A skeleton presentation to set the scene for the STEMnet ambassador workshop session at Intech around the first steps showing and teching arduino using the new starter kits. Plus a little intro Scratch which was more for homework. The key is to talk about the simplicity of a switch not start with expectations of building a AAA game. Moving back to flashing lights gives some tactile hands on focus, but with very simple programming that actually covers all the basics of the art. Uploading again as it seems to have lost a few titles and repeated others :(

1. STEMNET AMBASSADORS
Getting Started with
Programming
Arduino and Scratch (and anything else)
Ian Hughes/epredator
http://www.feedingedge.co.uk
Thursday, 14 February 13

2. A way to explain
(not the only way)
Thursday, 14 February 13

3. Wanting to make these
But seeing this
//populate the implied list of active zones (not exit points)
//assumes a grouped in order and consitent file.
void PopulateUniqueZone ()
{
countzones = 0;
string currentzone = "";
for (int i=0; i<totalbays; i++) {
//find zone if different from last one
if ((myBays [i].bZoneName != currentzone) && (myBays [i].bType == "a")) {
zonelist [countzones] = myBays [i].bZoneName;
currentzone = myBays [i].bZoneName;
countzones++;
}
}
}
Scary? Put’s people off?
Thursday, 14 February 13

4. So lets make it simpler and
related to the physical world
At it’s heart all computing tech is as simple as a light switch
Thursday, 14 February 13

5. Layer with a real world example
We go into a room
If it is dark
Then we turn on the light with the switch
Thursday, 14 February 13

6. Set the foundation of all computing
We Sense
Decide
Act
or
Input
Process
Ouput
Thursday, 14 February 13

7. With the building blocks of
Input
Process
Output
You can build everything
Thursday, 14 February 13

8. Now for the hardware
Arduino is an open source switch that we can program
We can add things to make it Sense
Make decisions based on those things
Act (e.g. switch something on or off)
Thursday, 14 February 13

9. Our first “control structures”
First example
Turning on a light
Lets us build a simple circuit
The Arduino is the switch
We program the switch
That leads to getting the program to repeat an activity
On and off forever, flashing intermittently etc.
Thursday, 14 February 13

10. Making decisions
Second example
Turning on several lights
Lets us build a simple circuit
The Arduino is the switch
We program the switch
We can make decisions over which light to switch in code
Make the lights ripple on and off?
Thursday, 14 February 13

11. Full Sense Decide Respond - Arduino Spaceship interface
http://arduino.cc/en/ArduinoStarterKit/Prj02
Third example
Add a sensor
Some input that we can test and decide what to do
Speed up/slow down the flashing
Thursday, 14 February 13

12. Same pattern as before
Scratch
Another programming language
Thursday, 14 February 13

13. Same pattern as before
Sense
Decide
Act
or
Input
Process
Output
Thursday, 14 February 13

14. Create an object on the screen
Use code to move the object
Use code to sense our key presses
Use those key presses to move the object with code
Sense collisions with another object on screen
Make a blockbuster AAA game
Thursday, 14 February 13

15. Pil Seung
(Certain Victory)
Ian Hughes/epredator
http://www.feedingedge.co.uk
Thursday, 14 February 13