Simulation software for raspberry pi

[Parth]

Hi,

I don't have raspberry pi kit.  I'm a hobbyist interested in learning about raspberry pi and programming. I have searched on internet. I found the many simulator.  I don't know which is best simulator for learning. Please some one recommend me good simulator     

[forrestc]

The question I would have for your is what do you hope to learn?

I admit I didn't realize there were simulators out there until I saw your question.   Looking at the simulators I could quickly find, they mostly seem to be ways to run the raspberry pi operating system on a PC.   Which is good if you want to play with the operating ssytem, but not so good if you are looking to learn about the raspberry pi hardware.

Depending on your goals, a raspberry pi simulator might not be the best spot to start.

[Parth]

The question I would have for your is what do you hope to learn?

I admit I didn't realize there were simulators out there until I saw your question.   Looking at the simulators I could quickly find, they mostly seem to be ways to run the raspberry pi operating system on a PC.   Which is good if you want to play with the operating ssytem, but not so good if you are looking to learn about the raspberry pi hardware.

Depending on your goals, a raspberry pi simulator might not be the best spot to start.

I can take two or three months to  buy board. that is reasons  I want to work on simulator  so that I can get at least idea   

I have laptop  and I think I have to buy monitor with  raspberry pi board because I think I can not connect  raspberry pi to laptop.

All is the matter of cost and money so I am just want to save my time that is reason I want to use simulator later I will work with real hardware

[forrestc]

I can take two or three months to  buy board. that is reasons  I want to work on simulator  so that I can get at least idea   

Maybe I should ask a different question:

What do you hope to do with the raspberry pi?   

If it's run things like web servers, etc., then just installing a copy of Linux on a PC would allow you to start learning about Linux and run servers and the like before getting going with the raspberry pi.   If you want to learn about programming a pi, then you could start with learning languages like Python which are commonly used on the pi.  There are lots of options to get this running, quite a few of which are able to run inside windows in a VM.     

If you're looking to do hardware interfacing/electronics, then I'm not aware of a raspberry pi simulator which would help you out there.   The online microsoft one might help, but it seems as if this tool is designed to get you working with the Microsoft Azure IoT hub.

Either way, I don't think I'd necessarily do the emulation route.   A PI is an ARM architecture product, any place you're likely to run an emulator is going to be an intel platform.   You're going to need a failry speedy PC to be able to even reach the performance of a raspberry pi, if it's even possible (the benchmarks I'm seeing indicate it's still going to be very slow).   Since the pi is based on debian linux, I'd just install debian, and learn about the command line part of linux.  This will give you a head start on the command line part of the pi, since this should be very similar. 

Edit:  removed part of my response not applicable to Parth's edited response.

[Parth]

I have laptop  and I think I have to buy monitor

every linux and unix system can export the display over the network
this means you can use your laptop screen and keyboard&mouse
to interface applications running on RPI

and if you don't need the graphic environment, a simple ssh client is
all you need

My father has told me. He will buy  raspberry pi board for me after two months

I am familiar with microcontroller. I have been worked with electronic component.  I have been programmed micrpcontroller and I have knowledge of embedded c programming

Now I want to use raspberry pi board for internet of things.  I want to learn about programming a pi by interfacing sensor. I am totally new for pi and  Python. So I want to  write and  test python program on pi.

When I was new for microcontroller. I started with LED blinking program. I want do something like this  with  raspberry pi

Hardware :   raspberry pi
language :    python
 

[forrestc]

I have laptop  and I think I have to buy monitor with  raspberry pi board because I think I can not connect  raspberry pi to laptop.

As legacy mentioned, you don't need a monitor or keyboard to set up a raspberry pi.  In fact, the majority of the pi's I have used don't end up using a monitor or keyboard after the intitial setup.  I do happen to have a few monitors and keyboards floating around so I do tend to do the initial setup that way as it's slightly easier, but definitely after setup it isn't needed unless of course whatever you end up using the pi for needs a monitor.

Also, note that the video output on the pi is a HDMI output, so many TV's could be used for a monitor at least temporarily.   I've done this in a pinch.   

