Scratch 2.0 and Picoboard

MiniFluffyBug

What are Pico Boards and WeDos?

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grokblah

Hello! Today we released PicoBoard support in Scratch 2.0. Instead of using a “helper app” it uses a web browser plugin. You can download the plugin from here:
http://scratch.mit.edu/scratchr2/static/ext/download.html

This plugin is required to use the LEGO WeDo and PicoBoard extensions in Scratch 2.0. They can be added to your project from the “More Blocks” tab.

Shane

SCRAXE

grokblah wrote:
Hello! Today we released PicoBoard support in Scratch 2.0. Instead of using a “helper app” it uses a web browser plugin.

Great news, I'll try it out.

1) Is there a list of supported browsers with the plugin, as I have only had wedo success with certain browsers
2) How do you select the COM port for the picoboard - or doet he plugin just try them all (I hope not, as that can cause all sorts of issues e.g. with bluetooth virtual ports)?

Thanks

franksabate

grokblah wrote:
This plugin is required to use the LEGO WeDo and PicoBoard extensions in Scratch 2.0. They can be added to your project from the “More Blocks” tab.

Hi Shane, I've tried to use the PicoBoard but it doesn't work. The status light is always green (even if there's no board). I'm using Win7 + Chrome.
The WeDo extension works fine, thanks!

Frank

abee

Thanks, grokblah.
PicoBoard extension works, but some blocks don't respond.

(~ sensor value) returns correct value for all kind of sensors.
(when ~) cannot detect event from all type of sensors.
<sensor ~ ?> always returns false for all kind of sensors.

I tested with the original “Scratch Board” v. 3 and some compatible boards.
My browser / operating system: Windows NT 6.3, Chrome 34.0.1847.137, Flash 13.0 (release 0).
Thank you for your help.

Last edited by abee (May 18, 2014 16:01:03)

SCRAXE

franksabate wrote:
Hi Shane, I've tried to use the PicoBoard but it doesn't work. The status light is always green (even if there's no board). I'm using Win7 + Chrome.
The WeDo extension works fine, thanks!

Exactly same for me - nothing works - green light even when no pico attached. Wedo works fine.
We need more info on how to select the COM port (COM5 in my case) - it could well be opening the wrong port and hence getting confused.
Is the plugin source now also going to be released on github, at least we could then see what it is trying to do?

My browser / operating system: Windows 7, Chrome 34.0.1847.137, Flash 13.0 (release 0)

Thanks

Last edited by SCRAXE (May 19, 2014 09:16:41)

SCRAXE

Also changed port to COM1 via Device Manager, still no luck, green light always on.

Also for real life plugins, its almost essential to be able to show the reporter on the stage (e.g. to see the values to, for instance, work out a light threshold point). So can the .js use individual reporters, not menu based ones, so the ‘show me on the stage’ checkboxes do appear as with the Wedo plugin e.g.

,
,

instead of
,

Last edited by SCRAXE (May 19, 2014 09:25:05)

SCRAXE

Um, it didn't like that did it! Without square brackets:

('r', ‘light value’, ‘getLight’,),
('r', ‘sound value’, ‘getSound’,),

instead of

('r', ‘%m.sensor sensor value’, ‘sensor’, ‘slider’,),

SCRAXE

I've finally got my Sparkfun picoboard to talk by renaming the virtual COM port to COM2 and removing any other ports. It's obvious when its working properly because the communications LEDs start flickering.

Device Manager > Ports > USB Serial Port (the pico's port) > Properties > Port Settings > Advanced > COM port number

I think if you have any other COM port available with a lower number than the pico's COM port it all fails - green light even though it's not actually talking to the pico. So its scanning all COM ports in turn (and failing if a COM port lower than the pico is available!). Not a very robust way of doing it…

My browser / operating system: Windows 7, Chrome 34.0.1847.137, Flash 13.0 (release 0)

Karadox

Connecting PicoBoards to scratch 2.0 works fine for me. Light turns green when board is actually connected.

The problem I encounter is that the true/false value <“Sensor - xxx - ?”> does not do anything.
So the detection of the button doesn't happen and the resistors do give their sensor value but the button functionality does not work.

