontrollers   37

The Gertboard   38

Single-Board Computers   40

Relevant Technician Tools   41

Task: Check Raspberry Pi Voltage with a Multimeter   41

Raspberry Pi Starter Kits  43

Next Steps   45

 

PART II SOFTWARE FOUNDATIONS

 

Chapter 4  Installing and Configuring an Operating System   47

Common Operating Systems   49

  Understanding Linux   49

  Linux and Raspberry Pi   52

  The Kernel and Firmware   53

  Raspberry Pi’s Other Operating Systems   54

Installing Raspbian on Your Raspberry Pi   55

Task: Creating a Raspbian SD Card in Windows   57

Task: Creating a Raspbian SD Card in OS X   58

Task: Creating a Raspbian SD Card in Linux   60

An All-in-One Solution   63

Task: Installing an OS on Your Raspberry Pi Using NOOBS   64

Testing Your New Raspbian Image   65

 

Chapter 5  Debian Linux Fundamentals—Terminal   67

Baby Steps   67

Essential Terminal Commands   69

  startx  69

  pwd   70

  ls   71

  cd   72

  sudo   73

  passwd   74

  nano   74

  man   75

  shutdown   76

Updating Your Software   77

  Updating Raspbian   78

  Updating the Pi Firmware   79

Revisiting Raspi-Config   80

  Expand Filesystem   81

  Change User Password   81

  Enable Boot to Desktop   82

  Internationalisation Options  82

  Enable Camera   82

  Add to Rastrack   83

  Overclocking   83

  Advanced Options   84

  Raspi-Config Under the Hood   84

Next Steps   85

 

Chapter 6  Debian Linux Fundamentals—Graphical User Interface   87

LXDE—The Desktop Environment   87

  Starting and Exiting LXDE   88

Task: Using Raspi-Config to Adjust Boot Behavior   88

  Touring the LXDE Interface   89

  Delving into the Main Menu   92

Installing, Updating, and Removing Software   94

Accessing the Pi Store   95

  Task: Downloading a Free App from the Pi Store   97

Tweaking the LXDE UI   98

Task: Change the Desktop Background   98

Task: Customize the LXTerminal   99

Task: Customize the LXPanel   100

  Openbox   100

Editing Configuration Files   101

 

Chapter 7  Networking Raspberry Pi   103

Basic Networking Concepts   103

Configuring Wired Ethernet   104

Task: Setting a Static IP Address on Your Raspberry Pi   106

Configuring Wireless Ethernet   107

Task: Setting Up Wi-Fi on Your Pi   109

Configuring “Headless” Raspberry Pi   110

  Secure Shell (SSH)   112

Task: Using SSH to Connect to a Raspberry Pi Remotely   113

  Virtual Network Computing (VNC)   114

Task: Using VNC to Connect to the Raspberry Pi   115

Task: Configure Your Pi to Start VNC Server Automatically   117

On Browsing the Web with the Pi   118

 

Chapter 8  Programming Raspberry Pi with Scratch—Beginnings   121

Technical Aspects of Scratch   122

  Scratch Version Issues   122

  The Scratch Community   123

Getting Comfortable with the Scratch Interface   124

  About Blocks   127

Crafting a (Very) Simple Scratch Application   129

Task: Creating a Basic Scratch App   130

The PicoBoard   132

  Obtaining a PicoBoard?   134

  Using a PicoBoard in Scratch   134

   Task: Using the PicoBoard in Scratch   134

 

Chapter 9  Programming Raspberry Pi with Scratch—Next Steps    137

Begin with the End in Mind   137

Let’s Build the Game!   139

Task: Setting Up the Game Screens   140

Task: Setting Up the Scratch Cat   143

  Setting Up the First Ball  144

  Setting Up the Second and Third Balls   146

  Debugging and Troubleshooting   147

Uploading Your Project   149

Task: Share Your Scratch Project   149

Remixing   151

Task: Create a Remix   151

 

Chapter 10  Programming Raspberry Pi with Python—Beginnings  153

Checking Out the Python Environment  154

Interacting with the Python 3 Interpreter  156

  Exiting the Interpreter  157

  Getting Online Help  157

Writing Your First Python Program  158

Task: Creating Your First Python Script  159

Running Python Scripts  161

Task: Running Python Scripts (command line)  161

Task: Running Python Scripts (IDLE)  161

Broadening Your Python Horizons  163

 

Chapter 11  Programming Raspberry Pi with Python—Next Steps  165

Getting Comfortable with IDLE  165

Task: Creating a New Python Script File  168

Writing a Simple Game  168

Delving into a Bit More Detail  171

  Variables   171

  Type Casting  171

  Concatenation  173

  Modules  173

Task: Loading and then Updating the GPIO Module in Python 3  176

Where Do You Go from Here?  177

 

PART III  BASIC RASPBERRY PI PROJECTS

 

Chapter 12  Raspberry Pi Media Center  179

A Bit o’ History  180

But Will It Blend?  181

Introducing Raspbmc  182

Task: Installing Raspbmc Under Windows  182

Task: Installing Raspbmc Under OS X  183

  Configuring Raspbmc  184

Getting Your Remote Control Working  186

Task: Controlling Your Raspbmc Box from iOS  186

Task: Controlling Your Raspbmc Box from a Web Browser  189

Task: Configuring a GPIO-based IR Receiver  190

Transferring Content to Your Pi  192

Task: Uploading Media Content to Raspberry Pi  192

Scraping Your Media  194

Task: Configuring XBMC Media Detection  194

Playing Your Content  196

Installing Add-Ons  197

 

