When I pledged for the Omega on Kickstarter, I wanted to use the device as a web server to control its IO. I really like to work with Python, so I usually does this kind of stuff with the Flask framework. Unfortunately, Flask does not fit on the 16MB memory. I looked for other frameworks and found the Bottle web framework. Bottle is on the opkg repo, so it is really easy to install on the Omega. And it fits!

I put together a small demo that control the RGB LEDs on the breakout board. (see picture below). The code is attached after the picture.

On a fresh Omega, here are the step to make the script run :

opkg update
opkg install python3-bottle
ln -s /usr/bin/python3 /usr/bin/python
cd
wget -O web.tar.gz --no-check-certificate https://community.onion.io/uploads/files/1447438533891-web.tar.gz
tar -zxvf web.tar.gz
cd web
python server.py

After that, all you need to do is open a browser with the address IP of your Omega on port 5000 (e.g. http://192.168.2.72:5000/)
The Bottle framework on opkg is using Python 3, so in the steps above, we create a symlink so that the python command points to python3

Bottle is really easy to use, you can find the docs here : http://bottlepy.org/docs/dev/tutorial.html

Anyway, let me know what you think about it!

web.tar.gz

For anyone interested, I succeeded compiling a simple helloworld program to my Omega2.

The Omega2 is basically the same hardware as the Linkit Smart so I followed the tutorial there :
https://docs.labs.mediatek.com/resource/linkit-smart-7688/en/tutorials/c-c++-programming/using-openwrt-sdk-to-build-c-c++-programs

At first, it did not work. I realized the Linkit Smart use kernel 3.18.23 and the Omega use kernel 4.4.39
I also saw at boot a link refering to : https://lede-project.org/

By searching the website, I found the SDK that the Omega team used for the Omega2
https://downloads.lede-project.org/snapshots/targets/ramips/mt7688/

You can then follow the Mediatek tutorial and use this SDK instead :
https://downloads.lede-project.org/snapshots/targets/ramips/mt7688/lede-sdk-ramips-mt7688_gcc-5.4.0_musl-1.1.15.Linux-x86_64.tar.xz

The package was compiled on my Linux computer (latest version of Linux Mint)
You also need to install ncurses to make the package
sudo apt-get install libncurses5-dev libncursesw5-dev

If you want to try to install the helloworld package just put the file below in your omega
helloworld_1.0.0-1_mipsel_24kc.ipk
you can install it with
opkg install helloworld_1.0.0-1_mipsel_24kc.ipk

Let me know if you try it!

I started a thread on the subject a couple weeks ago :
https://community.onion.io/topic/902/omega-custom-expansion

This is the response I got from Lazar

@Lazar-Demin said in Omega Custom Expansion:

@Fred-Blais Awesome! Care to share some info about what it will do?
Is it an expansion

I'll try to be brief:

• Omega female header:
  • Surface mount version (like on the Power Dock):
    • Part number: NPPN161BFLC-RC-ND
    • http://www.digikey.co.il/product-detail/en/sullins-connector-solutions/NPPN161BFLC-RC/NPPN161BFLC-RC-ND/4558093
  • Through hole version (like on all the other Docks):
    • Part number: NPPN161BFCN-RC-ND
    • http://www.digikey.co.il/product-search/en?keywords=NPPN161BFCN-RC-ND
• Footprint and dimensions of the whole thing?
  • If it's an expansion: Generally they come in two sizes: the smaller kind (think OLED Expansion, Relay Expansion) and the slightly larger size (Servo Expansion). You can find all of the dimensions in the Mechanical Drawings
  • If it's a Dock: Try to make is match the size of one of the existing Docks, depending on how much space you need. The Dock dimensions are also available in the Mechanical Drawings
• Omega2 Pinout
  • It will be slightly different, the pins on the right side will stay more or less the same (UART, USB, ethernet, I2C), there will be some changes on the left side

@Lazar-Demin thank you very much. I think it would be a good idea to sell these header in your store. They are out of stock on Digikey. Thanks for the links.

I'll send some pictures of my project when it will be finished! I'm sure you'll love it

@Chris-Zeh

This is a good question. In fact, I asked myself the same question last week.

