Chapter 1
Meet the Raspberry Pi
YOUR RASPBERRY PI board is a miniature marvel, packing considerable computing power into a footprint no larger than a credit card. It’s capable of some amazing feats, but you need to know a few things before you plunge head first into the bramble patch.
A Trip Around the Board
Since its launch as a mere two models, the Raspberry Pi family has expanded considerably. The current range consists of five mainstream models: the Raspberry Pi Model A+, Raspberry Pi Model B+, Raspberry Pi 2, Raspberry Pi 3 (see Figure 1-1), and Raspberry Pi Zero. Aside from the Zero, which is a cut-down model designed specifically for the lowest-possible cost and minimum board footprint, all models share a roughly similar design differing only in features such as the number of USB ports, presence or absence of network ports, and the power of their processor. The range also has a sixth, less-common, member: the Raspberry Pi Compute Module; designed for industrial use in customised carrier boards, the Compute Module runs the same software as its mainstream stable mates, but is otherwise beyond the scope of this book.
If you are the owner of an original-model Raspberry Pi, either the Model B or cut-down Model A, congratulations: you have a collector's item on your hands. ...
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