8 ms·

BBC gives children mini-computers in Make it Digital scheme

84 points by hanoz 12y ago

timthelion 12y ago
The article failed to give any attention to what kind of software and hardware the computer will run. While I think that it is important to focus on other aspects, and us techies often focus too much on the technical, this lack of attention to the choice of software platforms is worrying to me. I hope that these children will be exposed to a standard set of tools or an open platform, rather than being lead into a proprietary platform where their skills will be reliant on the grace of a single corporation. Think of all the children who today learn Microsoft Office. They have been trained, not to be users of computers, but to be customers of a single platform.
- chrisBob 12y ago
  >Think of all the children who today learn Microsoft Office. They have been trained, not to be users of computers, but to be customers of a single platform. They are trained to be customers of a single platform that many jobs (all of the ads I looked at recently) specifically require skills in. I am a big open source fan, but until businesses start asking for people proficient in any office suite then I recommend schools stick with MS Office.
- zelos 12y ago
  When I went to an open day at a local primary school they were using Scratch to teach coding (~10 year olds I think?)
nodata 12y ago
Why are these not Pis? Anyone know?
- ascorbic 12y ago
  These seem a lot simpler than the RasPi. I don't think they'll be running Linux. Looks more like a simple Arduino. Closest thing seems to be the LilyPad.
- SmellyGeekBoy 12y ago
  Much cheaper / simpler, also it's USB so should be able to use the Pi as a host
- deutronium 12y ago
  I think something like this would be better than a Pi to get people into electronics, as theres no OS to concern yourself with. If you want to make a small electronic gadget, something like a microcontroller makes more sense, as it'd be _much_ lower power than a Pi. And additionally you could generate more accurate timing signals for things like VGA etc, than with a Pi.
jgrahamc 12y ago
The BBC is also launching a season of coding-based programmes and activities. It will include a new drama based on Grand Theft Auto and a documentary on Bletchley Park. How does a 'drama based on GTA' help at all?
- ascorbic 12y ago
  Maybe it's a drama based on the making of GTA, rather than the game itself? Rockstar North is in Scotland after all. Is there an interesting story behind it?
  - michaelx386 12y ago
    There's a book by David Kushner called Jacked[0] about GTA's development. He's also the author of Masters of Doom[1]. [0] http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0007434855 http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0007434855 [1] http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0749924896 http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0749924896
    - ascorbic 12y ago
      Seems I was right. It is a drama about the making of GTA. http://www.develop-online.net/news/90-minute-grand-theft-auto-drama-coming-to-bbc-two/0204263 http://www.develop-online.net/news/90-minute-grand-theft-aut...
- pjc50 12y ago
  I'm wondering that, especially as GTA is PEGI-rated 18.
  - pidg 12y ago
    I don't think the drama is aimed at the same audience as the computers.
- johneth 12y ago
  It's based on the making of the game according to someone working on it - https://twitter.com/guycocker/status/575985333017391104 https://twitter.com/guycocker/status/575985333017391104
jgrahamc 12y ago
Details of the "Micro Bit" machine: http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/makeitdigital/micro-bit http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/makeitdigital/mi... Interesting that it has a built-in display (array of LEDs) and is specifically 'wearable'. A lot of people will say "Why isn't this a RaspberryPi?", but I think you only have to stop and imagine the power of getting an 11 year old to build a wearable device that scrolls their name or shows a symbol they chose (smiling face, for example) to realize how much that could spark imagination and curiosity. I own multiple RaspberryPis and have actually used Scratch on one. It's nice but it takes a hell of a lot of set up and the programming environment is restrictive. The LEDs on this device will be what makes it fly because anyone can suddenly think "Now, what could I make those little lights do". You don't get the same effect with a Pi. The pictures I've seen show the CPU as an ATMEL Mega32U4: http://www.atmel.com/devices/atmega32u4.aspx http://www.atmel.com/devices/atmega32u4.aspx