When I work headless with my Raspberry Pi or Intel Edison, I can work fine by using SSH and a full install of vim. On the Omega, vi seems to be installed by default but I really prefer vim (syntax highlighting and the way it behaves). The vi installed on the Omega does not even have visual mode installed, to select multiples lines. It is possible to install vim with opkg, but it fills the limited memory pretty quickly.

PyCharm looks great but IMHO is overkill and it seems like you have to pay an annual fee to use it.
Sublime Text is goot too but a license must be purchased for "continued use" at 70$. Also the SFTP plugin is 30$. I'm not really happy using a trial or evaluation version.

On Windows I use Notepad++ a lot, it's free and includes by default a really great plugin called NppFTP. Granted you installed sftp on your Omega (opkg install openssh-sftp-server) you can use NppFTP in SFTP mode to open your files on the Omega and when you save them, they are automatically updated. You can open an SSH session with putty and run your code from there, using Notepadd++ to manage your files.

Use what suits you the best, but I personnally prefer Notepad++ as it is free and you won't be harassed by pop-ups prompting you to buy the software. (and you won't need to get the software illegally)

Hello Garling,

what about making a simple web page and use a server side technology to interface to the GPIO?
You could use Python or PHP. If you don't know these languages, they are interesting to learn. I like Python the most because you can do much more than just server side scripting. You could also learn more about HTML/CSS/Javascript.

An example project would be to make a webpage that display a schedule that you can apply to the output pin you want. You could plug a relay board (inexpensive on ebay) to the Omega and turn on/off lights in your home/backyard or stuff like that.

With your OLED display, what about making a dashboard that can display your twitter timeline, check if you have any unread emails or other notification, or just simply display the local weather?

It is a small Linux computer, there is a lot you can do. Lots of language to learn.

This morning, I tried compiling something a little bit more useful than helloworld.

When I connect to a Linux device by SSH, I often use the tree command to get a quick look at the files inside a directory structure.

See http://mama.indstate.edu/users/ice/tree/

It was really easy to make and compile the package. All I had to do is to place the source code in the package directory under a folder named tree. I copied the openwrt makefile of the helloworld package and replaced all occurence of helloworld by tree. I'm surprised it is just easy as that.

Here is the package : tree_1.0.0-1_mipsel_24kc.ipk

Thanks for sharing. I think Bottle has a lot of potential on the Omega as it is quite small and easy to use.

@Brendan-Abbott if you have any questions about the code, don't hesitate to ask.

I used JQuery Mobile to make a good looking page quickly with the minimum amount of HTML possible. http://www.w3schools.com/jquerymobile/
With Javascript/JQuery, I attached events to the different controls on the page. When an event fires, it sends an asynchronous HTTP GET request to the Python server. The server then process the data from the page. Each decorated functions in the Python script is a different URL, one to return the index page and the 3 others process the events data.

@Luciano-S.

just type :

opkg install python3-light
or
opkg install python3

and then you have to run the right executable (python3). You can do a symbolic link to python so you just have to type python in the command line to run the interpreter.

I also have some trouble setting a static IP address

What I tried and know so far :

The settings are stored at this location /etc/config/network
You can find info on the parameters there :
https://wiki.openwrt.org/doc/uci/network

I setup a static ip address for interface wwan with option proto 'static'
I also setup the right gateway and then reloaded the network settings with /etc/init.d/network reload

The static IP address is there after I reload the config, and I can ping the Omega and from the Omega I can ping my router

The problem I have is that internet access is not working anymore. I think it might be a DNS issue.

This morning, I tried compiling something a little bit more useful than helloworld.

When I connect to a Linux device by SSH, I often use the tree command to get a quick look at the files inside a directory structure.

See http://mama.indstate.edu/users/ice/tree/

It was really easy to make and compile the package. All I had to do is to place the source code in the package directory under a folder named tree. I copied the openwrt makefile of the helloworld package and replaced all occurence of helloworld by tree. I'm surprised it is just easy as that.

Here is the package : tree_1.0.0-1_mipsel_24kc.ipk

@luz that looks really good! keep up the great work :thumbsup_tone1:

For anyone interested, I succeeded compiling a simple helloworld program to my Omega2.

