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Nov 11 2023 – Intro to NextCloud on a Pi

Why just run your own video conferencing server, when you can simultaneously run that AND mail, calendaring, contacts, calls, IM, file sharing, remote backup, and a web-based office suite, all in one intimidating package. Get your own thrift-store Google G Suite going with the open source Nextcloud platform on a tiny Raspberry Pi! Great for the privacy-conscious, the independent, and masochists. We’ll do it the hard way and make configuring Jitsi look like recess at kindergarten (and then do it the easy way). Warning: the hard way will race through dependencies including Apache, PHP, MySQL/MariaDB and openSSL, so expect some mild suffering.

Richard’s Blog here:

Actual process including configuring a web server and database and installing from a source tarball:
https://tech.kosmokaryote.org/2023/11/technology-nextcloud-on-raspberry-pi_22.html –

here are the pdfs

Kosmokaryote_-TechDownload

and here


Much briefer post using nextcloudpi via docker from my notes, as originally demoed:
https://tech.kosmokaryote.org/2023/11/technology-nextcloud-on-raspberry-pi.html

Kosmokaryote_-Tech2Download

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Join Us Online here:

https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Oct. 28, 2023 – Forgotten Pill Warning (Hybrid)

George gets a scolding from Alexa for not opening his pill box on time.  Technologies include 

  • A dollar store pill box,
  • ESP8266 micro-controller
  • PHP server page to receive message from ESP8266
  • Cron job to notice late opening and to send a scolding email and SMS
  • IF This Then That (IFTTT) to signal Alexa
  • Amazon Alexa Echo Show to further admonish George to open the damn pill box.

George’s presentation .pdf is here

For the meet and greet, George explains how this device can be shipped without the recipients SSID and wifi password, using only 20 bytes of code on the micro controller.

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:

https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Oct. 14, 2023 – IPv6 and Installing Galene, an Open Source video conf app (Hybrid)

I have been playing with Galene for over a year. And have been using it on a weekly basis to do video conferencing with some friends in Ottawa. It is much easier to install than Jitsi, but lacks some of the finer points of jitsi.

Still, you can install and run it on a Raspberry Pi (even a 3b+ !). In this presentation, I’ll show how easy it is to install on a Pi, and you can run your own personal video conferencing server.

Craig’s presentation is here: http://www.makikiweb.com/Pi/galene_installing.html

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:

https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Learn Python on a Pico

Saturday, July 8th 9:30 am til noon and Saturday July 15th 9:30am till noon.

At Quality Foods Eagle Creek Shopping Center in the upstains boardroom

Register here: https://forms.gle/py3BzTUxfyfPj67o8

You need to bring a laptop:

  • A windows laptop or 
  • Linux laptop or 
  • chromebook with linux enabled. 

We loan you

  • A Raspberry Pi Pico with LED and temperature sensor
  • A micro USB cable

You build a digital thermometer that can

  • Report the highest and lowest temperatures of the last 24 hours
  • Signal when a room is dangerously overheated

Here is a description of the class


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Sat, May 13, 2023 – Projects Day

We will be having a discussion about Projects that we are working on, but haven’t shared with the group. These can be projects that are successful or ones that just didn’t work out and have been abandoned. We’ll enjoy hearing about other’s projects, and perhaps even offer to help.

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:
https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Apr. 8, 2023 – Pandas and Data Wrangling

Learn the basics of data manipulation using the Python library, Pandas. This session will provide an overview of common Pandas’ API used to transform your datasets.

You only need paper and a pencil or pen for this session. The presentation will be posted to the VicPiMakers website for you to play with after the Meetup.

Gordos’s presentation .pdf , is here…

pandas

We will learn to:
– Install Pandas
– Define the Dataframe and Series classes
– Work with columns and rows
– Filter rows
– Apply or update data
– Merge and concatenate datasets
– Read and write to a file
– Do more, time permitting

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:
https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Apr 22, 2023 – Hydroponics and the esp32

Joel will be presenting a hydroponics controller based on the esp32 and connected to a raspberry pi using home assistant. Here are some links to home assistant and associated sites.

https://www.home-assistant.io/

https://esphome.io/

Joel’s presentation .pdf is here.

HydroponicsController

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:
https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Mar. 25, 2023 – Home IoT

home IoT wifi everywhere

This will be an open discussion of IoT with an introduction by Robert discussing his old IoT setup at home and the continuing process of his migration to Home Assistant.

Robert’s presentation pdf is here.

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:
https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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NetSIG – Mar. 23, 2023

NetSIG is a Special Interest Group focused on computer networking. Building networks for Today and Tomorrow!

