Hack-Ready Alarm Clock

I've migrated the build & Debian package to support Raspian Stretch - this is now the default platform to install on. Let me know if you experience any problems!

Version 2.1 of the Hack Clock now provides IFTTT event publishing support - so you can fire off events at IFTTT! Turn on your bedroom lights when the alarm goes off!

I have also added Google Music (unofficial) support. If you provide your username/password in /etc/hack-clock.conf, you can stream "I'm Feeling Lucky" radio!

Version 2.1 is likely going to be the last minor release for a little while, and instead I will be focusing on bugfixes.

Hack Clock version 2 is finally out as a stable release! Thanks for everyone's input to help make this happen.

Tutorials, how-to's and release links are available at http://hackclock.deckerego.net/

Version 2 has entered final testing! All the lessons are there, the lessons have been tested & I the new hardware is considered "stable." Releases are at https://github.com/deckerego/hack-clock/releases and the page is still at http://hackclock.deckerego.net/ . Let me know if you have any issues - likely we will post v2 on the 29th!

The revamped Hack Clock site is out! Visit http://hackclock.deckerego.net/ to get block-based programming lessons as well as Python lessons.

Currently the first four lessons have been posted, and I have two or three left to go. Soon v2 of the Hack Clock will be released as well - almost there...

Alright - we're in the home stretch for Version 2 of the Hack Clock! There is a final feature list, which includes:

• Blockly programming (program using blocks, not Python)
• Support for Raspberry Pi Zero
• Full Raspian support (including latest wiringpi)
• Multiple buttons allowed (simultaneous GPIO input)
• Flip switches on/off (simultaneous GPIO output)
• Debian package installation
• Full tutorial set
• New lessons (music lover, weekday-only alarm)
• Move from stereo headphone jack to I2S audio
• Cheaper total bill of material (roughly $70.70, down from $95.85)
• Lotsa bug fixes

If you'd like to try the beta release - get the latest from GitHub!

Coding with blocks (using Blockly) is now available in master! The option is disabled by default, but if you change the following settings in webapp/config.py to:

'default_editor': '/blocks/edit',
'disable_editor_button': False,

...then you will be able to code your alarm clock using drag-and-drop blocks in a Blockly IDE! Click the right-most button above the editor, and you can switch back and forth between blocks and the generated Python. Saves and restores should work for both Blockly and Python as well, so it is easy to restore old files if you make a mistake.

Feel free to try it out and provide feedback if you find something inane!

I'm working on moving the primary IDE of the HackClock from CodeMirror's Python editor to the Bring Your Own Blocks-style of Blockly. I really like CodeMirror's JavaScript editor, however I found that kids generally learn just enough Python to get things working and then lose interest. Kids do keep with Scratch (or ScratchJr on iOS) however, so I think the block-based editing approach may make sense here.

Initial testing has already begun, with the blocks parsing into analogous Python scripts on the back-end. I may allow CodeMIrror and Blockly IDEs to be interchangable, with CodeMirror being the "advanced mode." We'll see how the prototypes turn out.

I'm working on v2 of the Hack Clock, this time hopefully using the RaspPi Zero and the much more streamlined Adafruit I2S amp breakout. If you re-use some existing USB hardware, SD cards and spare wire, that means the total build could be less than $32. Not to mention the build would have a lower footprint.

I'm also hopeful that I2S proves more stable than the PWM -> audio jack on the Model A.

Draft parts list is at https://www.adafruit.com/wishlists/413935

One thing I found while using the Hack Clock as a teaching tool was that the kids are a whole lot anxious if there is an easy way to backup your work and restore quickly to a working version. For that, I've created an initial implementation of backups and restores within the Hack Clock interface - just hit the "load" button in the code editor and you will be presented with a list of backup points. Restore one and it will load it up within the code editor.

Much less stress for everyone, and a more fun way to experiment safely with changes!