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CircuitPython Weekly for October 19, 2020

Video is available here on YouTube.

Join here for the chat all week: http://adafru.it/discord

The CircuitPython Weekly happens normally at 2pm ET/11am PT on Mondays. Check the #circuitpython channel on Discord for notices of change in time and links to past meetings. Meeting times are also available in iCal format using the following link: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/adafruit/adafruit-circuitpython-weekly-meeting/master/meeting.ical for use with standard calendar applications or in your browser: https://open-web-calendar.herokuapp.com/calendar.html?url=https://raw.githubusercontent.com/adafruit/adafruit-circuitpython-weekly-meeting/master/meeting.ical

If you want to be able to participate in the meeting by speaking, you will need to be added to the @circuitpythonistas role on Discord. Please ask any one of the moderators or admins to add you if you’d like to join.

CircuitPython development is sponsored by Adafruit. Please support them by purchasing hardware from https://adafruit.com.

Reminders: Podcast available on most services. Let us know if we’re missing some.

5:28 Community News

If any of you are looking for a mini-tutorial on getting started with Adafruit streaming data check out this tutorial that @foamyguy @anecdata and I put together here. https://github.com/mytechnotalent/CircuitPython_IoT_Streaming_Data

5:56 micro:bit version 2 The Micro:bit Educational Foundation announced the new micro:bit - available in November at the same price point as the original. The latest micro:bit will fit right in to your existing lessons and materials; MakeCode and MicroPython code will work in the same way as they do on the original micro:bit. More features, including easy ways to take AI and ML into the classroom, will be released throughout 2021. Some new features of the board:

  • A more powerful Nordic nRF52833 processor
  • A MEMS microphone and speaker
  • Capacitive touch sensor pad
  • Power saving mode

More details: Video – Meet the latest micro:bit, announcement page, tech specs, and Adafruit Blog.

6:49 Raspberry Pi 4 Compute Module The Raspberry Pi 4 Compute Module was announced Monday. Containing the same processor as the Raspberry Pi 4, it has various RAM and Flash options at purchase (but no on-board expandability). The board breaks from previous modules, coming in a new form factor. I/O signals are brought out to two high-density perpendicular connectors (one for power and low-speed interfaces, and one for high-speed interfaces).

There is also an IO carrier board available which breaks out all the interfaces available including a PCI-E x1 slot. CAD for the IO board is available in KiCad format. More - Raspberry Pi Blog, Info Page.

7:58 AdaBox 016 shipping, last call for subscriptions

JOIN NOW, SHIPPING SOON! https://www.adafruit.com/adabox Halloween edition! The next ADABOX ships this month! There are a few openings for ADABOX 16 left! Curated Adafruit products, unique collectibles, and exclusive discounts. All delivered quarterly. Halloween plans have probably changed this year, Halloween is still going to happen! With an ADABOX – learn some new skills and make something fun. En exclusive hint - the contents can be used in CircuitPython! Subscribe now or give AdaBox as a gift! https://www.adafruit.com/adaboxlibreoffice overlap form fields on top of text

9:11 Why Learning Python is Perfect for Beginners, Career-Changers, and Anyone Else

Maybe you’re looking for a language that’s useful and powerful, but still accessible to new coders. Maybe you’ve already started coding and you’re considering Python, but not sure if it’s the right language for you. Whatever your situation or current level of coding knowledge, this post will help you decide if you should learn Python or not - Learn to Code with Me.

9:49 newsletter

10:33 State of CircuitPython, Libraries and Blinka

10:51 Overall

  • 21 pull requests merged
    • 17 authors - tannewt, hexthat, jerryneedell, fede2cr, askpatrickw, makermelissa, Techwolfy, laupdm, cwalther, Edrig, kattni, Anton-2, eteq, Cybot101, Senuros, mytechnotalent, caternuson
    • 10 reviewers - tannewt, jepler, makermelissa, kattni, dhalbert, FoamyGuy, brentru, ladyada, gamblor21, caternuson
  • 18 closed issues by 7 people, 8 opened by 8 people
  • Assigned Hacktoberfest label to 26 issues.

12:02 Core

Overall, for the core, we have just released RC0, please test it and let us know if you find anything that would require a new release candidate. Take it and put it on all your projects and let us know what doesn’t work so we can fix the bugs before we get the wider audience of people who just install stable versions.

14:42 Libraries

Overall (libraries): We continue to see a lot of contributions internally and externally which is great. We had at least one new library recently that was written by a community member which is amazing to see. Libraries are a great way to get started.

18:11 Blinka

Overall (blinka): Right now blinka is excited to add support for the pi 4 compute module when it comes out, and trying to add all kinds of boards as they come in. Over the last weeks we’ve been doing fixes such as the Adafruit PureIO module now supporting Python 3.9 and the requirements.txt has been updated accordingly.