Chapter 13 Raspberry Pi Retro Game Station  199

A Word About Console Video Game Emulation  200

Installing RetroPie  200

Task: Setting Up RetroPie  201

Transferring ROMs to RetroPie  203

Task: Transferring ROMs to Your Raspberry Pi  204

Setting Up Your Controls  206

Task: Configure RetroPie Joystick Control Mappings  208

Playing Your Games  209

Installing Useful Add-Ons  210

Task: Install ES-Scraper  211

  In Search of the Perfect Joystick  212

Chapter 14  Raspberry Pi Minecraft Server  217

Installing Minecraft Pi  219

Task: Installing Minecraft Pi  219

Accessing the Python API  221

Task: Loading the Minecraft Python Libraries  222

Task: Making Your Player Jump High!  224

Task: Create a Diamond Floor  225

Building a Minecraft Server  226

Task: Installing Java and the Minecraft Server  227

  Administering a Minecraft Server  230

Minecraft Plugins  232

 

Chapter 15  Raspberry Pi Web Server  233

What Is the LAMP Stack?  234

Installing Your Web Server  235

Task: Installing the LAMP Stack on Raspberry Pi  236

Task: Verifying PHP Configuration  237

Task: Verifying MySQL Installation  239

  Tweaking Up Your Web Server Settings  240

Transferring Content to Your Web Server  240

Task: Using SFTP to Transfer Content to Your Pi  241

Task: Install and Test FTP on Your Raspberry Pi  243

Setting Up phpMyAdmin  243

Task: Installing phpMyAdmin  244

Setting Up Joomla  245

Task: Installing Joomla on Your Raspberry Pi  246

Putting Your Web Server on the Public Internet  249

Task: Making Your Raspberry Pi Publicly Accessible by Using No-IP  250

 

Chapter 16  Raspberry Pi Portable Webcam  253

About the Raspberry Pi Camera Board  253

Installing and Configuring the Raspberry Pi Camera Board  256

Task: Preparing the Raspberry Pi for the Camera Board  256

Task: Installing the Raspberry Pi Camera Board  257

Using the Camera Board  259

  Capturing Still Pictures  259

  Recording Video with the Camera Board  263

  Task: Encoding a raspivid Video File  265

Using a Third-Party USB Webcam  266

Task: Configuring a Third-Party USB Webcam  267

  Setting Up Your Webcam  269

Task: Setting Up a Time-Lapse Webcam  270

  Adding a Rechargeable Battery Pack to Your Pi Camera  273

Python and Your Webcam  274

Task: Setting up SimpleCV  274

 

Chapter 17  Raspberry Pi Security and Privacy Device  277

Encrypting Your Internet Connection with a VPN  277

Browsing Where You Want via a Proxy Server  278

Building Your Raspberry Pi VPN Gateway  280

Task: Creating Your Hamachi VPN  281

Task: Connecting to Your Hamachi VPN from Your Desktop Computer  283

Task: Installing Hamachi Client on Your Raspberry Pi  284

Building Your Raspberry Pi Proxy Server  286

Task: Installing and Configuring Privoxy Raspberry Pi  286

Testing the Configuration  287

Task: Pointing Your Workstation Computer at Your Pi Proxy  289

Speaking of Geolocation   292

Task: Adding Your Raspberry Pi to the Rastrack Database  294

Building a Raspberry Pi Tor Proxy  294

 

PART IV HACKING THE RASPBERRY PI

 

Chapter 18  Raspberry Pi Overclocking  299

What Is Overclocking?  299

Warranty Implications of Overclocking  300

Overclocking Your Pi  302

  The Raspi-Config Method  302

Task: Verifying Your Pi’s CPU, Voltage, and Temperature Status  303

  The Manual Method  304

Benchmarking Your Pi  305

Task: Installing and Running nbench  306

Adjusting the Memory Split on Your Pi  307

Task: Tweaking Memory Split with Raspi-Config  308

  Tweaking Memory Split by Hand  309

  A Historical Footnote  309

Various and Sundry Performance Tweaks  311

 

Chapter 19  Raspberry Pi and Arduino  315

Introducing the Arduino  315

Digging into the Arduino Uno  319

Connecting the Arduino and the Raspberry Pi  321

  Connecting the Raspberry Pi GPIO Pins to the Arduino Serial Pins  322

  Connecting the Raspberry Pi GPIO Pins to the Arduino I2C  322

  Connecting the Raspberry Pi to the Arduino via USB  322

  Connecting the Raspberry Pi to the Arduino via a Shield or Bridge Board  322

  Connecting the Raspberry Pi to an Arduino Clone  323

Understanding the Arduino Development Workflow  323

Task: Install and Configure Arduino IDE on the Raspberry Pi  324

Task: Running the “Blink” Sample Sketch  327

  Fading an LED  330

Task: Running the Fade Sketch  331

Using the AlaMode  332

Task: Getting the AlaMode Up and Running  333

 

Chapter 20  Raspberry Pi and the Gertboard  337

Anatomy of the GPIO  339

Connecting Your Gertboard and Raspberry Pi  341

Installing the Testing Software  343

Task: Enabling SPI on Your Raspberry Pi  344

Task: Installing the Python Gertboard Test Suite  345

Testing the LEDs  346

Testing Input/Output  349

A Couple Quick Breadboarding Exercises  350

  Accessing the GPIO Pins Directly  350

Task: Lighting an LED Directly from the GPIO  351

  Accessing the GPIO Pins via the Pi Cobbler  353

Programming the Atmel Microcontroller  354

Task: Preparing Your Arduino Environment  355

Final Thoughts, and Thank You  357

 

Index  359