Back on the simulator.... based on your most recent reply (Which came in while I was talking about it):   Other than the microsoft one, and the one at trinket.io/sense-hat, I'm not aware of any simulators which allow you to do simulate the hardware in a way which you would be able to simulate a blinking led.   Installing linux and/or one of the other simulators may allow you to play with the internet side of the internet of things connectivity, but not the hardware side. 

You should think of the raspberry pi as a small linux computer which happens to have some GPIO on it.   Learning python itself (instead of focusing on blinking a led) will get you a long ways toward what you want to do, and then when the pi arrives, you'll know the language.  Python can be installed on your laptop without any emulation, and there are lots of learning python websites out there.

[hugo]

Hi,

I don't have raspberry pi kit.  I'm a hobbyist interested in learning about raspberry pi and programming. I have searched on internet. I found the many simulator.  I don't know which is best simulator for learning. Please some one recommend me good simulator     

In the meantime, until the board arrive, you could do some reading about raspberry pi here : https://learn.adafruit.com/category/learn-raspberry-pi , then start learning python and then do your own projects.

[rstofer]

The video output is HDMI, maybe you can plug it into a TV.  The keyboard and mouse will have to be USB.

[technix]

Before you actually spend the money, if you intend to use Linux on the Pi, you may want to start by familiarizing with the environment on your computer first. Linux can have a steep learning curve if you start from Windows (a lot shallower if you start from macOS, which itself is UNIX like Linux.)

Raspberry Pi's default Linux distribution, Debian with PIXEL UI, is available for x86 and amd64 computers. You can run this PC version on your computer to get familiarized with the environment. As long as you are not touching the hardware or low level kernel stuff, using and programming Linux on a Pi is almost identical to the PC, and in most cases the programming code can be identical and exchangeable. (This extends to macOS to some extent as well.)

If you don't have a spare computer, you can use some kind of virtualization software to spawn a VM running Linux, be it Hyper-V if you have 64-bit Windows 10 Pro/Enterprise/Education, or Virtualbox for all other platforms including Windows 10 Home.

[Parth]

This is list of part that I need

Raspberry Pi
Monitor or TV
HDMI cable
USB keyboard
USB mouse
Power supply
8GB SD card

I want to save money, I don’t have Monitor or TV , USB keyboard, USB mouse I am planning to use display and keyboard of laptop for Raspberry Pi. I have searched on internet and I found two software putty and xming. I have downloaded that software

One another thing I have WiFi connection so I want to connect Raspberry Pi via wifi connection . I have searched on internet I can do that.

Finally I think I need following things
Raspberry Pi
8GB SD card
Rj45 cable
Power supply adopter

if I am missing somewhere please let me know ?

[tszaboo]

If you are short on money, this is the smallest setup to get you started with:
Raspberry Pi Zero(5 EUR) or W (10EUR)
Class 10 SD card (about 4 EUR)
Micro USB cable  (1 EUR?)
SD card reader
PC with Windows or Linux

This is really all you need to get started with it, if you are not trying to use the RPI as a computer. Which you can, but shouldn't.

[Parth]

Its really getting confuse. I do not understand what I should buy.  can you tell me which is necessary things that I should buy and which software I have to download.     

I want to buy those part which is more important. That's the reason I don't want to buy monitor, usb keyboard, mouse. I want to use laptop instead of these. with this I can save money.

Now I am really confuse I don't understand what should I buy and what shouldn't buy.  It will be very helpful if you will help me to find right part  Please tell me what should I buy    ?   

[eliocor]

@legacy:
I think you are overcomplicating things for the OP (Parth):
he does not want to spend too much on his RPi, so lets him start with the plain vanilla configuration and, only AFTER he grabs how things work on RPi, THEN he can change the typical configuration as you state.
You are only making him confused:
he does not need "performances will be increased by different orders of magnitudes": as he clearly stated he wants:
- "I want to save money"
- "I want to use raspberry pi board for internet of things"
- "I want to learn about programming a pi by interfacing sensor"
- "I am totally new for pi and  Python"
- "I want to  write and  test python program on pi"

For such requests he does not need any superperformance computer at all, just a plain RaspberryPi...

