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Propeller Board of Education - Quick Look and Pre-order — Parallax Forums

Propeller Board of Education - Quick Look and Pre-order

Ken GraceyKen Gracey Posts: 7,395
edited 2012-02-13 14:58 in Propeller 1
A short video introducing the Propeller Board of Education (not sure about the person doing the video - he must be a business person first and user second):

Learn.parallax.com will be live on or before the day the first Propeller Board of Education ships from Rocklin.

In the meantime you can pre-order here http://www.parallax.com/StoreSearchResults/tabid/768/List/0/SortField/4/ProductID/802/Default.aspx?txtSearch=Propeller+board+of+education

Lauren will make an official announcement about ship dates.

Ken Gracey
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Comments

  • Duane DegnDuane Degn Posts: 10,588
    edited 2012-01-13 10:18
    This is great! The Prop is the perfect robot microcontroller. The free speaker pushed me over the edge. I'm going to pre-order one.
  • PublisonPublison Posts: 12,366
    edited 2012-01-13 10:36
    Ken,

    Great video and great product.

    But you really to have the girls do your hair before camera. :)

    Jim
  • Roy ElthamRoy Eltham Posts: 3,000
    edited 2012-01-13 10:37
    Ken,
    Excellent video! PropBOE is going to be huge for Parallax (I predict). We just need to show people what it can do.

    Everyone else,
    I have one of those Veho 360 speakers, and can vouch for it being a great product! It sounds great for it's size, and the charge lasts forever! :)
  • Ken GraceyKen Gracey Posts: 7,395
    edited 2012-01-13 10:44
    Publison wrote: »
    Ken,

    Great video and great product.

    But you really to have the girls do your hair before camera. :)

    Jim

    I'm so excited about the PropBOE my hair stands up. Thank you!

    Ken Gracey
  • David BetzDavid Betz Posts: 14,516
    edited 2012-01-13 13:39
    Nice presentation! I can say from experience that it's a nice board too! The Veho speaker looks nice too.
  • Cluso99Cluso99 Posts: 18,069
    edited 2012-01-13 13:41
    Nice board Ken. Like being able to use a 9V battery for students. Lots of good stuff on this board!

    Noticed you do not have Composite Video (TV) on the board, only VGA. Was there a reason for this? Just curious because I have been tempted to only provide TV and not VGA on some new boards.
  • HShankoHShanko Posts: 402
    edited 2012-01-13 13:58
    @ Cluso99, Looking at the board photo there doesn't seem to be enough space for a RCA jack. If we had a layout view, it might be obvious. There's time a TV i/f would be handy.

    Even so, I'm also thinking of getting one. I do have 6 Prop Proto boards and a QS board, but there is times this board would be so handy.

    Now, I'm wondering how soon a Prop 2 BOE will be available? Xmas 2012?

    EDIT: Placed my order a while ago. Gonna be a long month+ before they ship!
  • Ken GraceyKen Gracey Posts: 7,395
    edited 2012-01-13 14:09
    Cluso99 wrote: »
    Nice board Ken. Like being able to use a 9V battery for students. Lots of good stuff on this board!

    Noticed you do not have Composite Video (TV) on the board, only VGA. Was there a reason for this? Just curious because I have been tempted to only provide TV and not VGA on some new boards.

    Hey Cluso99, it's VGA because the universities often have monitors. And, you can use our RCA to breadboard adapter if you want TV.

    http://www.parallax.com/Store/Microcontrollers/PropellerTools/tabid/143/CategoryID/19/List/0/SortField/0/Level/a/ProductID/514/Default.aspx


    Ken Gracey
    28050-L.jpg
    28050-L.jpg
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  • rogersydrogersyd Posts: 223
    edited 2012-01-13 14:21
    The waiting is the hardest part....

    I use video out more often then vga, but I have plenty of other boards for that. Looking forward to reading more about what this puppy can do when the docs are posted.
  • Roy ElthamRoy Eltham Posts: 3,000
    edited 2012-01-13 14:49
    Cluso99,
    Another thing to note, the VGA port doesn't "consume" the pins if you don't want it to. To use VGA you run wires from the header next to the breadboard (that has prop pins one it) over to the port in the middle of the board that has VGA, XBee, & SD on it. This also means you can decide what pins you want your video/vga on (with some limitations, the ADC/DAC and some other stuff do consume higher pins, and the servo ports are some also). Of course, Ken covers that in the video.

