Hello Raspberry Pi!: Python programming for kids and other beginners

314 Pages·2016·35.26 MB·English

by  Ryan Heitz

Hello Raspberry Pi!
Python programming for kids and other beginners
Ryan Heitz
MANNING
SHELTER ISLAND
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
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Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
To Juliana, Daniel, and John
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
Brief contents
PART 1 GETTING STARTED 1
1 Meet Raspberry Pi 3
2 Exploring Python 33
PART 2 PLAYING WITH PYTHON 65
3 Silly Sentence Generator 3000: creating interactive
programs 67
4 Norwegian Blue parrot game: adding logic to
programs 91
5 Raspi’s Cave Adventure 121
PART 3 PI AND PYTHON PROJECTS 149
6 Blinky Pi 151
7 Light Up Guessing Game 176
8 DJ Raspi 204
v
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
Contents
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xv
About this book xvii
PART 1 GETTING STARTED 1
1 Meet Raspberry Pi 3
What is the Raspberry Pi? 4
Exploring your Raspberry Pi’s parts: hardware 4
Giving your Pi a cozy home: Pi cases 6 ❍ The brain of your Pi:
system on a chip 7 ❍ Connecting a keyboard and mouse: USB
ports 8 ❍ Storing memories: your Pi gets a memory card 10
Connecting a TV or monitor: HDMI port 13 ❍ Other ports and
connections 17 ❍ Powering your Pi: microUSB power port 17
It’s alive! Plugging in the Pi 18
Getting your Pi running: software 19
Installing the Raspbian operating system 19 ❍ Configuring the
operating system: making it yours 21 ❍ Saving your configura-
tion and rebooting 24
Getting around: learning Raspbian 26
Finding and opening applications on your Raspberry Pi 26
Your files and folders 26 ❍ Writing code 28
Fruit Picker Extra: shopping at the Pi Store 29
vii
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
viii Contents
Challenge 30
Scavenger hunt 31
Summary 31
2 Exploring Python 33
Playing with Python 33
Discovering Python’s mathematical operators 35
Adding and subtracting 35 ❍ Multiplying and dividing 37
Figuring out whole numbers and remainders 38
Exponents 38 ❍ Square roots 39 ❍ Challenge: stacking
Pis! 39
Storing information using variables 41
Creating variables and assigning values 42 ❍ Displaying
variable values 42 ❍ Storing strings in variables 45
Changing the value of variables 46
Displaying text on a screen 50
Using the print function 50 ❍ Troubleshooting 51
Creating programs 52
Writing Python programs with IDLE 53 ❍ Starting a new
program 54 ❍ Saving programs 56 ❍ Python interpreting
the program 57
Fruit Picker Extra: creating documents 57
Writing silly things and saving them 57
Challenges 60
The matrix 61 ❍ Building a brick wall 61
Pi electrons 62
Summary 62
PART 2 PLAYING WITH PYTHON 65
3 Silly Sentence Generator 3000: creating interactive
programs 67
Creating a welcome message 68
Starting a new program 69 ❍ Saving the program 71
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>
Contents ix
Adding notes in your code 73
Using hashtags for comments 73
Getting and storing information 75
Joining strings 77
Using more than one input 79 ❍ Building the sentence 80
Troubleshooting 81
Completing the program: displaying the silly sentence 83
Fruit Picker Extra: Minecraft Pi 85
What's Minecraft? 85 ❍ Launching Minecraft Pi 86
Python programming interface to Minecraft Pi 88
Challenges 88
Knight’s Tale Creator 3000 88 ❍ Subliminal
messages 89
Summary 90
4 Norwegian Blue parrot game: adding logic to
programs 91
Displaying the game introduction 92
Creating the game welcome message and instructions 94
Collecting input from the player 101
Using if statements to respond to users in different
ways 105
Practicing if statements 108
Using while loops to repeat things 110
A closer look at while loops 112 ❍ Breaking out of a while
loop 113 ❍ Practicing while loops 114
Using Python code libraries to generate random numbers 115
Fruit Picker Extra: Scratch 118
Challenges 119
Summary 120
5 Raspi’s Cave Adventure 121
Project introduction: Raspi’s Cave Adventure 122
Left cave 124 ❍ Right cave 124
Licensed to Stephanie Bernal <[email protected]>