Bad to the Bone : Crafting Electronic Systems with BeagleBone and BeagleBone Black

This comprehensive book provides detailed materials for both novice and experienced programmers using all BeagleBone variants which host a powerful 32-bit, super-scalar TI Sitara ARM Cortex A8 processor. Authored by Steven F. Barrett and Jason Kridner, a seasoned ECE educator along with the founder of Beagleboard.org, respectively, the work may be used in a wide variety of projects from science fair projects to university courses and senior design projects to first prototypes of very complex systems. Beginners may access the power of the "e;Bone"e; through the user-friendly Bonescript examples. Seasoned users may take full advantage of the Bone's power using the underlying Linux-based operating system, a host of feature extension boards (Capes) and a wide variety of Linux community open source libraries. The book contains background theory on system operation coupled with many well-documented, illustrative examples. Examples for novice users are centered on motivational, fun robot projects while advanced projects follow the theme of assistive technology and image processing applications. Key Features:- Provides detailed examples for all BeagleBone variants, including the newest "e;next generation"e; BeagleBone Black- BeagleBone is a low cost, open hardware, expandable computer first introduced in november 2011 by beagleboard- BeagleBone variants, including the original BeagleBone and the new beaglebone black, hosts a powerful 32-bit, super-scalar arM Cortex A8 processor- BeagleBone is small enough to fit in a small mint tin box- "e;Bone"e; may be used in a wide variety of projects from middle school science fair projects to university courses and senior design projects to first prototypes of very complex systems- Novice users may access the power of the bone through the user-friendly bonescript environment- Seasoned users may take full advantage of the Bone's power using the underlying Linux-based operating system- A host of feature extension boards (Capes) and a wide variety of Linux community open source libraries are available- The book provides an introduction to this powerful computer and has been designed for a wide variety of users- The book contains background theory on system operation coupled with many well-documented, illustrative examples- Examples for novice users are centered on motivational, fun robot projects- Advanced projects follow the theme of assistive technology and image processing applications