19:43 Hug reports

@anecdata (lurking)

@anneb (lurking)

@charlesburnaford (lurking)

@cotufa82 (lurking)

22:33 @danh

  • @tannewt for doing rc.0 and generally holding down the release fort while I was recovering.
  • @tannewt for fixing some sleep issues.
  • @WarriorOfWire for providing a clean base implementation for async/await and for the tasko sample library.

23:32 @David.Glaude (lurking)

  • @danh and @jerryn for helping me testing hci bleio on PyPortal
  • @tannewt for the live streaming that get more and more structured with a checklist and notes with timecode

23:58 @dh-metre

  • New here. Thanks to everyone for this resource.

@dherrada (lurking)

24:29 @Duewester (Lurking)

  • @adafruit for keeping up with everything through 2020 so far and getting what looks to be one heck of an Adabox out.

24:41 @foamyguy

  • Scott, Jeff, @DavePutz, @mdroberts1243 and anyone else I may have missed who helped fix and test a weird clock issue causing I2C trouble on STM devices.
  • @PaintYourDragon for the M4_Eyes project. Looking through this was very helpful when working on CircuitPython on the Monster M4sk
  • Scott and Group hug to all for the 6.0.0-rc0 release
  • @Kevin Thomas for putting together and sharing a nice PyPortal live data fetching example tutorial

25:57 @folknology (lurking)

  • @danh, @deʃhipu and @Jeff E. for helping me understand my unusual CP SPI issues and suggesting ways forward

@hobowan (lurking)

@Jayguitar (lurking)

26:16 @jepler

  • Scott for keeping track of everything that needed to go in 6.0.0-rc
  • Github @cwalther (again) for working on the allocator and sticking with it
  • @nick koumaris for publishing youtube videos about circuitpython

27:00 @jerryn

  • All for the release of 6.0.0-rc.0.
  • @unexpectedmaker for producing the feathers2 board.

27:31 @jmarcelino

  • Thanks to all for the 6.0.0 release, best one yet
  • Loved the sleepio deep dive with Scott

27:58 @kattni

  • @cater for all the amazing forum support
  • @johnpark for keeping me entertained
  • Bruce for all the amazing graphics
  • Everyone in the #circuitpython channel on Discord for continuing to welcome new folks
  • The entire community for continuing to be an amazing, supportive, positive place!

@kthomas - Kevin Thomas - [Lurking…]

29:27 @kmatch98

  • @foamyguy for multitasking learn guide and clever way of using python dictionaries

@makahernandez [lurking]

29:44 @MakerMelissa

  • @kattni for covering Blinka notes last week
  • Group Hug

29:59 @Mark(Gamblor) [lurking]

  • @kattni for setting me up as a reviewer
  • @danh and @tannewt for helping me through my first two PR questions

@Mr. Certainly [lurking]

30:19 @stargirl (offline)

  • Hug to all that worked on the uf2-samdx1 bootloader. It’s saved me so much time and energy.

20:24 @tannewt

  • Akbar from Lager Data for discussing on-hardware testing.
  • @askpatrickw for working to fix circup
  • @noe and @pedro for the promo image for deep dives
  • @internel dev for adding a live! button to the adafruit homepage. Peaked at 85 concurrent youtube viewers last week!
  • @unexpectedmaker for digging into the uf2 bootloader
  • @jerryn for jumping on rc.0 and testing it.

@v923z (lurking)

@Warriorofwire (lurking)

30:36 Status Updates

@anecdata (lurking)

@anneb (lurking)

@charlesburnaford (lurking)

@cotufa82 (lurking)

32:55 @danh

  • Added HCI-based _bleio to all boards that can support it
  • Brought adafruit-blinka-bleio up to date to support bleak 0.8.0 and fixed a number of bugs. Now works on MacOS. Working on cleaning up when interrupted by ctrl-C. Also working on a guide with examples for using adafruit-blinka-bleio on Windows, MacOS, and Linux, including Raspberry Pi.

35:32 @dh-metre

  • Nrf52 ble cmd and file transport to Pythonista 3 script on iOS

38:51 @David.Glaude (lurking)

40:04 @foamyguy

  • Created a helper library for the Monster M4sk device
  • Helping work on a PyPortal live data example
  • Testing for BME680 and a few other small PRs
  • Next Week
  • Design and 3D Print a little holder stake that will stick into a pumpkin and hold a Monster M4sk on the front.

41:29 @folknology (lurking)

  • Testing of Rev A of the Alloy Feather and Cad changes for Rev B
  • Working on internal ESP-S2/FPGA SPI Bus (see InTheWeeds notes later)

@hobowan (lurking)

@Jayguitar (lurking)

41:58 @jepler

  • Last week:
    • Mostly worked on CAN implementation for Arduino on SAM E51
    • Finishing up an RPN calculator guide, which was delayed from this summer
  • This week:
    • Monthly check of guide feedback
    • Hopefully starting on CAN support for the ESP32S2
    • Up next is more ESP32S2 stuff, possibly AudioOut

43:15 @jerryn

  • Updating several boards to 6.0.0-rc0 -- no issues so far.
  • Received an unexpectedMaker feathers2 board - checking it out.
  • Ran into some issues testing bno08x breakout.
    • Works normally on grandcentral m4.
    • Crashes on esp32s2 (both saola_wrover and umfeathers2)
      • Filed issue against CP -- not sure if it is library or CP.
    • Also found some issues when using bno08x on RPi.