- chrisBob 12y ago
  I am not sure why they compare it to the RPi it looks like a microcontroller board not a small general purpose computer. I feel like Arduino is already doing very well in this space but the LED array is a nice feature.
  - gushie 12y ago
    Unfortunately despite their best efforts, the BBC are not necessary as clued up as they could be on the tech reporting front. They likely compare it to an RPi because they look vaguely similar from a distance, if you're short sighted.
    - matthewmacleod 12y ago
      That's not really fair – it's because the Raspberry Pi is a popular enough platform that people outside of the tech industry have heard about it. That makes it a useful point of comparison.
    - vertex-four 12y ago
      The Raspberry Pi is a board which, according to its foundation, targets a similar market - enabling children in education to learn how computers work and how to program[0]. It's also rather well-known. [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi_Foundation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi_Foundation
SmellyGeekBoy 12y ago
A drama based on Grand Theft Auto? Aimed at 11 year olds? Umm...
- hellweaver666 12y ago
  It's a drama based on the production of GTA, not the game. Likely because it's made by Rockstar North who are based in the UK. It's either them or Codemasters who have become a bit of a sweatshop from what I've heard from ex-employees.
sgt 12y ago
A second there I read it as "BBC gives children minicomputers" and I imagined a PDP-11 surrounded by school children.
- JonnieCache 12y ago
  http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/tomorrowsworld/8008.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/tomorrowsworld/8008.shtml (Not a minicomputer, it seems to take up half a building, but this will definitely satisfy you :) One of my favorite bits of video ever. I'd love to know what some of those kids got up to in later life. EDIT: I forgot how great this is. One of the boys wrote his own interpreter! oh, and their debug routine...
MistahKoala 12y ago
I look forward to buying mine on eBay, at a slightly-inflated price.
frazerb 12y ago
Any idea of the power source for this beastie ? It's not very 'wearable' if I have to plug it into a computer (via) USB to power it....
- sparkslabs 12y ago
  Prototype uses a 2032 battery (as seen in some photos) and can run the display continuously for several days. If you run it more realistically with the device going to sleep you gain alot more run time.. When taken to production, battery life is very much a consideration. Worth bearing in mind that the version being shown is a prototype, and the partners involved have a lot of experience in low power computing.
pbhjpbhj 12y ago
Wonder what the unit production cost is and how it compares to a bulk order of Arduino - strikes me that they could have fit the thing in to an existing ecosystem and reduced the support cost. Moreover what't the project cost and expected uptake, and impact, versus something like making n x 10^5 RPi's available to school kids who want them. Hopefully will be able to pick some of these up to use with my own (younger) kids despite them saying they're not going to make them further available. Der Blinken lights though, who would not want one! >BBC Learning's Gareth Stockdale, who is developing the device, said: "The BBC's role is to bring focus to the issue, and then we will withdraw from the market." >After the first million Micro Bits go out to schools there will be no more. // Doesn't sound like the way to build a learning platform to me. >"With a dedicated season of programming on the BBC, 5,000 digital trainees, one million children who take their first steps with a Micro Bit, and a host of educational activity, we hope to inspire a new generation to get creative with digital," said Jessica Cecil, controller of Make it Digital. // You can lead a horse to water, as the aphorism goes. One million "Micro Bits" given out doesn't mean the same number of kids will use them unless. Even if they're introduced in to school curricula then you're not going to have a 100% take-up.
- pjc50 12y ago
  After the first million Micro Bits go out to schools there will be no more Aargh. That pretty much guarantees it's a platform that's sinking from day 1. Unless they're smart enough to open source the whole thing so they can be freely cloned. It's as if they learned nothing from the Domesday Book (brilliant tech dead-end of the 80s).
  - alex_hitchins 12y ago
    Yes, it's not a good sign. I guess it's to keep licence fee payers from moaning about paying for it all. If they could open source it then it could live post Beeb.