Last month we explored MACVLAN interfaces, and how it makes it easier for Linux Containers (LXD).

This month, BRING YOUR PI, and a 32 GB SD Card, and we’ll do a Linux Containers INSTALL FEST on your Pi.

We will be meeting in-person at Quality Foods (small boardroom upstairs), bring a laptop and have Wireshark installed. This will be hands on. PLEASE BRING an ETHERNET dongle/port as we will be ssh-ing into your Pi, and configuring Linux Containers.

Quality Foods View Royal 6:30pm

27 Helmcken Rd #110 · Victoria, BC

Afterword, we will go out for a beer/coffee.

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Thu. Apr. 27, 2023 – NetSIG: LXD Installing Pi-Hole in a Linux Container

NetSIG is a Special Interest Group focused on computer networking. Building networks for Today and Tomorrow!

Last month we did the InstallFest for Linux Containers (LXD). This month, we’ll install a popular application, Pi-Hole, in a container on YOUR Pi. With Linux Containers, there’s no need to dedicate a Pi to Apps like Pi-Hole.

This month, BRING YOUR PI, and the LXD 32 GB SD Card, and we’ll do a Linux Containers App installation on your Pi. Also bring a method to SSH to your Pi (e.g. laptop or screen + keyboard).

We will be meeting in-person at Quality Foods (small boardroom upstairs), bring a laptop and have Wireshark installed. This will be hands on. PLEASE BRING an ETHERNET dongle/port as we will be ssh-ing into your Pi, and configuring Linux Containers.

Afterword, we will go out for a beer/coffee.

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:
https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Mar 11, 2023 – Go-lang

In this session, we’ll demo the Go programming language. We’ll review the basics of the language, and how to get started with it. We’ll also look at some of the tools that are available to help you program in Go.

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

This is a Hybrid meeting (in-person and on Jitsi).

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Join Us Online here:
https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

GitHub Repo – Includes presentation slides and code examples:

https://github.com/netserf/vicpimakers-presentation-go-learn-by-doing

Feedback:

https://forms.gle/EmtLgnfQWQb9q5v86

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Sat. Feb 11 2023 – Linux Containers on the Quadra

linux containers

After using Linux Containers (LXD) for a couple of years, Craig will share how to easily get your containers connected to the internet using a MACVLAN interface. No reconfiguration of the host is required. This technique can be used on Pi’s as well as other hosts.

We will set up containers using the MACVLAN network attachment, discuss limitations, and even run LXDware, a web-based GUI for LXD on a Pi.

We will be holding a Hybrid meeting (in-person & Jitsi).

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Hybrid https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Dec. 10, 2020 – T’is the Season

T’is the season for bright lights and Raspberry Pi fun.

T’is the Season!

In this talk we’ll look at a ModMyPi Programmable Christmas Tree (MMP-1021), which sits atop the 40 pin header and presents a set of individually controlled LEDs. The trick to practical and easy use of the tree is via GPIOZERO, a fantastic python module. We’ll integrate some sensors as well, since GPIOZERO makes them very easy.

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

Small Boardroom @ Quality Foods, 27 Helmcken Rd #110 · View Royal

Hybrid https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers

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Sat. Oct 22, 2020 – Old Man Savers

George will share his old man savers. Consumer kitchen appliances are designed for one size fits all, not for my personal needs. My needs change as I age, and I need alerts for faults.

  • I like to turn off my drip coffee maker as soon as coffee is brewed. If I forget, it wastes electricity (500watts) and spoils the coffee. If I forget to insert the carafe, I’ve got a mess. A timed relay with a contact sensor for the carafe solves the problem.
  • So as not to overcook the meat, I turn off my induction hot plate based on a thermistor inserted into the meat to trip a relay to power off the hot plate.
  • A centralized monitor and alarm system, with text message notifications, can be tailored to one’s specific needs. My monitoring system needs to include at least 9 sensors:
  • Exterior door that gets left ajar.
  • Bathroom light gets left on
  • Bathroom water flooding
  • Fridge power lost
  • Fridge temperature too high
  • Freezer power lost
  • Freezer temperature too high
  • Exterior hall temperature
  • Smoke detector

George’s presentation is here: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/107pIcvgMJfG5TxZLBdD5MD1n3QWQPcR2-Dehy2xVzjI/edit?usp=sharing

His code .pdf file is here:

9:30-10a Cocktails & Conversation
10a Presentation

QCollege has welcomed us back to meet in-person. We thank them for their support.

We will be holding a Hybrid meeting (in-person & Jitsi).

https://meet.vinnythegeek.ca/vicpimakers