We’ve cooked up Maple Mini which has fewer pins but the same amount of SRAM and flash memory as the original Maple. It’s breadboard compatible and smaller than a stick of gum! We hope to slap a super nifty silkscreen on it and, after we test the snot out of it, have some in the store in a couple months.
Here it is hanging out in its home, the breadboard:
All users are urged to update to version 0.0.8 of the Maple IDE.
Version 0.0.7 contains a bug where ASSERT statements are disabled by default. Because of this, it will appear that all ASSERT statements pass. Version 0.0.8 addresses this issue.
Well, it’s a few days late, but the version 0.0.7 of the Maple IDE is finally out! This release contains many bugfixes, and brings us much closer to full Arduino compatibility. New features include:
- micros() is implemented.
- External interrupts (attachInterrupt()/detachInterrupt()) are implemented (see the external interrupts reference page for more information).
- Initial ports of the Wire and LiquidCrystal (thanks, AndyScott!) libraries (see the libraries reference page for more information).
- support for
PWM_OPEN_DRAINin pinMode().
- Improved reset on OS X.
- Libmaple support for enabling and disabling the SysTick timer via
systick_disable()andsystick_resume()insystick.h(see Section 4.4 of the STM32F10xx programming manual for more information about SysTick). Paired with SerialUSB.end(), this means you can now use the Maple for timing-critical code (more on this in an upcoming blog post!).
Barring any emergency bugfix releases, this is the last time our IDE release will be a fork of the standard Arduino IDE. Working with the Arduino code was an awesome way for us to get started, but we’re now well along on a fresh rewrite, which will be more stable, flexible, and featureful than our current version. The new version to be released as 0.1.0; expect it to have ports for the last remaining unimplemented Arduino core language functionality.
As always, feedback on the forums is always welcome!
The Open Hardware Summit was in New York on Thursday. There was some blow-hard-ery, simmering free/open politics, and awkwardly delivered monologues, but there were also some great talkers and attendees with diverse wants and needs. I wish there had been more focused discussion about the Open Source Hardware Definition itself (now at v0.4 with only partial consensus), but it sounds like that discussion will spill over through Maker Faire this weekend and in the forums online.
I like the general scope and content of the definition: it is not a license and does not concern itself with specifics, only general principles the entire community accepts. In general I think specific details should be resolved in specific licenses, but there are at least two broader issues I’d like to see discussed first.
One issue that needs some clarification is what components of hardware are under discussion. I think that the definition should cover “devices” which are engineered systems which may consist of sub-components which are not themselves “open” or “free”. The thing which is “open” should be the design that can be used to construct a tangible object with new functionality from the sub-components. For example, a device that consists only of SparkFun breakout modules with jumper wire connections all stuffed in a paper bag could be considered an OSHW device (even if the SparkFun boards were not) if it introduces a functionality. This is a slight departure from what most people are considering OSHW devices, which are PCB circuit boards fabricated and assembled from electronic design files roughly analogous to software source code.
A second issue, which I do not have a solution to, arises from the promise that any person can use an OSHW device. In the case of Ham radio systems, a government-issued license would be required to actually use the device, so some license limitations must be allowed for. On the other hand, a hardware device specifically intended for use with the ZigBee wireless protocol can not be distributed for commercial purposes without consortium membership and the payment of license fees. Something about the former is acceptable while something about the later seems “not open”, but I am not sure how to clearly and simply distinguish between the two cases.
The long debate over how to space the 18 pin header on the new Maple dragged on just a hair too long. We are really happy with the new layout, 1/10″ spacing everywhere and no major sacrifices to do it. However, this puts us about 2 weeks behind on fab for Maple Rev5. Just like Maple Rev2, we skipped over Rev4 to make these layout changes before fab.
With any luck we will have some Rev5’s to show (not sell) at Maker Faire! We will also bring the last remaining handful of Rev3’s for people to pick up, and hopefully some cool demos. Rev5’s will be open to preorders at the Faire! Lead time should be quick, 20 days ish.
A big thanks to everyone participating on the forums! gbulmer, leaflabsAndy, amir, crenn, StephenFromNYC, x893, adamfeuer, and others – you guys are the best! Together weve brought up I2C, cleared a ton of bugs out, made some round table design decisions, and shared a whole lot of enthusiasm. 1335 posts and counting, and nearly as many unique users! We couldnt have asked for a better set of early adopters. For those of you who are waiting for the Maple platform to get a little more mature – thanks to these guys and the great work around the office, LeafLabs is growing up faster than we could have hoped! Thanks!
And now for something cool – Made With Maple
Some time last week we broke the 1000 post mark in the forums! We’ve got some amazing members dispensing advice, code, bug reports, and spelling suggestions. Thank you so much! It’s exciting and very motivating to have an experienced set of users using our tools and shaking out any problems. We’re looking for a good way to open up our ticketing system for bugs and feature requests to make the development process even more transparent and open to comment.
The heat has finally broken in New England and we’re looking forward to trundling down the road to New York City in two weeks for the Open Hardware Summit/Maker Faire NYC double ticket. We’ll be in town Thursday debating open hardware principles and practicalities at the Open Hardware Summit, then will have a table with projects and demonstrations at Maker Faire on Saturday and Sunday. If you’re in the area or traveling for either event drop by and say Hi, we love to chat up internet people and would be happy to poke at some projects or debug code!
Thursday, September 23rd
New York City, World Fair Grounds in Queens
$40 ($25 artists + students +non-profit)
Saturday and Sunday, September 24th
New York City, Hall of Science in Queens
$10-25/day, $18-50/weekend
Lastly, you’ll notice a new projects link at the top of the website for a projects section. We’re hoping this page will grow and include projects written up by us and others demonstrating all the documented and “unofficial” capabilities of our boards and will be a place people can go to looking for practical tips and secret tricks. If you’ve got something to show off involving a LeafLabs board (or anything compatible/derived) we’d love to include; shoot us a link and brief description here!
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