    - thawkins 12y ago
      Dont worry the chineses will reverse engineer and clone it in about 20 seconds, and cheap copies will be everywhere.
alex_hitchins 12y ago
I was rather excited thinking this was going to be an old BBC Micro in a new tiny form factor. Sadly, looks like I am wrong. Anyone else like a BBC Micro in a credit card sized package? Do they already exist?
- thawkins 12y ago
  Just stick this on your Pi http://jaguar.orpheusweb.co.uk/branpage.html http://jaguar.orpheusweb.co.uk/branpage.html
- homarp 12y ago
  Buy a RPi and install beebem ( http://beebem-unix.bbcmicro.com/ http://beebem-unix.bbcmicro.com/ ) or advmess ( http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=23113 http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=23113 )
- mavhc 12y ago
  There's http://www.sprow.co.uk/bbc/minib.htm http://www.sprow.co.uk/bbc/minib.htm
afandian 12y ago
I got so excited just looking at the picture. Programming really just boils down to loops, ifs and subroutines. The tricky bit isn't explaining how to construct programs, it's the individual making the leap and working out how to compose it to create new functionality, express abstract concepts etc. Everyone can get the mechanical first bit, not everyone can makes the leap, but it's a great idea to get every young person to at least try. What's needed is the simplest possible platform that allows the expression and execution of programs, coupled with simple and compelling input and output (everyone loves LEDs). No distractions. I started programming on a BBC Micro as a child. You got a BASIC command line by default and a simple text and graphics screen. Nothing else to distract you. Nothing to break, and zero barrier to entry, so you could experiment without fear. I think it was the ideal environment to learn on, and I honestly think that they should still make machines like that. I think was only co-incidence that state-of-the-art was also just-right-for-children (and also sufficiently extensible to to more interesting things), and that's what made the 80s/90s a bit of a golden age (at least in the UK). I'm not sure what I'd do if I had to teach programming to an eight-year-old child today. Probably a LISP / Clojure REPL (and have to deal with the child being teased in the playground for not having mutable state). I've heard people say "everyone has web browser with JavaScript" but that's already too many moving parts and too much to think about when you just want to talk about if statements without distractions. This MicroBit looks absolutely ideal. It's also kind of shaped like an owl, which is a brilliant echo of the BBC Micro logo.
- sparkslabs 12y ago
  I was aiming for kitten and ended up with Owl. One of the earlier iterations was slightly more kitteny. :)
  - afandian 12y ago
    I think the technical name is 'meowl'[0]. [0] http://www.reddit.com/r/OwlsWithCatHeads/ http://www.reddit.com/r/OwlsWithCatHeads/
TickleSteve 12y ago
As much as I like and support the Pi, this is a much simpler device and will be potentially more understandable. Modern OS's add too much abstraction to what is essentially quite a simple device. I personally learned (in the 80's) on a similar microcontroller-sized machine (z80 & 6502) at a younger age than this is aimed at and reaped the benefits... Hopefully ARM based rather than AVR, but if not, its still the right approach IMO.
- dominicgs 12y ago
  > Hopefully ARM based rather than AVR ARM, Freescale and Nordic Semiconductor are partners of the project. While the chip in the photo appears to be Atmel (my eyesight may be failing me here), the material seems to suggest that the design is still being worked out, so an ARM device seems likely.
  - TickleSteve 12y ago
    I would agree... it looked to me like something similar to an STM32F103. Fingers crossed. As much good as Arduino has done for the Maker community, the AVR architecture is outdated.
    - danellis 12y ago
      The prototype is clearly an ATmega32U4. The Atmel logo is clear, you can just about make out the part number, and it only has 44 pins. While the Arduino did great things, I don't really see much point in continuing with 8-bit MCUs as hobbyist platforms. ST's Nucleo boards, for example, are far more powerful and very cheap at only $10. They also support the mbed platform with its online compiler, which makes it pretty easy to get started with. There's still a lot of room for improvement in the software, though.
shakermakr 12y ago
