Why Raspberry Pi?

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TheUngerGames

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I have been recently reading about the "mini computer" Raspberry Pi and how it is a very useful tool for learning how to program and such. Learning how to program and understand computers is something that I want to do. However, I don't understand why I would need to buy a Raspberry Pi when I have a perfectly good desktop. Therefore my question is, what makes the Raspberry Pi superior to normal computers when it comes to learning, programming, tinkering, etc. Also, if I had an old desktop, would it be just as good to install linux on it like the Raspberry Pi and work from that?

I hope my questions make sense, if not, feel free to ask for clarification.

Thanks!
 
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cub_fanatic
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cub_fanatic

cub_fanatic

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it is very cheap, small and efficient. It it also quite versatile and has a large support community. If you already have a PC, then use that because chances are it is more powerful. But, if you are on a budget and need a fully functioning computer for under $75 then the Pi or something like a Beagle Bone are there. They are basically making computers more accessible to people. Unlike back in the 90's when you would have had to pay thousands of dollars and even as late as the 2000's when the cheapest functional PC was still in the hundreds of dollars.
 
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woworwow

woworwow

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Raspberry Pi is open source which basically means you can do almost anything with it. WHich is great for learning programming or as a HTPC. But if you're not doing any of those things, a normal PC is better.
There's also smaller PC like the Zotac Z box or Intel's NUC and many more
 
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dmroeder

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What makes the Pi superior? Cost, that's it.

The Raspberry Pi was intended to bring computers/programming to people/places that cannot afford traditional computers. It's very expensive for a school to outfit their entire campus or district with traditional computers. The Pi can bring this cost down significantly (although you still have to buy monitors, keyboards, etc). It also makes it less of an investment for an individual to test the waters of programming.

Being that you have a computer that will outperform the Pi, then I'd say the Pi wasn't intended for you. Use your computer.
 
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Ijack

Ijack

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It's not just cost:

1. The Pi is very easy to interface with other hardware, and there are a host of interface boards available to use with it.

2. It uses much less power than other computers. You can run it off a couple of flashlight batteries or a USB port.

3. It can run RiscOS in addition to Linux.

4. No doubt people can think of plenty other advantages. Basically it is an extremely small, low power consumption, totally silent, cheap computer.

Reasons 1 and 2, in particular, mean that it is very popular amongst hobbyists. You can use it to control robots, send it to the upper atmosphere in a balloon controlling a web cam, etc. But if you just want to learn computer programming than stick with your current computer.

The price you pay for this is that it is rather underpowered compared to other computers.
 
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cub_fanatic

cub_fanatic

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yes, a pi combined with something like an arduino, a little knowledge as well as some creativity has unlimited applications and both of them with some accessories costs less than a typical MP3 player. Check out youtube for many projects where people have used these two little devices. One of my favorite channels is the Ben Heck Show: https://www.youtube.com/user/thebenheckshow The website that he always mentions, element 14, sells both the pi and arduino and accessories for both and also has tons of info on how to use them: http://www.element14.com/community/welcome
 
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cub_fanatic

cub_fanatic

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Here is another fun little project you can do if you have the funds to buy 32 RPi's; make your own supercomputer cluster: http://www.zdnet.com/build-your-own-supercomputer-out-of-raspberry-pi-boards-7000015831/ Now, this is purely educational as any run of the mill modern dual core CPU can easily outperform all 32 of these combined; the raw power of an i3, for example, is somewhere in the range of 2 to 3 times that of this supercomputer and a desktop i5 or i7 has more than 5x to 10x the raw power (an overclocked 3770k @ 4.6GHz gets around 100 GFlops vs the 10 GFlops of this supercomputer). If you want raw power, that $2000 would be better spent on an at least a quad core LGA 2011 or 1150 rig. If you want to learn how computers like these work, then this might be something to consider.
 
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dmroeder

dmroeder

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Touche, I was kind going along the lines of "why would I buy a Pi to learn programming rather than use my computer that I already have?". Well said, great points.

 
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