    Roy
  • tdlivingstdlivings Posts: 437
    edited 2012-01-13 14:58
    Look's like an excellent product. Mine is on order.
    It will make a good product to also sell at Radio Shack and Micro Center.

    Tom
  • pedwardpedward Posts: 1,642
    edited 2012-01-13 16:37
    Looking at the PPDB schematic, it wouldn't be very hard to make a VGA to NTSC converter plug module, just need a few more resistors to bring the values up so they are the same, then you'd use the VGA connector to spit out NTSC.
  • HShankoHShanko Posts: 402
    edited 2012-01-13 16:52
    Ken, I didn't notice earlier before I placed my order, but now see a USB A to mini-B cable and the speaker included with the Prop BOE board. Are those two items actually included with pre-orders or not? Seems it should be to be immediately usable via the USB port for programming and loading demo programs.
  • SRLMSRLM Posts: 5,045
    edited 2012-01-13 17:03
    Here at my university we have used VGA several times in embedded systems classes to demonstrate a peripheral. It's nice because the protocol is dead simple, while the TV signal is much more tough. The various FPGA boards that we use all have VGA connectors, and the computer lab for embedded systems has spare VGA monitors hanging about.
  • doggiedocdoggiedoc Posts: 2,245
    edited 2012-01-13 17:06
    Pre-ordered myself a couple!! Nice vid Ken!

    Paul
  • xanaduxanadu Posts: 3,347
    edited 2012-01-13 17:11
    Anyone got a link to the speech synth in OBEX? I see one that uses a module, is there new integrated hardware on the board or is it done in the prop?

    Thanks!
  • GordonMcCombGordonMcComb Posts: 3,366
    edited 2012-01-13 17:36
    Folks, don't forget there are already projects for the PropBOE:

    http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?136261-Download-Gordon-s-quot-Beginner-Bot-with-PropBOE-quot-article-here!

    For speech look here:

    http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?89411-Phonemic-Speech-Synthesis-(3rd-installment-7-Nov-2006)

    When you get your PropBOE be sure to check out the new learn.parallax.com portal for what I think is a phantastick multi-part tutorial on using the board. I've only seen it in an earlier incarnation, but even then it was terrific.

    -- Gordon

    PS: Great video, Ken!
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2012-01-13 19:41
    Great video, Ken! If -- heaven forbid and curse me to Hades for even whispering it!-- Parallax ever goes under, you'll be a natural for TV infomercials, assuming you can develop an Aussie accent :) "Introducing the Prop Chop!"

    As to the speech object, Ken has tasked me with improvements to my phonemic speech generation object, a project I've accepted with great relish! Once I get finished with end-of-year accounting and tax matters (ah, the joys of self-employment!), I shall delve into this endeavor wholeheartedly until the Propeller can not only talk, but say things that friends who visit my shop can actually understand and not laugh at. (If the Propeller, pronouncing the word "treat", can make Browser perk up his ears, I'll know I've succeeded.)

    -Phil
  • GordonMcCombGordonMcComb Posts: 3,366
    edited 2012-01-13 20:39
    Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) wrote: »
    you'll be a natural for TV infomercials

    You know, I was thinking the same thing. I half expected John Davidson to come out singing, and then introducing Dave Del Dott... er, Ken. Only they'd have to switch to Land's End oxford shirts instead of Hawaiian.

    -- Gordon
  • pedwardpedward Posts: 1,642
    edited 2012-01-13 20:50
    Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) wrote: »
    Great video, Ken! If -- heaven forbid and curse me to Hades for even whispering it!-- Parallax ever goes under, you'll be a natural for TV infomercials, assuming you can develop an Aussie accent :) "Introducing the Prop Chop!"

    As to the speech object, Ken has tasked me with improvements to my phonemic speech generation object, a project I've accepted with great relish! Once I get finished with end-of-year accounting and tax matters (ah, the joys of self-employment!), I shall delve into this endeavor wholeheartedly until the Propeller can not only talk, but say things that friends who visit my shop can actually understand and not laugh at. (If the Propeller, pronouncing the word "treat", can make Browser perk up his ears, I'll know I've succeeded.)