Wow. Surprised at the negativity here :( The BBC is giving every kid in the UK a free hackable computer. And we're moaning about the unit production cost or its comparison to Raspberry Pi? Perhaps the backstory of the BBC and its previous role in computing isn't captured here... Like many other now 30 year olds in the UK, I grew up hacking games on a BBC Micro my school had, my family couldn't afford a decent machine at home so it was my only introduction to computers. And before the BBC Micro, most schools couldn't afford a set of computers either. It allowed us to learn to code in the lunch breaks, after school. It seriously drove many UK kids to code and now having a happy career in computing. Now kids will get a similar, even more personal introduction to computing in an age of tap-and-swipe computing. I for one applaud the decision!
- nonuby 12y ago
  Got to do something to win public appeal I guess (as for those reading outside the UK the BBC is publicly funded and it is a criminal not civil offence not to pay TV license http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_United_Kingdom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_Uni...), this isn't an area the BBC should be spending. How about we skip the BBC, let schools purchase Raspberry Pi's as they desire and claim directly from a government fund (this I would certainly support) If its anything like their contract IT spending they probably paid more than market rate too...
  - arethuza 12y ago
    "How about we skip the BBC" But that would imply the funds come from the Treasury from general taxation/borrowing - which seems unlikely in this age of austerity. The BBC arguably has a lot more freedom to do this kind of thing given its main revenue source is its own hypothecated tax in the form of the license fee. Good on them I say - at least they are doing something interesting rather than the usual nonsense we hear about education directly from politicians.
    - pjc50 12y ago
      While I generally support the BBC, the TV license is the most regressive of UK taxes^ and people are jailed for non-payment of comparatively very small amounts. ^(The "bedroom tax" is much worse in impact but not technically a tax)
MarcScott 12y ago
I may be wrong, but this looks more like an Arduino than a Pi. Plug it into your computer, write your code on your computer and then push it out to the micro bit, to control the onboard LEDs. Still, I'll look forward to having a play around with these with my Year 7s in September.
- wlesieutre 12y ago
  It does. The Pi comparison more likely comes from the Raspberry Pi Foundation being an UK-based educational nonprofit with the mission of making computer education more accessible. Sounds like the BBC has a similar goal here.
beshrkayali 12y ago
Maybe this is cool for some and not so cool for others, but it bugs me that they are calling them "coding devices". Feels somewhat degrading to encapsulating software engineering and development into "coding".
- danellis 12y ago
  Why is it degrading?
asg 12y ago
We played around with what I believe was a prototype version of this at the BBC stall at last summer's Edinburgh festival. The kid loved it. This is of course nothing like the RPi. You board has a grid of LEDs that you can control by uploading a program which you write on a regular PC. When we tried it, we were coding in a Scratch like environment.
azurelogic 12y ago
While I'm excited for these kids, the title does not deliver. There is a distinct lack of minicomputers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minicomputer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minicomputer I was totally expecting something more like the video where they take kids born in 2000 and show them a VCR.
72deluxe 12y ago
Interesting device, but as one who had a BBC Micro (and still has it), the Micro enabled you to get programming on it straight away; this does not. You need another machine. Plus, flashing LEDs is not quite the same as the User Port or mode 7 graphics output... I was saddened to see the plans for a drama based on Grand Theft Auto as being part of it though - surely a drama based on beating people up, stealing cars and shooting people isn't a great thing to be promoting to youngsters? Who thinks these things up? Are they going to be showing this to 11 year olds too? A great future generation we'll have to look forward to then!
Slippin-Jimmy 12y ago
Minicomputers? Great. What are they on, PDP-11? VAX?
slimbods 12y ago
I love this idea. One of the hardest parts of teaching kids to lean coding is giving them a reason to do it. With the led's and bluetooth there will be plenty of fun projects to do. I've been helping out at our local code club and would love to get my hands on a box of these.