It is clear you (legacy) are only making confusion to a person who is just starting!
He is not a "pro" and I do not think he needs such "high level" suggestions EXCEPT if you give him a really complete and detailed list of ALL of the steps required to follow your otherwise insightful suggestions.
But please remember: he is just a newbie (no offense intended!). You can't overwhelm him!

P.S.: he wrote "I have searched on internet and I found two software putty and xming": surely on those link he have searched for there are some explanations on how to use putty (BTW it is a good app!): you can't throw the stone and hide your hand... Sometime it is better to follow to the letter (especially the first times) the instructions reported on the official blogs/site of the RaspberryPi than to adventure on unchartered waters.
P.P.S.: sorry, English is not my first language and I hope to have not offended anyone! 

[eliocor]

I suspect because you are one of those so ignorant about linux who believe that having to use NANO or VI requires a nerd.

Sorry to disappoint you, but the first time I used Unix was in 1983 on a VAX 11/780 (AT&T Unix SVR1 and Eunice, a nice Unix emulator)...
Using 'ed' as line editor on a Digital LA34*/LA120 (paper) or VT100 (CRT).
Much earlier than 'vi'
I continued to daily use Unix/Linux since those times.

*) nicknamed "the Turing machine" for the slowness of its head!!!!

[eliocor]

You are not required to have/buy:
- Monitor/TV
- HDMI cable
- USB keyboard
- USB mouse

Just follow the instructions shown on:

http://www.jamesfmackenzie.com/2017/01/02/raspberry-pi-headless-rasbian-install/

to use your laptop to connect to your Raspberry PI.

[brucehoult]

I suspect because you are one of those so ignorant about linux who believe that having to use NANO or VI requires a nerd.

Sorry to disappoint you, but the first time I used Unix was in 1983 on a VAX 11/780 (AT&T and Eunice, a nice Unix emulator)...

I used Eunice in 1983 also. It worked, but VMS was not designed to fork a lot of processes and abandon them -- you got one when you logged on and kept it for your entire session -- which made emulating Unix slow. Eunice cached processes, but still...

At one point the sysadmin made an error installing a Eunice update. Some of the utilities, such as "ps" required admin privileges. The VMS version of setuid root. The mistake was he forgot to disable the ability to attach a debugger to those processes. I did that, set a breakpoint in ps, poked about a dozen bytes of machine code into memory (a system call something like "set_current_privs((int64_t)-1, permanent=true)"), ran it, and voila! I was God on that machine.

Fun times.

[brainwash]

My gripe is that I don't understand why a rPI is needed at all.
To interface sensors you can just get an Arduino-compatible board and write your firmware, controlled from the computer via serial. Then write Python on the computer or whatever you'd like (Processing) to interface with the external board.
To make an IoT thing you can use an ESP8266 board, those are around 2-3$ now. It supports micro-Python and there are probably countless examples on how to interface sensors.
To learn Linux you can just install Oracle VirtualBox and create or download a virtual machine (/appliance).
To learn all of the above, buy the cheapest router that supports OpenWRT. You can compile your own firmware, write code on it, whatever. Heck, I'm sure someone could give you an older one for free.

But if you still want to buy the rPi - and be prepared for it - install a virtual machiine with Debian: http://www.osboxes.org/debian/ .

[Parth]

My gripe is that I don't understand why a rPI is needed at all.

Most of company work on latest technology. They require hands on experience with RPi python programming. That's the reason I wanted to work on RPi 

To interface sensors you can just get an Arduino-compatible board and write your firmware, controlled from the computer via serial.

I tried that method but the problem is serial port programming. I have done experiment where one PC is working as server and another PC is working as client. both PC'S connected with same wifi router. so client can access website from server. I was trying to connect microconntroller with sensor at server side but the problem is that I need to activate serial port. I was stuck there       

have you done it like this ?

