Getting Started Guide

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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com

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Getting Started with the micro:bit

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SHOP LEARN BLOG SUPPORT

CONTRIBUTORS: D___RUN___

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Introduction

So you bought this thing called a micro:bit…what is it?

The BBC micro:bit is a pocket-sized computer that lets you get creative with digital technology. You can code, customize, and control your micro:bit from anywhere! You can

use your micro:bit for all sorts of unique creations, from robots to musical instruments and more.

The micro:bit is the most recent project by the BBC in an effort to bring computer science education and STEM topics to every student in the United Kingdom. It is an open

development board that works in sync with other onboard hardware components to get you started down the path of programming hardware.

At half the size of a credit card, you will be surprised at the amount of hardware each board is equipped with, including 25 red LED lights that can flash messages. There are

two programmable buttons that can be used to control games or pause and skip songs on a playlist. The micro:bit can even detect motion and tell you which direction you’re

heading. It can also use Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to interact with other devices and the Internet.

The micro:bit features an embedded compass, accelerometer, mobile, and web-based programming capabilities. It is compatible with a number of online code editors across a

number of different languages. This guide will focus on MakeCode, a block or JavaScript-based environment that was developed by Microsoft.

Required Materials

To follow along with this tutorial, you will only need a micro:bit, and a micro USB cable. Pretty simple!

Hardware Overview

The micro:bit has a lot to offer when it comes to onboard inputs and outputs. In fact, there are so many things packed onto this little board that you would be hard pressed to

really need anything else if you were looking at just exploring the basics of programming and hardware.

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micro:bit Board

 DEV-14208

$14.95

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Introducing the BBC micro:bit - BBC Make It Digital

Summary of content (8 pages)

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1/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com   SHOP LEARN BLOG SUPPORT Getting Started with the micro:bit CONTRIBUTORS:  FAVORITE D___RUN___ 5 Introduction So you bought this thing called a micro:bit…what is it? micro:bit Board  DEV-14208 $14.95 2 The BBC micro:bit is a pocket-sized computer that lets you get creative with digital technology.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com Front On the front of the board there are a number of components that are pretty visible right off the bat! 1. LED Array — The micro:bit has a 5x5 LED array that you can use as a tiny screen to draw on and display words, numbers and other information. 2. A/B Buttons — Two buttons in all of their clicky glory: A is on the left, B is on the right, and both are prime for controlling a game of your design. 3.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com If you are on a Chromebook, when you plug your micro:bit in you will be greeted with a dialog box to open the drive. Feel free to do so to make sure it works! Let’s get programming! Using MakeCode This guide and most of SparkFun’s content around the micro:bit will use MakeCode by Microsoft for programming. What Is MakeCode? MakeCode is an open programming environment built by Microsoft for the micro:bit, as well as other boards.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com When you open MakeCode you are greeted with two blocks: the On Start block and the forever block. The On Start block is all of your code that will execute at the very beginning of your program and only run once. The forever block is code that will loop over and over again…forever. We are going to use the forever block for building this “Hello World.” We now need to start adding blocks to forever . First, click on the Basics category.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com We have built up an example in the next section where you can download the file and try it out on your own micro:bit, or use the simulator. If you want to play around with the code and make some changes, go ahead and click the Edit button in the widget, and it will open a MakeCode editor for you to start hacking “Hello World.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com Powering the micro:bit You have your program running on your micro:bit, but it is still tethered to your computer. There are a number of ways to solve this problem…batteries, batteries and more batteries! USB Battery Pack USB battery packs are becoming pretty commonplace out there. You can use one to run your micro:bit project for quite a long time. It is handy to have a shorter USB cable to keep from dragging a super-long wire around.
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11/16/2017 Getting Started with the micro:bit - learn.sparkfun.com https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/getting-started-with-the-microbit?_ga=2.220747408.983033930.1510848989-204410570.