I've got 15 laptops with this problem with the following setup:
My browser / operating system: Windows NT 6.3, Chrome 34.0.1847.137, Flash 13.0 (release 0)

And is there a timeline for when the offline version has this functionality because the internet connection here is awful!

greetz, Karel

SCRAXE

PicoBoard Summary (Online v416 as at 22 May 2014)

Hi Karadox, this info should help you get your picoboard's working fully in your class!

Extension

The Pico javascript extension (via More Blocks > Add an extension) currently has multiple bugs, so the hats and boolean reporters don't work at all.

I have corrected the original javascript to get a useable version for now until ST fix these issues.

So in Scratch 2 (online version) you do this:

Click File > New to start a new project
Hold down the shift key and click File menu again
Click Import Experimental Extension
Enter this exactly and then click ‘Load’

http://tinyurl.com/nrxf9k4

This loads my ‘bug fixed’ version of the pico extension and all picoboard blocks should then work

Hardware

PicoBoard must be the lowest Windows COM port number found on your computer, as Scratch searches from COM1 upwards for any COM port, and then uses that first port it finds. If Picoboard is the only COM port on your computer then that is obviously not a problem. However if you have another different COM port lower than the picoboard COM port Scratch can incorrectly use that and ‘green light’ that a pico is connected (when it isn't!).

I have a red sparkfun scratchboard with a FTDI chip that generates a virtual COM port. You can change this COM port number in Device Manager as follows:

Device Manager > Ports > USB Serial Port (the pico's port) > Right Click > Properties > Port Settings > Advanced > COM port number

Have fun!

My browser / operating system: Windows 7, Chrome 34.0.1847.137, Flash 13.0 (release 0)

jonigiri

when backdrop switches to [ scratch.mit.edu]
replace item ( v) of [list v] with [thing]
replace item ( warriors) of [list v] with [thing]
[quote][/quote]

Karadox

Thx Scraxe,

Looks very promising, next wednesday I can try it out.
The extra blocks are a nice touch too!

bsteinbach

Woohoo! Worked for me on a Mac with Chrome.

franksabate

SCRAXE wrote:
PicoBoard must be the lowest Windows COM port number found on your computer, as Scratch searches from COM1 upwards for any COM port, and then uses that first port it finds. If Picoboard is the only COM port on your computer then that is obviously not a problem. However if you have another different COM port lower than the picoboard COM port Scratch can incorrectly use that and ‘green light’ that a pico is connected (when it isn't!).

Thanks Scraxe, the PicoBoard started working when I changed the port number to COM1.

lycotic

FYI

Mac OS 10.9 seems to have a new, Apple-supplied driver for FTDI USB devices which… doesn't work: http://forum.arduino.cc/index.php?topic=198539.0

Following the steps in the link above (disabling the Apple FTDI driver; reinstalling the driver from FTDI; rebooting) made the picoboard work on 2.0 without further issues. We'd also switched from using the board on 1.4 to 2.0, but I'm betting it's the update to Mavericks that caused the problem.

Anyway, working now on Chrome + Mac OS 10.9 (with tweaks).

susanettenheim

bsteinbach - would you be willing to help me? I'm trying so hard on a Mac but am stuck! My green light isn't going on on the Pico board…. I'm running 10.7.5 - Scratch 2.0 online - installed the experimental extension… HELP???

susanettenheim

lycotic wrote:
FYI

Mac OS 10.9 seems to have a new, Apple-supplied driver for FTDI USB devices which… doesn't work: http://forum.arduino.cc/index.php?topic=198539.0

Following the steps in the link above (disabling the Apple FTDI driver; reinstalling the driver from FTDI; rebooting) made the picoboard work on 2.0 without further issues. We'd also switched from using the board on 1.4 to 2.0, but I'm betting it's the update to Mavericks that caused the problem.

Anyway, working now on Chrome + Mac OS 10.9 (with tweaks).

I'm still not able to get the Pico board working… how do you disable the Apple FTDI driver please?

SCRAXE

susanettenheim wrote:
I'm still not able to get the Pico board working… how do you disable the Apple FTDI driver please?

That was new to Mavericks
https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/technotes/tn2315/_index.html

So on 10.7 (Lion) you don't need to worry about this, just install the normal FTDI driver:
http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP.htm

Have a look in Console, do you have any crash reports for the Scratch plugin?

Last edited by SCRAXE (June 8, 2014 00:16:29)

the_awesome_man

Where can i get the audio jack to croc. clip.

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