[brainwash]

Which language? What OS (assume Windows)?

[timb]

I think you are overcomplicating things for the OP (Parth)

overcomplicating what?
I have just suggest to buy an external harddrive because SDCARDS are slow and pretty crappy

For such requests he does not need any superperformance computer at all, just a plain RaspberryPi...

SDCards are crappy, we are not talking about superperformance, it's a simple matter of been more comfortable.

It is clear you (legacy) are only making confusion to a person who is just starting!

Oh well ...

You do know that the RPi only has USB2.0 and that said USB link is routed through an onboard hub controller that’s shared with the Ethernet controller, right? The result is a very slow link (even slower if trying to copy files to and from the drive over the network).

If you use a Class 10 SD Card, read speeds will always be much faster than a USB based HDD on the Raspberry Pi.

[Parth]

Which language? What OS (assume Windows)?

I was using window 10.  I work only with c programming. I found that I can do it with php or asp.net. I  find so much for serial port program. But I could not get success. finally I left because learning many language was very difficult for me       

[brucehoult]

You do know that the RPi only has USB2.0 and that said USB link is routed through an onboard hub controller that’s shared with the Ethernet controller, right? The result is a very slow link (even slower if trying to copy files to and from the drive over the network).

If you use a Class 10 SD Card, read speeds will always be much faster than a USB based HDD on the Raspberry Pi.

For just $5 more, the Odroid C2 is a massively better machine. Proper gigE, fast SD, faster eMMC, fast RAM. Despite the same A53 core and nominally only 25% faster clock rate, it's more like double the speed in practice. And an actual 64 bit version of Linux from Day 1.

Harder to find, and not as much community support, unfortunately.

[Parth]

Thanks. I have  already got so much help but still  I have only last doubt   

I know wifi router is not good option but some time we have to compromise with situation that is reason  I don't want to connect RPI  with personal router. It increase cost. I have free wifi router in my PG and I am planning to connect display of laptop for RPi.

I have searched on internet there is information regarding ethernet cable but I think I need only one cable to connect display of laptop to RPI

 How to buy correct cable what I need  buy micro usb cable or HDMI cable.

https://www.amazon.in/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_4?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=raspberry+pi+3&sprefix=rasp%2Caps%2C297&crid=2JIZT1DFFQOJT

which one is best first or second ?
           

[eliocor]

Don' t worry too much regarding using WiFi: you are just starting to learn how to use your Rpi.
If everything works correctly, you will got no trouble at all in your experimentations.
IF, for some particular reasons, you will encounter some problems, you will LATER can try the network cable solution.

[TomS_]

I am totally new for pi and  Python. So I want to  write and  test python program on pi.

You dont need a Raspberry Pi to start programming Python. Download Python from their website and install it on your current laptop/computer and off you go.

You then have the next 2 months to familiarise yourself with Python before trying to also mix GPIO and other peripherals in to the mix.

I believe Raspberry Pi also has serial console enabled by default, or it can be enabled very easily by modifying a file on the boot partition of the SD card. You can then talk to the Raspberry Pi over serial without needing an external monitor or keyboard or mouse. At the very least you can use this to enable SSH, after which the serial port on the Raspberry Pi can be freed up for your projects.

There are tons of videos on YouTube that can help you get started.

[brainwash]

Which language? What OS (assume Windows)?

I was using window 10.  I work only with c programming. I found that I can do it with php or asp.net. I  find so much for serial port program. But I could not get success. finally I left because learning many language was very difficult for me       

Python is probably easier to learn than C, just follow some examples online: https://playground.arduino.cc/Interfacing/Python
If you know Python you are probably well-equipped to do IoT stuff on the rPI.

You should also research what kind of sensors you want to interface with. Depending on their protocol/wiring you might not be able to interface with them directly from the Raspberry and still need to use another component (Arduino-like) to get data.

[Parth]

Hi All

Today I am very happy,  got my RPI board. I have attached picture of my board. May be within three day's I will have Micro SD card and ethernet cable

any suggestion to utilize  the time