Author Topic: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)  (Read 11147 times)

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Offline alexanderbrevigTopic starter

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The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« on: March 02, 2016, 03:57:59 pm »
So, my dear friend Hernando Barragán has finally given his narrative (backed with facts mind you) about how it all started.

http://arduinohistory.github.io/

factsBased(true);


Did you know the origins story?
 

Offline zapta

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #1 on: March 02, 2016, 05:53:37 pm »
Very interesting. Thanks for posting.
 

Online rsjsouza

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #2 on: March 02, 2016, 06:15:16 pm »
+1. Thanks for spreading the word.
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Offline fantis1337

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #3 on: March 02, 2016, 06:57:30 pm »
Good read.
If you run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole.
If you run into assholes all day, you’re the asshole.
 

Offline vinicius.jlantunes

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #4 on: March 02, 2016, 08:08:14 pm »
Thanks for posting indeed, very interesting read.

Offline zapta

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #5 on: March 02, 2016, 08:38:45 pm »
It always puzzled me why Wiring which is a C++ library is called 'language'
 

Offline bhagman

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #6 on: March 02, 2016, 08:54:16 pm »
It always puzzled me why Wiring which is a C++ library is called 'language'

One must understand the origins.  Hernando built Wiring, although from an academic perspective, with limited computer science and electronics skills.  And to most people in the same circles, they would not understand calling something a "C++ library". Instead "language" is an easier parallel to explain the programming.

This isn't about technicalities.  This is about making things easier to use.

 

Offline AdamHi

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #7 on: March 02, 2016, 09:59:58 pm »
Very interesting. And very believable. When i was in the academic world (basic medical research), I saw how some professors would sometimes present student's work as their own - or at least not making it clear that they weren't the prime developers of the work.

In everybody's defense . . .I sometimes can't remember what i did this week  :-\, let alone last decade. :scared: CRS!

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Offline dannyf

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #8 on: March 02, 2016, 11:47:27 pm »
"factsBased"

Facts tell lies, plenty of times - not saying that it did / does here.

The whole story is uninteresting to me in that it seems all about recognition. I think it is constructive that he is trying to set the facts straight but so what? End of the day, he wrote a piece of open software and by its very nature people can use it. Unless he specifically said how he wants to be recognized, he is without recourse.

Life is a bitch, as they would say.
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Offline AlxDroidDev

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #9 on: March 03, 2016, 01:34:27 am »
Bookmarked!

Hernando built Wiring, although from an academic perspective, with limited computer science and electronics skills.  And to most people in the same circles, they would not understand calling something a "C++ library". Instead "language" is an easier parallel to explain the programming.

It seems to me that Hernando is quite knowledgeable in both electronics and CS. His audience, however, might not be skilled in EE or CS, thus the terms used.
"The nice thing about standards is that you have so many to choose from." (Andrew S. Tanenbaum)
 

Offline zapta

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #10 on: March 03, 2016, 02:10:42 am »
It always puzzled me why Wiring which is a C++ library is called 'language'

Does it lack a key aspect of a language? Users of it can communicate ideas in a structured way.

Is it different in this respect from any another C++ library? 


 

Offline zapta

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #11 on: March 03, 2016, 02:47:01 am »
I don't know. Does it being a c++ library exclude it from fitting the definition of a language is my point. If it functions  to enable users of it to communicate with the device it is well on the way to fitting the definition of a language. It could be built upon any of a dozen (or more) programming architectures or hardware devices.

It's just a library or API. Not different from thousands of other libraries or APIs. Being portable doesn't make a library a 'language'.
 

Offline donotdespisethesnake

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #12 on: March 05, 2016, 09:33:19 am »
I don't know. Does it being a c++ library exclude it from fitting the definition of a language is my point. If it functions  to enable users of it to communicate with the device it is well on the way to fitting the definition of a language. It could be built upon any of a dozen (or more) programming architectures or hardware devices.

It's just a library or API. Not different from thousands of other libraries or APIs. Being portable doesn't make a library a 'language'.

I would call it an API. However, I recently used the term "API" at work, and then one of the managers asked "what does API mean?" So I can see that if you are trying to communicate with non-technical users, calling it a language is a lot easier than having to explain "API" every time. In the same way that the CPU often gets called an "electronic brain".

Yes, it is horribly inaccurate and Real Engineers hate it, but in the real world even Real Engineers have to take into account there are many people who are not as clever as we are, so we have to dumb it down just so a half hour meeting doesn't take 3 days while we explain the proper terminology.
Bob
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Offline EEVblog

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #13 on: March 05, 2016, 10:07:49 am »
What's the TLDR?
 

