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Show HN: Physical Programming Language Using Coding Bricks (DrBartha Toys)
Hi HN,
I am the creator of DrBartha Toys: a software-enabled coding brick system designed to introduce children to programming through hands-on play. Our system bridges the gap between physical and digital learning, making coding more accessible and fun.
How It Works:
Kids can build programs like LEGO: stacking magnetic coding bricks into a tower that represents a sequence of instructions. With concepts like loops, conditionals, variables, and functions, they can create logic that runs on our CodePad, controlling games and interactive tasks.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/denesb/drbartha-toys-software-enabled-coding-bricks?ref=7v1zhf https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/denesb/drbartha-toys-so...
Thinking About a "Pro" Version for Programmers:
While working on the kids' version, I started wondering:
- Would professional programmers be interested in a *physical programming kit* that can:
- Solve mathematical problems and real algorithms
- Execute real code (beyond simple logic gates)
- Create physical graphs or networks (would be great for visualizing neural networks, play with graph algos)
- Act as a tangible way to "feel" computation
- I will open-source the task and game creation, allowing anyone to design and share new challenges!
I have always loved physical interfaces for abstract concepts, and I think a hands-on, programmable brick system for professionals could be an interesting tool for problem-solving and teaching. Would this be something you would find useful?
Would love to hear your thoughts! <3
Dénes
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- ilonzs 2y ago[flagged]
- drbartha 2y agoThanks! I really appreciate it. Our goal is to make programming intuitive and fun for kids. Any thoughts on what concepts would be most important to focus on?
- gus_massa 2y agoHow does this compares with the programming language in Scratch?
- drbartha 2y agoThis is a Turing-complete block programming language, similar in concept to Scratch but brought into the physical world. You can think of it as a tangible manifestation of block-based coding. I have written the interpreter for Python and assembly: you can "compile" the tower of blocks directly to a normal programming language. Hence anything you build with it can also be compiled to Scratch in the future, making it easy to bridge between physical and digital programming environments.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]