    -Phil

    Phil, I played with your code a bit, had an idea to make a repeater controller from a Prop. I would really love to look over your shoulder, so to speak, as you improve this code -- I don't suppose I could con you into blogging it on here?
  • Cluso99Cluso99 Posts: 18,069
    edited 2012-01-14 02:13
    Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) wrote: »
    Great video, Ken! If -- heaven forbid and curse me to Hades for even whispering it!-- Parallax ever goes under, you'll be a natural for TV infomercials, assuming you can develop an Aussie accent :) "Introducing the Prop Chop!"
    Might be starting a war down under Phil. The NZers say "Prp Chp" almost leaving out the vowels.

    Ken, thans for the insight. I know I have many more VGAs than TVs but I am not the norm.
    Roy, yes I realised the VGA is pluggable. Quite likely there is a way to make the links work for TV but would have to look at the cct.
  • Mike1776Mike1776 Posts: 1
    edited 2012-01-14 16:06
    Great video! I especially like the straight arm video effect. I preordered 9 boards for my High School robotics class at Nevada Union High School in Grass Valley. Will there be an offline version of the learn.parallax.com training? Generally High School students are not given access to the web during class.

    Mike
  • HShankoHShanko Posts: 402
    edited 2012-01-15 08:32
    Anyone.......Where on the Prop BOE board is the "Onboard Mini stereo-audio jack..."? And might an amplifier for the speaker be on the board? I've not dealt with 'audio' and the Prop yet so hadn't paid attention to how involved such an amplifier be. Wishing a bit more details had been published; though I realize Ken's Quick Look and Pre-order announcement was just that.

    EDIT: Thank you 'bomber'. It was thinner than I'd imagined the audio jack to be. Did you draw your drawing in post #25? It was different than the image Parallax board is.
  • bomberbomber Posts: 297
    edited 2012-01-15 09:13
    The Aduio jack is next to the SD card socket (directly below the actual Propeller chip). The amplifier circuit is to the right of the jack. See image below.
    PropBOE_Aduio_Jack.jpg
    PropBOE_Aduio_Jack.jpg
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  • HShankoHShanko Posts: 402
    edited 2012-01-17 09:55
    Looking at the Veho speaker on the Parallax site, I now see the USB cable is part of the speaker package.

    Don't know if that also fits the Prop BOE USB connector. If not, hopefully I have a extra cable that will fit the PBOE without having to purchase another USB cable.
  • Roy ElthamRoy Eltham Posts: 3,000
    edited 2012-01-17 10:04
    Harley,
    It's the same connector on the veho speaker as on the PropBOE, so you can use the same cable with both.

    Roy
  • HShankoHShanko Posts: 402
    edited 2012-01-17 10:09
    Thanks Roy,

    That is truely convenient they can both be same. Nice combination. The speaker sold me; I have enough Prop Protoboards, but the PBOE goes much further for getting some designs going fast. And not having been into audio yet, this should let me check out sound synth/speech areas, plus have a memory card on-board. Super deal.
  • Duane DegnDuane Degn Posts: 10,588
    edited 2012-01-17 11:00
    HShanko wrote: »
    Looking at the Veho speaker on the Parallax site, I now see the USB cable is part of the speaker package.

    Don't know if that also fits the Prop BOE USB connector. If not, hopefully I have a extra cable that will fit the PBOE without having to purchase another USB cable.

    Harley,

    I just tested the USB cable that came with one of my Veho speakers. I could not program the Prop with it. I think it's a power only USB cable.

    You must be one of the few forum members not drowning in extra USB cables. Send me a PM with your address and I'll mail a couple of mine.
  • HShankoHShanko Posts: 402
    edited 2012-01-17 14:34
    Duane,

    PM sent. Thank you.
  • Duane DegnDuane Degn Posts: 10,588
    edited 2012-01-17 15:03
    @Harley,

    You are very welcome.


    @Ken,

    Are listening? The USB cable on the product page looks like it's the one that comes with the Veho360. You might want to add a warning about the cable only providing power, not data.

    I see a USB cable is listed as an accessory sold-separately but it would probably be a good idea to clarify what the one in the product photo can (and can't) do.
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