Why I Chose Arduino

Why I Chose Arduino

For the second term of S.T.A.T, I chose to research and use the Arduino Genuino Uno. When I decided to try and learn how to use the Arduino I had no clue what language it was programmed in or what I could use it for. The only thing I knew about the Arduino before I started using it was that it was used in some pretty cool projects and products on the market now. When I started coding the Arduino it was pretty straight forward but it has a lot of syntax's (commands) that you need to learn or you can't get anything done. A lot of these syntax's were familiar but other weren't because they were Arduino specific. After playing around with the Arduino for a few days I found out that it is 80% hardware that you need to put together and 20% coding. This is different than what I'm used to but this means that the arduino compatible with all types of hardware, for example; Light sensors, Tilt sensors, LCD screens, etc. It's awesome that it is compatible with almost all types of hardware but that means that you have to have a good idea of what you want to make because you can't just type it up, you need to take the time to get the parts and put it together and if you don't put it together correctly then you can have serious issues.

Above is a very simple project, it's a breadboard which is basically a series of horizontal conductive metal that you can put pins into and connect to the Arduino, what this configuration does is when you press the push button at the bottom of the breadboard on the left, it will light up the blue LED using a program you write on a computer through the Arduino. This project is very simple and only a fraction of what you can do with the Arduino. This is why I chose the Arduino, you can do so much with the Arduino. Although the Arduino can do all of this, it has its cons, it can't run multiple commands at one time like a lot of other boards can do, the Arduino Genuino Uno specifically does not support keyboard presses which means you can't write a program that uses an external button to type a keyboard press like the letter A for example and it also doesn't support mouse inputs.

Above is an example of an LCD screen connected to the Arduino using a breadboard on the bottom that goes through the Arduino on the top and runs a program that you would write and the Arduino would then tell the LCD screen what to do. This is cool because you could scale this down by not using a bread board and just wiring it straight to the Arduino and put it in something like a box and then you have a box with a programmable LCD screen.

     This is why I chose the Arduino, it's versatility isn't beatable at the price it is and it is pretty easy to code if you know what you're doing. Overall, I think the Arduino Genuino Uno is far from perfect but it is an awesome entry level and advanced level piece of hardware and software.