84 points by hanoz 12y ago

The article failed to give any attention to what kind of software and hardware the computer will run. While I think that it is important to focus on other aspects, and us techies often focus too much on the technical, this lack of attention to the choice of software platforms is worrying to me. I hope that these children will be exposed to a standard set of tools or an open platform, rather than being lead into a proprietary platform where their skills will be reliant on the grace of a single corporation. Think of all the children who today learn Microsoft Office. They have been trained, not to be users of computers, but to be customers of a single platform.

chrisBob 12y ago
>Think of all the children who today learn Microsoft Office. They have been trained, not to be users of computers, but to be customers of a single platform. They are trained to be customers of a single platform that many jobs (all of the ads I looked at recently) specifically require skills in. I am a big open source fan, but until businesses start asking for people proficient in any office suite then I recommend schools stick with MS Office.
zelos 12y ago
When I went to an open day at a local primary school they were using Scratch to teach coding (~10 year olds I think?)

nodata 12y ago

Why are these not Pis? Anyone know?

ascorbic 12y ago
These seem a lot simpler than the RasPi. I don't think they'll be running Linux. Looks more like a simple Arduino. Closest thing seems to be the LilyPad.
SmellyGeekBoy 12y ago
Much cheaper / simpler, also it's USB so should be able to use the Pi as a host
deutronium 12y ago
I think something like this would be better than a Pi to get people into electronics, as theres no OS to concern yourself with. If you want to make a small electronic gadget, something like a microcontroller makes more sense, as it'd be _much_ lower power than a Pi. And additionally you could generate more accurate timing signals for things like VGA etc, than with a Pi.

jgrahamc 12y ago

The BBC is also launching a season of coding-based programmes and activities. It will include a new drama based on Grand Theft Auto and a documentary on Bletchley Park. How does a 'drama based on GTA' help at all?

ascorbic 12y ago
Maybe it's a drama based on the making of GTA, rather than the game itself? Rockstar North is in Scotland after all. Is there an interesting story behind it?
- michaelx386 12y ago
  There's a book by David Kushner called Jacked[0] about GTA's development. He's also the author of Masters of Doom[1]. [0] http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0007434855 http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0007434855 [1] http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0749924896 http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0749924896
  - ascorbic 12y ago
    Seems I was right. It is a drama about the making of GTA. http://www.develop-online.net/news/90-minute-grand-theft-auto-drama-coming-to-bbc-two/0204263 http://www.develop-online.net/news/90-minute-grand-theft-aut...
pjc50 12y ago
I'm wondering that, especially as GTA is PEGI-rated 18.
- pidg 12y ago
  I don't think the drama is aimed at the same audience as the computers.
johneth 12y ago
It's based on the making of the game according to someone working on it - https://twitter.com/guycocker/status/575985333017391104 https://twitter.com/guycocker/status/575985333017391104

jgrahamc 12y ago

Details of the "Micro Bit" machine: http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/makeitdigital/micro-bit http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/makeitdigital/mi... Interesting that it has a built-in display (array of LEDs) and is specifically 'wearable'. A lot of people will say "Why isn't this a RaspberryPi?", but I think you only have to stop and imagine the power of getting an 11 year old to build a wearable device that scrolls their name or shows a symbol they chose (smiling face, for example) to realize how much that could spark imagination and curiosity. I own multiple RaspberryPis and have actually used Scratch on one. It's nice but it takes a hell of a lot of set up and the programming environment is restrictive. The LEDs on this device will be what makes it fly because anyone can suddenly think "Now, what could I make those little lights do". You don't get the same effect with a Pi. The pictures I've seen show the CPU as an ATMEL Mega32U4: http://www.atmel.com/devices/atmega32u4.aspx http://www.atmel.com/devices/atmega32u4.aspx

