The Raspberry Pi 2 Model B features a 900MHz ARM Cortex-A7 CPU, 1GB LPDDR2 SDRAM, and can handle most repetitive tasks with ease.
Repetitive tasks that you perform using a PC can be tedious and time-consuming. Transferring data from spreadsheets, cataloging photos or music, and resizing images over and over again can quickly put your mind in a shade of grey that's far worse than watching the E.L. James movie. Not to mention that the more tasks that are being done, the more drain it puts on PC resources, which takes away from more important pursuits (like gaming!).
To help alleviate the brain drain associated with those arduous repetitive tasks, some PC users have turned to the popular SBC (Single Board Computer) Raspberry Pi to automate those functions. And why not? It is, after all, a scaled-down PC in its own right, with the newer Pi 2 packing a quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 CPU and 1GB of LPDDR2 SDRAM, which can run either Windows 10 or Linux. Let's take a look at some of the applications that have been adapted for use with the Pi.
Justin Cooper makes use of the Pi as a Wi-Fi access point that automatically blocks ads by default.
While it may not technically be considered a repetitive task, constantly closing out popups when navigating the web is a headache we could all do without. Sure, most browsers have some form of an ad-block application, but they're sometimes fallible and will let a few slip by. To help with the number of mouse clicks needed to close those annoying popups, Adafruit forum user Justin Cooper made use of his Raspberry Pi to block ads by stopping them automatically through a Wi-Fi access point—meaning it works for everything connected to it, i.e., Android/iOS devices, gaming consoles, and TiVo (among others).
To get it up and running, you'll need to have a Wi-Fi module connected to one of the Pi's USB ports and configure it using the instructions provided with the unit. Once that's complete, boot into the Pi and test the Ethernet/Wi-Fi connections. Once they've checked out, you simply set it up as a wireless access point. You can then install the necessary software, which Justin provides in his easy-to-follow tutorial on Adafruit found here on Adafruit.
How-to Geek provides a handy tutorial on using the Raspberry Pi as an "Always-on BitTorrent Box" that cuts down on energy use.
Anyone who's ever used BitTorrent with a low-bandwidth Internet connection knows the struggle of downloading large files. Running your rig all day or night is not only hardware taxing, it also makes your energy provider smile when preparing your bill. To significantly reduce the power footprint, torrent users can turn to the Pi to handle the chore, thus saving the extra money from being siphoned from our wallets and the repetitive task of monitoring multiple downloads and seeds.
How-to Geek provides a tutorial on how to setup the Raspberry Pi as an "Always-on BitTorrent Box," which makes use of the Deluge client for Linux-based machines. Users will undoubtedly want a bigger storage drive than can be provided for the Pi, so an external hard drive is necessary. A VPN manually configured or a service provider such as Private Internet Access or NordVPN would also be beneficial, depending on the kind of torrenting being done. The tutorial provides a complete walkthrough of setting up the Pi to handle the task, complete with Deluge installation parameters and proxy settings. It can be found here on How-To Geek.
Professor Matt Waite uses the Raspberry Pi as a news scraper to get the latest tweets on a particular subject.
Journalists and researchers can benefit from using the Raspberry Pi to alleviate repetitive tasks such as data gathering on a particular subject. Think of it as a news aggregator that is capable of amassing data and dumping it into a database at certain time intervals. Getting the latest information on the newest video cards or the latest updates on leaked CPU specs are just a few examples of what journalism professor Matt Waite has done with his Raspberry Pi, albeit on a Twitter scale.
Matt has designed code as a project to gather information in the form of Tweets based on a given letter—in this case, the letter "R." He programmed his Pi using Python in conjunction with Nix's Cron script automater to scour the net every hour for Tweets starting with the letter R. In a two-week period, he collected 50,000 records that he can turn into a data sheet that can then analyze for reference. Matt uploaded the Python code to GitHub for those interested in turning their Pi into a cheap scraper bot, which can be found here on GitHub. And here's Matt's blog post about it.
Glen Colby of Royal Jay uses the Pi 2 and Jasper to create a Siri-like voice activation platform.
Voice interface or activation is becoming more mainstream with everything from smartphones to home automation, which can also be harnessed for day-to-day activities, such as location mapping, or leveraged for repetitive tasks that could include server monitoring. That's the idea behind Royal Jay's Jasper voice automation application that works with the Raspberry Pi 2. Essentially, the platform works in the same fashion as an "always on" application such as Siri or Google Now, however, it's totally open-source, meaning users can modify it to suit their needs.
Designed by Glen Colby and his team, Jasper was designed to take advantage of the Raspberry Pi 2 and in fact, it's best to use a starter kit to get the most functionality, which typically includes everything from a Wi-Fi module, SD card, and power supply. A microphone is also needed, which can be had from any number of online retailers. The tutorial on the Royal Jay website details the building process and even offers a preloaded SD card with Jasper already installed for those who might be unfamiliar with the Pi software installation. For the complete walkthrough, head over to Royal Jay.
Swapnil Bhartiya designed a file-sharing home server using the Raspberry Pi 2 that can be accessed from multiple devices.
Having a home server has many benefits and can be used for any number of repetitive tasks such as monitoring data traffic, aggregation, or even as an email client (just ask Hillary). In some cases, users have repurposed old PC hardware to handle those tasks; however, they have some drawbacks, especially in the form of power consumption. The Raspberry Pi, on the other hand, uses very little power, is completely silent, and is capable of handling small-scale operations without the need for extravagant cooling.
Setting up your own Pi-based server is easy, and IT World's Swapnil Bhartiya has produced a tutorial that's straightforward and simple to follow, and allows for access from almost any device, including mobile devices and even smart TVs. The build entails having the Pi 2, 5v charger, and an external hard drive for storage (a kit would be beneficial for this project). Of course, a Wi-Fi module is recommended for wireless access over a network, which can be accessed by any number of popular devices. Swapnil uses Samba as the server platform, which is also free to use and easy to configure. Once the platform is configured, users can then access the data stored on the hard drives from anywhere using virtually any device. For a complete walkthrough on how to build your own Pi-based server, head to IT World.
