I’ve learned quite a bit about NeoPixels through developing Madison’s NeoClock and the PICsellator but I wanted to take a step up in processing power. The PIC was certainly an incredible platform for those projects but I also wanted to work on something a bit more “forgiving” (from a floating-point calculation perspective). Finally, I wanted to have a simpler interface to the NeoPixels that didn’t require as many bit-twiddling babysitting processor cycles. I’ve studied a number of different approaches (fancy SPI and DMA tricks with specially encoded memory to create the WS2812 bitstream, etc.) but my little brain craves simple. So the challenge became, as ever, to use what I’ve learned to create something I need. The gauntlet is thrown…
To help develop a wire-wrap MC68000 system I used an STM32-based board (another story for another time) and had studied it enough to feel pretty comfortable using it for my “next step up” in processing power. The STM32 family has some very nice features, I had already been down the tool-chain cobbling path, and the price was right (already owned!) so the question became how to get from here:
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Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
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