chrisBob 12y ago
I am not sure why they compare it to the RPi it looks like a microcontroller board not a small general purpose computer. I feel like Arduino is already doing very well in this space but the LED array is a nice feature.
- gushie 12y ago
  Unfortunately despite their best efforts, the BBC are not necessary as clued up as they could be on the tech reporting front. They likely compare it to an RPi because they look vaguely similar from a distance, if you're short sighted.
  - matthewmacleod 12y ago
    That's not really fair – it's because the Raspberry Pi is a popular enough platform that people outside of the tech industry have heard about it. That makes it a useful point of comparison.
  - vertex-four 12y ago
    The Raspberry Pi is a board which, according to its foundation, targets a similar market - enabling children in education to learn how computers work and how to program[0]. It's also rather well-known. [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi_Foundation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi_Foundation

SmellyGeekBoy 12y ago

A drama based on Grand Theft Auto? Aimed at 11 year olds? Umm...

hellweaver666 12y ago
It's a drama based on the production of GTA, not the game. Likely because it's made by Rockstar North who are based in the UK. It's either them or Codemasters who have become a bit of a sweatshop from what I've heard from ex-employees.

sgt 12y ago

A second there I read it as "BBC gives children minicomputers" and I imagined a PDP-11 surrounded by school children.

JonnieCache 12y ago
http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/tomorrowsworld/8008.shtml http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/tomorrowsworld/8008.shtml (Not a minicomputer, it seems to take up half a building, but this will definitely satisfy you :) One of my favorite bits of video ever. I'd love to know what some of those kids got up to in later life. EDIT: I forgot how great this is. One of the boys wrote his own interpreter! oh, and their debug routine...

MistahKoala 12y ago

I look forward to buying mine on eBay, at a slightly-inflated price.

frazerb 12y ago

Any idea of the power source for this beastie ? It's not very 'wearable' if I have to plug it into a computer (via) USB to power it....

sparkslabs 12y ago
Prototype uses a 2032 battery (as seen in some photos) and can run the display continuously for several days. If you run it more realistically with the device going to sleep you gain alot more run time.. When taken to production, battery life is very much a consideration. Worth bearing in mind that the version being shown is a prototype, and the partners involved have a lot of experience in low power computing.

pbhjpbhj 12y ago

Wonder what the unit production cost is and how it compares to a bulk order of Arduino - strikes me that they could have fit the thing in to an existing ecosystem and reduced the support cost. Moreover what't the project cost and expected uptake, and impact, versus something like making n x 10^5 RPi's available to school kids who want them. Hopefully will be able to pick some of these up to use with my own (younger) kids despite them saying they're not going to make them further available. Der Blinken lights though, who would not want one! >BBC Learning's Gareth Stockdale, who is developing the device, said: "The BBC's role is to bring focus to the issue, and then we will withdraw from the market." >After the first million Micro Bits go out to schools there will be no more. // Doesn't sound like the way to build a learning platform to me. >"With a dedicated season of programming on the BBC, 5,000 digital trainees, one million children who take their first steps with a Micro Bit, and a host of educational activity, we hope to inspire a new generation to get creative with digital," said Jessica Cecil, controller of Make it Digital. // You can lead a horse to water, as the aphorism goes. One million "Micro Bits" given out doesn't mean the same number of kids will use them unless. Even if they're introduced in to school curricula then you're not going to have a 100% take-up.

pjc50 12y ago
After the first million Micro Bits go out to schools there will be no more Aargh. That pretty much guarantees it's a platform that's sinking from day 1. Unless they're smart enough to open source the whole thing so they can be freely cloned. It's as if they learned nothing from the Domesday Book (brilliant tech dead-end of the 80s).
- alex_hitchins 12y ago
  Yes, it's not a good sign. I guess it's to keep licence fee payers from moaning about paying for it all. If they could open source it then it could live post Beeb.
  - thawkins 12y ago
    Dont worry the chineses will reverse engineer and clone it in about 20 seconds, and cheap copies will be everywhere.