46:50 @jmarcelino

  • Initial port of CircuitPython to the nRF52840 based RAK4631, part of RAK’s Wisblock LoRa enabled modular IoT board - https://wisblock.io
  • Started work on porting TinyLora to newest SX1262 chip

47:48 @kattni

  • Last week:
  • Published a QT Py and LEDs guide for QT Py and QT Py Haxpress
  • Added FAQ to LED Animation guide with two questions regarding using SAMD21 M0 non-Express, and SAMD21 M0 Express boards with the library. (Spoiler: There’s limitations.)
  • Included an example to reset the board if time.monotonic() exceeds 3600 (1 hour) to avoid loss of precision timing for animations - only needed on M0 boards. Keeps the animations from slowing down. There’s a very simple explanation of what happens in this FAQ. Check the CircuitPython issues list for a very complicated (and thorough) explanation of what’s happening.
  • Created two fritzing objects
  • Brainstormed QT Py project ideas
  • This week:
  • Bring QT Py project idea one to life: Sequential activity timer / hydration reminder. Think of it as an alternative to the pomodoro timer technique which doesn’t work for everyone.
  • Start guide for timer project.
  • 4 more fritzing objects
  • Update a couple of guides with new product revision info by end of week

@kthomas - Kevin Thomas - [Lurking…] Read-Only

52:06 @kmatch98

  • No electronics progress to report
  • This week: get Circuitpython running on recently received Saola ESP32-S2
  • Last 2 weeks - finished refurbish of our washroom, added storage

@makahernandez (lurking)

52:52 @MakerMelissa

  • Last Week:
  • Finished writing BrainCraft Google Assistant guide
  • Fixed an issue with the SSD1351 on the ESP32 in Arduino
  • Updated some new boards on CircuitPython.org that were added with the latest release
  • Fixed a wiring diagram for the SSD1331 in a guide
  • Updated Adafruit PureIO library to work with Python 3.9
  • This Week:
  • Write a guide on creating projects using the MatrixPortal library
  • Go through any guide comments and make necessary changes
  • Update remaining PiTFT guides with latest instructions
  • Likely write a product guide later in the week
  • Other Stuff:
  • Worked more on my keyboard and decided to use Logic Level shifters so I can use more boards, though the ones I used had a propagation delay issue. It’s likely I will move to CircuitPython for running the keyboard MIDI.
  • Planning on traveling back home this coming weekend.

54:40 @microDev (text only/not present)

  • Last week I implemented a method to set custom hostname of wifi interface.
  • This week I plan to collaborate with @tannewt on deep sleep API.

@Mr. Certainly [lurking]

@mytechnotalent - Kevin Thomas - [Lurking…]

31:12 @tannewt

  • Last week I fixed 6.0.0 issues and did the rc.0 release.
  • This week I’m continuing my deep sleep API work.
  • If issues come up with RC0, will take a look and figure out whether they’re blocking or not. If we find issues that make it unstable we’ll do a RC1
  • Will branch 6.0 from RC0 when we create an RC1 (or general release)
  • I voted this weekend and need to drop off my ballot today!

@v923z (lurking)

@Warriorofwire (lurking)

55:06 In The Weeds

55:40 @dh-metre

  • 58:16 How to best implement ble device management.
  • Use cases connect with remote app, file upload, async with device function and HID on device.
  • 1:06:18 How to implement a high priority synchronous i2c time series data capture (~1ms) to disk…
  • Currently other background (not entirely characterized) interrupts interfere but ideally there would be to do this sampling and recording in the background
  • Use cases:
  • Time series capture with all python pipelines from device, to phone app, to cloud to Jupyter notebook / cloud function pipeline.
  • Remote device debug/ file management / housekeeping during development 1:19:57USB reloads 1:21:05 @foamyguy
  • Is there any interest in including a Monster M4sk library in the main bundle? Or is community bundle more appropriate? https://github.com/FoamyGuy/Adafruit_CircuitPython_MonsterM4sk
  • @kattni - main bundle

1:27:22 @folknology

  • Is it possible for CP top support SPI CS in hardware to avoid the large bitbang overhead of CS when issuing many small (single register write/read) transactions?
  • 1:32:19 Is there a CP library/tool that provides CPU usage stats/data BTW?

1:24:04 @David.Glaude [if not too late] (maybe no microphone, but fire your idea)

  • How would you abstract NeoPixel vs DotStar vs NeoTrellis vs “alternative ordered set of color” to use the same code on various hardware? My CoronaApp detector display information with “pixel of color”, and I would like to simplify my code to be independent of the way to display.

1:34:47 Wrap-Up