Raspberry Pi Arcade Table Nearly Finished

This is how it looks now, not too shabby eh?

I spent a chunk of today finishing off my Raspberry Pi powered tabletop game machine. Because I swapped monitors I had to rework the monitor support but fortunately the size and shape of the hole in the surface was the same.

I did have all kinds of plans to rework the joysticks, but I’ve changed my mind (mainly because I’m lazy) and so I’ll keep it like this for a while.

This is the work in progress. I covered the wooden parts with foam plastic to make a better support. I’ve found that my favourite fool suppliers (www.toolstation.com) also sell 0.5M HDMI cables which made it much easier to fit the monitor. You can just see the Raspberry Pi on the top right hand side, the USB hub and the joystick interface are under the front panel. Since I took this picture I dismantled a pair of USB powered speakers and put the drive units and amplifier under the screen as well. Here is a parts list of sorts:

• Argos Value range Black coffee table
• Raspberry Pi processor
• Ultracabs Joystick and USB interface set
• LG IPS 22 inch monitor
• 7 port USB Powered Hub
• Extra long cable USB Power supply
• Wireless Keyboard and Trackpad
• Powered USB speakers (not the best, could really do with something louder)
• Hole saw set (perfect for drilling the holes for the joysticks, buttons and speakers)
• 0.5M HDMI cable

The only thing left to buy now is the glass which I’ll have to get cut to cover the monitor. I also need to tidy up the wiring. One of the nice things about this design is that all the voltages actually in the table are low ones. These are the things that I’ve learned from the exercise:

• Test the monitor angle of view before you buy it. Don’t assume that it will work.
• Think about how the joystick and buttons are to be arranged, and how you see the device being used.
• Cutting the surface is easy, but watch out for metal staples that connect the surface to the wooden bracing inside. You can actually do the cutting of the top and bottom panels with a craft knife if you are careful.
• You have to cut a hole in the bottom of the table and push the joysticks up through it. Removing the shaft and trying to slide the joysticks in between the top and bottom is pretty much impossible. I took off the metal mounting bracket and screwed the joysticks directly to the surface, otherwise there was not quite enough clearance for them inside the table
• Making physical things is quite a bit harder than writing software (at least for me) but very satisfying

Voice Music Video

I’ve made a little video that shows how Voice Music works on Windows Phone 8. It stars my Yellow Lumia 920 and my left index finger. You can find Voice Music here. It’s free for Windows Phone 8 users and it works a treat over Bluetooth.

Windows Phone Jumpstart Dates Out

The Windows Phone Jumpstart sessions are something of an institution. Myself and Andy Wigley did the first couple and they were great fun. The dates for the next sequence have just been released and you can register here.

Unfortunately, due to reasons completely beyond my control I can’t be there to present this time, although I have helped out with some of the content (A clue: look for the bits with cheese in). However, we do have a stable Rob count, in that Rob Tiffany will be taking my place. Rob knows a whole shed load about Windows Phone, although I doubt he actually keeps his knowledge in a shed. He is also an accomplished author and even writes stories about submarines. (true fun fact). Andy is still playing in a band, I think, unless they’ve taken his guitar away from him. Between them you can expect plenty of detailed and engaging content.

If you have any interest in learning about Windows Phone development you should take part. It’s free and fun. The decks, demos and presentations will be available later, but there’s nothing like seeing it live.

Voice control for your Windows Phone 8 Music

My super-secret application is now on Windows Phone Marketplace for Windows 8 devices. I call it Voice Music. It lets me do something I’ve always wanted to do. I can ask my phone to play music for me. I can say things like “VoiceMusic artist Steely Dan” and it will play tracks from the Dan. If I hear a track and fancy hearing the album it came from, I can say “VoiceMusic play this album”. I can ask for albums by name by saying things like “VoiceMusic album Dark Side of the Moon” and request random albums, tracks, styles (genres) and artists. And it works over Bluetooth in the car. And if it can’t find the album artwork it shows you a random picture. And there is a picture of a cow in there. And a pig.

It’s free too. Download your copy from here and let me know how you get on.

Turning Yellow

It is a truth, universally acknowledged, that a man in possession of a black Lumia 920 will instantly want a yellow one. Or at least, it is true in my case.

I’ve had my black Lumia 920 for four days. And I love it. Works a treat, screen is lovely. Apps are great.  It only has one problem. It is not yellow. Today the phone shop called me up and uttered the fateful words “We’ve got a yellow Lumia in stock for you…”. Just the one. For me. So I went up town and bought it. It would have been churlish not to.

The black one is heading for ebay. I feel terrible about this (as well as a bit poorer), but I reason that I needed a production phone this weekend to test my Top-Secret Windows Phone application which is even now heading for certification. And the Lumia is super, shiny, yellowy lovely. It is a very similar colour to a car I once had. The car didn’t start off yellow, I made it so, using a cheap spray gun and some “Daytona Yellow” paint. I also managed to make all my tools, the tyres, some of the windows, and my dad’s garage yellow as well, so I think you can see that getting a yellow phone is just something I had to do.