alex_hitchins 12y ago

I was rather excited thinking this was going to be an old BBC Micro in a new tiny form factor. Sadly, looks like I am wrong. Anyone else like a BBC Micro in a credit card sized package? Do they already exist?

thawkins 12y ago
Just stick this on your Pi http://jaguar.orpheusweb.co.uk/branpage.html http://jaguar.orpheusweb.co.uk/branpage.html
homarp 12y ago
Buy a RPi and install beebem ( http://beebem-unix.bbcmicro.com/ http://beebem-unix.bbcmicro.com/ ) or advmess ( http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=23113 http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=23113 )
mavhc 12y ago
There's http://www.sprow.co.uk/bbc/minib.htm http://www.sprow.co.uk/bbc/minib.htm

afandian 12y ago

I got so excited just looking at the picture. Programming really just boils down to loops, ifs and subroutines. The tricky bit isn't explaining how to construct programs, it's the individual making the leap and working out how to compose it to create new functionality, express abstract concepts etc. Everyone can get the mechanical first bit, not everyone can makes the leap, but it's a great idea to get every young person to at least try. What's needed is the simplest possible platform that allows the expression and execution of programs, coupled with simple and compelling input and output (everyone loves LEDs). No distractions. I started programming on a BBC Micro as a child. You got a BASIC command line by default and a simple text and graphics screen. Nothing else to distract you. Nothing to break, and zero barrier to entry, so you could experiment without fear. I think it was the ideal environment to learn on, and I honestly think that they should still make machines like that. I think was only co-incidence that state-of-the-art was also just-right-for-children (and also sufficiently extensible to to more interesting things), and that's what made the 80s/90s a bit of a golden age (at least in the UK). I'm not sure what I'd do if I had to teach programming to an eight-year-old child today. Probably a LISP / Clojure REPL (and have to deal with the child being teased in the playground for not having mutable state). I've heard people say "everyone has web browser with JavaScript" but that's already too many moving parts and too much to think about when you just want to talk about if statements without distractions. This MicroBit looks absolutely ideal. It's also kind of shaped like an owl, which is a brilliant echo of the BBC Micro logo.

sparkslabs 12y ago
I was aiming for kitten and ended up with Owl. One of the earlier iterations was slightly more kitteny. :)
- afandian 12y ago
  I think the technical name is 'meowl'[0]. [0] http://www.reddit.com/r/OwlsWithCatHeads/ http://www.reddit.com/r/OwlsWithCatHeads/

TickleSteve 12y ago

As much as I like and support the Pi, this is a much simpler device and will be potentially more understandable. Modern OS's add too much abstraction to what is essentially quite a simple device. I personally learned (in the 80's) on a similar microcontroller-sized machine (z80 & 6502) at a younger age than this is aimed at and reaped the benefits... Hopefully ARM based rather than AVR, but if not, its still the right approach IMO.

dominicgs 12y ago
> Hopefully ARM based rather than AVR ARM, Freescale and Nordic Semiconductor are partners of the project. While the chip in the photo appears to be Atmel (my eyesight may be failing me here), the material seems to suggest that the design is still being worked out, so an ARM device seems likely.
- TickleSteve 12y ago
  I would agree... it looked to me like something similar to an STM32F103. Fingers crossed. As much good as Arduino has done for the Maker community, the AVR architecture is outdated.
  - danellis 12y ago
    The prototype is clearly an ATmega32U4. The Atmel logo is clear, you can just about make out the part number, and it only has 44 pins. While the Arduino did great things, I don't really see much point in continuing with 8-bit MCUs as hobbyist platforms. ST's Nucleo boards, for example, are far more powerful and very cheap at only $10. They also support the mbed platform with its online compiler, which makes it pretty easy to get started with. There's still a lot of room for improvement in the software, though.

