Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Looking for a good power adapter


As my server works 24/7, I spent a bit of time to find a good power supply for my Raspberry Pi

Recommendations for the Raspberry Pi are to use an 5V 700mA USB power adapter .

So I checked my stuff for what USB chargers I already had. I found several alimentions 500mA and 1000mA. They all work with my Raspberry Pi, but I feel these alimentations become too hot after a long usage.

So I started looking for a bit more powerful adapter, thinking that an over-sized power adapter should help to reduce heating and improve the life of the power adapter and of the Rasperry Pi

I found several chargers over 2000mA on the Internet, some with two USB ports, like this one, brand Bluestork:

Others with 1 USB port, like this one, brand Re-volt:


I have a preference for a model with one USB port, as some 2000mA models with 2 USB ports are in fact 2 x 1000mA

But ultimately, I chose this one, brand Apple:
€ 19.99 is a bit expensive for a power adapter, but it fits in the budget of the project. I found it in a local shop and I therefore saved shipping cost. In addition, the brand is well known, and I think I can benefit from the guarantee in case of problems.

After 2 days of usage, I feel this one a bit less hot than my older one.

Impact on the project: -19.90€

Monday, December 3, 2012

How to control the Raspberry Pi from Windows: Tight Vnc

TightVNC Home If the SSH console is not enough user friendly for you and if you want to remote control your Raspeberry Pi using a graphical user interface, VNC may be an good solution.

Install TightVNCServer
http://www.tightvnc.com/

TightVNCServer is a free and lightweight remote control software compatible with standard VNC software
The command to install it is:
"sudo apt-get install tightvncserver"

Start VNC server
To start the VNC Server from the Linux System, you have to execute this command:
"tightvncserver"

The system will ask you for a password (at least 6 caracters)

"You will require a password to access your desktops.

Password:
Verify:"


After that the software will ask you for an view-only password.
"Would you like to enter a view-only password (y/n)?"
You should answer no ("n") if you only need to control your system.

After that, your VNC will give you an X session number.
"New 'X' desktop is raspberrypi:1

Starting applications specified in /root/.vnc/xstartup
Log file is /root/.vnc/raspberrypi:1.log"


Install TightVNCClient
You may use any VNC client, but why not continue with TightVNC?
You can download it here: http://www.tightvnc.com/download.php

When you install VNC, it may be a good idea to chose a custom installation if you don't need an VNC Server on your windows computer.




Use the VNC client 

To use VNC, you need to type the server adress and the session number.

The VNC client will ask for the password.

 Now you can use your Raspberry with the X interface.