The Omega2 is basically the same hardware as the Linkit Smart so I followed the tutorial there :
https://docs.labs.mediatek.com/resource/linkit-smart-7688/en/tutorials/c-c++-programming/using-openwrt-sdk-to-build-c-c++-programs

At first, it did not work. I realized the Linkit Smart use kernel 3.18.23 and the Omega use kernel 4.4.39
I also saw at boot a link refering to : https://lede-project.org/

By searching the website, I found the SDK that the Omega team used for the Omega2
https://downloads.lede-project.org/snapshots/targets/ramips/mt7688/

You can then follow the Mediatek tutorial and use this SDK instead :
https://downloads.lede-project.org/snapshots/targets/ramips/mt7688/lede-sdk-ramips-mt7688_gcc-5.4.0_musl-1.1.15.Linux-x86_64.tar.xz

The package was compiled on my Linux computer (latest version of Linux Mint)
You also need to install ncurses to make the package
sudo apt-get install libncurses5-dev libncursesw5-dev

If you want to try to install the helloworld package just put the file below in your omega
helloworld_1.0.0-1_mipsel_24kc.ipk
you can install it with
opkg install helloworld_1.0.0-1_mipsel_24kc.ipk

Let me know if you try it!

@luz said in Power the Omega without board.:

@Fred-Blais just for the record, I did pay for 20 Omega2 $5 units :slight_smile:

For my projects these are just perfect. When you do projects needing many modules, lower cost (and power consumption!) per module does make a difference.

Regarding marketing - I'd say the kickstarter title was pretty precise, "Omega2: $5 Linux Computer with Wi-Fi, Made for IoT", while the "..for everyone" subtitle is marketing blurb. No product is for everyone.

Of course it's much easier to get started when you buy a dock along with the Omega and that will make the entry price $20, agreed.

However, I very much like that the dock is separate: Once I prototyped something using the dock, I can multiply it for $5 - because by then I've figured out how to power and wire the Omega directly (manually or on a PCB) for the case at hand.

This make perfect sense for production. Can you share what you want to do with your Omega? At least, I would be curious to know what is your preferred language for development.

@WereCatf

maybe the problem is just the way it is being marketed. In the kickstarter campaign, they state : A simple & affordable development board for everyone. Starting at just 5$

I would say : a cheap Linux brain for your next robotic/electronics project. To be useable as a dev board, you need to pay 24$. 15$ for the dock and 9$ for the module.

Nobody will pay 5$ for the module with half the memory of the 9$ module. 16MB of storage is just too small for me... you install Python but you don't have any space left to install some libraries.

@Gayan-Priyanatha said in Power the Omega without board.:
Incorporating a power source regulator to Omega in design stage would have made the module much more independent from power intakes if we had an on-board regulator. Think of a very small IOT device using Omega2 without much PCB around it, an internal regulator module have made the module much more robust.

I understand what you mean, it would be useful for plug n' play and having the less components possible.
I think the creator wanted to make the module as generic as possible. Depending on what your are trying to interface to, you would probably have to add different power supply to a custom dock. For example, I have a project where I have 6x 24V solenoid valves that consumes 75mA each and a large NEMA23 stepper motor that I supply 5V to.

On the Arduino Pro Mini, the max voltage is 12V supply and the regulator can supply 150mA. What you do if you have a 24V power source? What you do if you need more than 150mA on the 5V (driving a stepper or relay)?

The less components you have, the more freedom you have to design what you want and choose your own parts. Personally the only thing that interest me is to have a CPU running Linux with RAM, Flash and WiFi. This is not something that can be done easily by an hobbyist on a 2 layer PCB. The others components such as power supplies/sensors/actuators are easy to integrate after that.

@Gayan-Priyanatha

maybe you are just not experienced enough to use the module. This is a system-on-module (SOM) that can be used to embed on your own PCB. A bit like the Intel Edison.

I think you should get a Raspberry Pi or Arduino, they are more beginner friendly

Boards that connect to the network, either via WiFi or Ethernet require higher power than microcontrollers to run correctly. Just get a benchtop power supply or a regulator in a TO-220 package to fiddle with it.

There is also ebay. Look for these items:

10 Pcs 2mm Pitch 16 Pin Female Single Row Straight Pin Header Strip

20Pcs 2mm 2.0mm Pitch 1x16 Pin 16 Pin Single Row Straight Female Header Strip