shakermakr 12y ago

Wow. Surprised at the negativity here :( The BBC is giving every kid in the UK a free hackable computer. And we're moaning about the unit production cost or its comparison to Raspberry Pi? Perhaps the backstory of the BBC and its previous role in computing isn't captured here... Like many other now 30 year olds in the UK, I grew up hacking games on a BBC Micro my school had, my family couldn't afford a decent machine at home so it was my only introduction to computers. And before the BBC Micro, most schools couldn't afford a set of computers either. It allowed us to learn to code in the lunch breaks, after school. It seriously drove many UK kids to code and now having a happy career in computing. Now kids will get a similar, even more personal introduction to computing in an age of tap-and-swipe computing. I for one applaud the decision!

nonuby 12y ago
Got to do something to win public appeal I guess (as for those reading outside the UK the BBC is publicly funded and it is a criminal not civil offence not to pay TV license http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_United_Kingdom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_Uni...), this isn't an area the BBC should be spending. How about we skip the BBC, let schools purchase Raspberry Pi's as they desire and claim directly from a government fund (this I would certainly support) If its anything like their contract IT spending they probably paid more than market rate too...
- arethuza 12y ago
  "How about we skip the BBC" But that would imply the funds come from the Treasury from general taxation/borrowing - which seems unlikely in this age of austerity. The BBC arguably has a lot more freedom to do this kind of thing given its main revenue source is its own hypothecated tax in the form of the license fee. Good on them I say - at least they are doing something interesting rather than the usual nonsense we hear about education directly from politicians.
  - pjc50 12y ago
    While I generally support the BBC, the TV license is the most regressive of UK taxes^ and people are jailed for non-payment of comparatively very small amounts. ^(The "bedroom tax" is much worse in impact but not technically a tax)

MarcScott 12y ago

I may be wrong, but this looks more like an Arduino than a Pi. Plug it into your computer, write your code on your computer and then push it out to the micro bit, to control the onboard LEDs. Still, I'll look forward to having a play around with these with my Year 7s in September.

wlesieutre 12y ago
It does. The Pi comparison more likely comes from the Raspberry Pi Foundation being an UK-based educational nonprofit with the mission of making computer education more accessible. Sounds like the BBC has a similar goal here.

beshrkayali 12y ago

Maybe this is cool for some and not so cool for others, but it bugs me that they are calling them "coding devices". Feels somewhat degrading to encapsulating software engineering and development into "coding".

danellis 12y ago
Why is it degrading?

asg 12y ago

We played around with what I believe was a prototype version of this at the BBC stall at last summer's Edinburgh festival. The kid loved it. This is of course nothing like the RPi. You board has a grid of LEDs that you can control by uploading a program which you write on a regular PC. When we tried it, we were coding in a Scratch like environment.

azurelogic 12y ago

While I'm excited for these kids, the title does not deliver. There is a distinct lack of minicomputers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minicomputer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minicomputer I was totally expecting something more like the video where they take kids born in 2000 and show them a VCR.

72deluxe 12y ago

Interesting device, but as one who had a BBC Micro (and still has it), the Micro enabled you to get programming on it straight away; this does not. You need another machine. Plus, flashing LEDs is not quite the same as the User Port or mode 7 graphics output... I was saddened to see the plans for a drama based on Grand Theft Auto as being part of it though - surely a drama based on beating people up, stealing cars and shooting people isn't a great thing to be promoting to youngsters? Who thinks these things up? Are they going to be showing this to 11 year olds too? A great future generation we'll have to look forward to then!

Slippin-Jimmy 12y ago

Minicomputers? Great. What are they on, PDP-11? VAX?

slimbods 12y ago

I love this idea. One of the hardest parts of teaching kids to lean coding is giving them a reason to do it. With the led's and bluetooth there will be plenty of fun projects to do. I've been helping out at our local code club and would love to get my hands on a box of these.