If you’re an electrical engineer, student, programmer, or maybe a DIY person then there’s a good chance that you’ve heard of Arduino. It functions as a mini-computer on a single chip. It is used in DIY projects, small prototypes, or as a part of an electrical circuit.
What is Arduino and Why Should You Care?
Arduino was created in 2005 by a group of enthusiasts in Italy, including Massimo Banzi, David Cuartielles, David Mellis, and Gianluca Martino. They wanted to design an easy-to-use and low-cost microcontroller that could be used by students, hobbyists, and anyone needing a simple programmable circuit board for their projects.
The Arduino board is a small, low-powered microcontroller board that forms the hardware core of the Arduino system. It was inspired by an earlier microcontroller platform called Wiring, created by Hernando Barragán. The Arduino IDE (integrated development environment) software runs on a computer and allows users to write and upload programs onto the Arduino board.
Together, the simple Arduino board and the beginner-friendly Arduino IDE make it easy for novices to get started with microcontroller programming and electronics projects. Arduino has become a popular platform due to its accessibility, affordability and simplicity.
Key Features of Arduino You Should Know
- The Arduino features a programmable microcontroller capable of executing specific tasks
- The Board has a USB port. This makes it possible to power it through batteries or power sources.
- The Arduino board has analog input and digital input/output (I/O). The digital I/O can read and write binary data while the analog inputs can be used for reading voltages.
- It is an open-source project which makes the project transparent and builds trust in its community.
- Arduino supports a wide range of add-ons or modules to increase its functionality. Some of the modules you can add are sensors, motors, Bluetooth, WiFi, and many more.
- The Arduino IDE uses a programming language that is similar to C/C++ which makes it easy for beginners.
Prerequisites for Installing Arduino IDE on Linux
You should take care of the following before installing Arduino on Linux:-
- You should check if your Linux distro is supported by Arduino. Some of the popular Linux distros Arduino IDE supports are:- Ubuntu, Oracle, Red Hat, Suse, etc.
- You should have sudo or root permissions to your system. Installation of Arduino IDE requires administrative privileges.
- Your hardware requirements should meet the system requirements of Arduino. The minimum RAM needed is 4GB and the Processor should be at least Pentium 4. We recommend having at least 8GB RAM and a modern processor.
- It is recommended that Java is installed in your system.
- You should update your package manager repositories and system as well.
Step-by-Step Guide to Installing Arduino IDE on Linux
Installing Arduino IDE on Linux is a straightforward process that can be done in multiple ways. You can use package managers like Snap, download an AppImage file, or even use a Zip file for installation. Before proceeding, ensure your Linux distro is supported and that you have administrative privileges. The minimum system requirements include 4GB RAM and a Pentium 4 processor. Follow our step-by-step guide to choose the installation method that best suits your needs.
Multiple methods are available for installing Arduino on Linux. You can download and install the package file from the official site and use package managers like snap as well.
Installing Arduino IDE Using Snap
Snap is a component of the Snapd package manager. The snapstore has an Arduino IDE package. You can install the Arduino IDE by the following command:-
sudo snap install arduino
Installing Arduino IDE via AppImage
The AppImage file of Arduino IDE is available on the official site. We can download the AppImage image and use the Arduino IDE. To do so use the following command:-
- First, download the Arduino IDE AppImage from the official site.
- Open the directory where the file is downloaded.
- Open the terminal in that directory and run the following command:-
chmod u+x <File_name>
The AppImage file will now become executable and you can run Arduino IDE.
Installing Arduino IDE from a Zip File
You can also download the Arduino IDE .zip file from the official website for installation. The steps to do so are:-
- Download the zip file of Arduino IDE from the official site.
- Extract the downloaded zip file.
- Open the terminal in the directory where the extracted files are and run the following command:-
sudo sh install.sh
The installation will begin and there’ll be a new desktop icon after installation.
How to Install Arduino CLI on Linux
Ensure Git is installed on your system before installing the Arduino CLI. To install latest the version of Arduino CLI, use the following command:-
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/arduino/arduino-cli/master/install.sh | sh
It’ll install the Arduino CLI to $PWD/bin. To change the directory use the BINDIR flag. For example:-
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/arduino/arduino-cli/master/install.sh | BINDIR=~/local/bin sh
Wrapping Up: The Impact of Arduino
Arduino has evolved significantly since its inception, making strides in the IoT industry with its MKR family and the Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense. Whether you’re a hobbyist or a professional, Arduino offers a range of functionalities to bring your projects to life. What will you build with Arduino next?