Raspberry Pi - $35 Linux computer

  • Thread starter Thread starter daz
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Thanks for the reply Rufus.

It's actually gonna be for a small two person gym, and the two main screens (22 inch touch panels) are gonna be above a treadmill and a rower. The third is for workout videos etc and will be connected to a 5.1 set up or similar. I'm thinking USB DAC might be the way forward in terms of audio connectivity in that sense?

That or have the third screen running from an SATA mobo and have the hard drive connected there.
 
You can do 5.1 audio over HDMI.

You'd be asking a lot from a single device. If you're trying to keep the cost to a minimum then I'd recommend 3 Pi's, otherwise 2 Pi's and a proper PC

One for each of the 22 inch touch panels, you would need to check that the builds for the RaspberryPi support the touch input.

Then the 3rd for the final TV/5.1 setup, and use one as shared storage with a USB drive or two depending on your storage requirement.

You can also run a MySQL database to provide the library for XBMC so that its shared between the 3 devices.
 
I was originally looking at one decent Windows 8 system with a couple of large hard drives thrown in and running each monitor as a separate system in its own VM, but the Pi seemed a more wallet friendly proposition!
I believe most touchscreens using that are HID compliant can be used on the Pi with a little kernel reworking, so may have to have a play first and see what I can come up with.
 
I think you probably want to go with a Linux-based system for the server really... not only is it the cheaper option but since whatever you put on the two pis will be Linux-based the networking between them will be more stable if you do... It doesn't need to be anything incredible if its main use is to serve up media.

For instance at home I have a server which feeds media to all the other PCs/laptops/tablets in the house as well as a pi under my tv, and it's an integrated Intel Atom mini-ITX system which I bought 2nd hand for about £150. It's not very powerful as a system but it doesn't need to be really, I've just got it running the server version of Ubuntu
 
Wacky newbie question

Would it be possible to run ubuntu > chrome and browse the net properly ie run youtube hd videos full screen and smooth with a Raspberry ?

What about basic surfing ?
 
HighlandeR said:
Would it be possible to run ubuntu > chrome and browse the net properly ie run youtube hd videos full screen and smooth with a Raspberry ?
Click to expand...

I would have thought it'd be okay, but I'm sure you could find out with your old pal Google - some people must have tried it... You might have slightly more luck with a more lightweight Linux distribution, perhaps even one which is designed specifically for being a light browsing maching

HighlandeR said:
What about basic surfing ?
Click to expand...

The Pi is a remarkable machine but it's not meant to be placed in water, and I imagine it isn't buoyant enough to support a full grown adult, but you could certainly give it a try
 
HighlandeR said:
Wacky newbie question

Would it be possible to run ubuntu > chrome and browse the net properly ie run youtube hd videos full screen and smooth with a Raspberry ?
Click to expand...

Ubuntu will not work on the RPi as their ARM distribution does not support ARMv6.
The Raspbian distribution is a complete Debian build specifically for the RPi, and seeing as Ubuntu is based upon Debian then it should feel familiar. (I'd say better personally, as it hasn't got the crap Unity desktop environment and all the bad UI decisions it introduces.)

HighlandeR said:
What about basic surfing ?
Click to expand...
There is no acceleration for X.org on the RPi, so it all runs off the CPU and performance is not great. You can use a lightweight browser like Midori but just don't expect a smooth experience like on a normal desktop machine.

There are interesting things going on with Wayland, which will accelerate the graphics and provide a much better desktop experience.
http://www.raspberrypi.org/archives/4053

uncle_rufus said:
The Pi is a remarkable machine but it's not meant to be placed in water, and I imagine it isn't buoyant enough to support a full grown adult, but you could certainly give it a try
Click to expand...

:D
 
TheKnat said:
You can use XBMC and it makes life a lot easier that way. I'm just running the normal debian release and then running software called Shairport to act as the airplay receiver.
Click to expand...

Finally got it last night. Had RaspBMC up and running, playing content over airplay, within half an hour. The thing's incredible, I love it!
 
Was thinking of getting the following for my Pi to run XBMC:

Kingston Technology 8GB Full Size SDHC Class 10 Flash Card (60 MB/s sequential reads and 45 MB/s sequential writes)
Transcend 8GB JetFlash 700 Super Speed USB 3.0 Drive (read and write transfer rate of up to 80MB/s and 25MB/s respectively)
NEWLink 4 Port USB 2.0 Self Powered Hub

Look OK? Still undecided about which external but guessing any decent one should do?
 
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I'm running Raspbian on mine, and recently the date is out of whack, by 3 weeks. I know it doesn't have a RTC, and uses NTP to get the time/date, an up until recently it was working absolutely fine. My region is set correctly.

Anybody know how to force an NTP update from the server?
 
Hi

I'm looking at getting a Pi (Model 2) for XBMC. I have just a couple of questions.

Can anyone point me to supported Wireless dongles? I have a Edimax 300 Mbps USB stick and a TP-Link 150 Mbps USB stick that I would like to use (either one). Are these compatible?

Finally I was looking at buying a remote control for it. Is something like the following okay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-FOR-H...EL-/251299252153?ssPageName=ADME:L:OC:GB:3160

Finally does anyone have any links to cheap kits?

Ta,


M.
 
The official seller is as cheap as it gets to be honest, plus they offer free postage too. Im not sure if they are classed as a competitor so I wont name them.
 
If its being used as a media centre then my advice would be to stick with a wired connection or use home plugs.
 
As said if you're using it for media playback it will be hit and miss over WIFI.

SD content is fine, but some of my 720/1080 content constantly buffers every 30 seconds or so.
 
But a combination of SD card, fast USB drive for artwork etc and a 2/3TB drive for content should be fine for 720/1080?
 
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