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Old 9th Sep 2019, 10:02 pm   #11
Karen O
Rest in Peace
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Bridgnorth, Shropshire, UK.
Posts: 787
Default Re: Digital 'cassette' recorder

The idea behind my 'cassette' recorder is simple and can be extended to a traditional radio. Imagine a traditional scale with a pointer moved by a 'tuning' knob. The knob controls a potentiometer which inputs a voltage to a microcontroller. This then uses the voltage to select one from, maybe, a dozen pre-selected internet radio stations (e.g. Dismuke, etc.)

No LCDs, no menus, no lists to have to peer at. Just a knob and a scale. In the days that I listened to the radio I didn't use the frequency, wavelength, or even the name of the station it identify a station. I knew R2 was at about one third of the scale, that easy listening station at just over half scale. I might place coloured stickers on the glass. I could even countenance a removal scale that can be pre-printed or marked up manually. But never would I want to scroll down a list of station names.

About my implementation: It is not the right way to do it! Mine is an exercise in extreme PIC programming. That poor PIC doesn't have a moment to spare - every routine is carefully cycle counted. It is obscure, impenetrable and completely unmaintainable. To call it a can of worms would be to insult worms.

My disdain is for modern user interfaces and not the technology per se. If I were doing it properly I would hide a RPi in that box. It has the general purpose I/O to drive the LEDs and the buttons. And its OS can read and write SD cards, USB thumb drives or even a network file system with just a change in a file name.

So, are there any RPi programmer up for this challenge?
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