Offline Brumby

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #14 on: March 05, 2016, 11:34:49 am »
Interesting and ... should I say it ... not surprising.

It will be interesting to see if it all gets straightened out for the public to see.
 

Offline zapta

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #15 on: March 05, 2016, 01:08:07 pm »
I would call it an API. However, I recently used the term "API" at work, and then one of the managers asked "what does API mean?" So I can see that if you are trying to communicate with non-technical users, calling it a language is a lot easier than having to explain "API" every time. In the same way that the CPU often gets called an "electronic brain".

He complains about not getting enough recognitions and then doesn't give recognition himself to the creators of C and C++ which are responsible for 95% of the 'language' he claims to invent.

He could use more accurate term such as 'the Wiring commands', not taking credit on inventing the language itself.

Anyway, he and the Arduino group did a great job bringing C++ embedded programming to the masses. Not and easy task.
 

Offline Brumby

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #16 on: March 05, 2016, 01:24:03 pm »
I would call it an API. However, I recently used the term "API" at work, and then one of the managers asked "what does API mean?" So I can see that if you are trying to communicate with non-technical users, calling it a language is a lot easier than having to explain "API" every time. In the same way that the CPU often gets called an "electronic brain".

He complains about not getting enough recognitions and then doesn't give recognition himself to the creators of C and C++ which are responsible for 95% of the 'language' he claims to invent.

He could use more accurate term such as 'the Wiring commands', not taking credit on inventing the language itself.

Anyway, he and the Arduino group did a great job bringing C++ embedded programming to the masses. Not and easy task.

It seems to me that he was not particularly concerned with recognition in the first place, but felt somewhat miffed when others started claiming work that he had done as theirs - through a variety of direct and indirect means which pushed him into the shadows and out of sight.

Your point of not giving credit to the creators of C and C++ is somewhat irrelevant.  Barragán made no claims about being involved in their creation.  The claims addressed in the article ARE relevant, because he directly states his involvement.
 

Offline Dave

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #17 on: March 05, 2016, 01:41:36 pm »
What's the TLDR?
The whole awful concept of Arduino's programming environment, terminology and awful bloated libraries are a blatant ripoff of Wiring. Hernando Barragán made these for his Master's thesis and his mentor Massimo Banzi rebadged his work and started a business with some other dudes.
<fellbuendel> it's arduino, you're not supposed to know anything about what you're doing
<fellbuendel> if you knew, you wouldn't be using it
 

Offline retrolefty

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #18 on: March 05, 2016, 06:46:05 pm »
Quote
Anyway, he and the Arduino group did a great job bringing C++ embedded programming to the masses. Not and easy task.

 :-+ :-+ :-+

 That perhaps was their greatest achievement (maybe unintended), as prior the Basic Stamp was the educational/hobbist tool of choice for most microcontroller projects for the non-professional, which had much less power for more money.

For whatever the faults of Arduino/wiring functions have, there is no restriction on ignoring them and writing your own better functions to replace them. Arduino was/is a very nice 'first step' in the utilization of simple microcontroller projects. For some there is no reason to move on, and for others a good start on climbing the ladder to better mastery.

 

Offline botcrusher

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #19 on: March 05, 2016, 08:39:31 pm »
makes me question if i really want to buy official arduino.cc boards...

So if i get this straight, to water it down:

LLC is the Mentor's (Banzi)
and SRL is from the guy who made wiring?
 

Offline jancumps

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #20 on: March 05, 2016, 09:03:46 pm »
You may have to read the article again :)
 

Offline retrolefty

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #21 on: March 05, 2016, 09:22:06 pm »
makes me question if i really want to buy official arduino.cc boards...

So if i get this straight, to water it down:

LLC is the Mentor's (Banzi)
and SRL is from the guy who made wiring?

 No, this guy is a 3rd party to this mess. The other guy from SRL was and is in the business of making boards.


 

Offline donotdespisethesnake

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Re: The Untold History of Arduino (by Hernando Barragán)
« Reply #22 on: March 05, 2016, 10:18:07 pm »
Of course, the argument about who created the Arduino has only really come to the surface after both Arduino #1 and Arduino #2 claim to own the "moral rights" to Arduino. The US trademark case drags on interminably https://www.unitedstatescourts.org/federal/mad/167131/ with legal arguments amounting to "You suck!", "No, YOU suck!".

It is ironic that while the corporate Arduinos fight over the name, the actual concept and implementation of the system was invented by someone else. Barragan's name appears in some of the copyright notices in the Arduino source code.

Anyway, I suggested to Massimo Banzi he should not waste money on lawyers, but instead "Rebrand as 'Arduino Original' or something". I don't know if he even read that, but they seem to be doing that with "Genuino".
Bob
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