via the RSGB: 10 January 2022 – How to get started in software construction and where it can lead you, by Heather Lomond, M0HMO

All you need to get started in Software construction is a personal computer (Windows, Linux, Mac – they’ll all do), some spare time and, if you want to make a ‘thing’ then some loose change.

There are three easy and virtually free routes into writing your own programs: develop applications that run on your PC using the free Qt environment; write programs to run on one of the Arduino boards (£3 from China plus a USB cable) using the free Arduino application; or go for the middle ground with a Raspberry PI (around £40) and a wi-fi connection.

Heather will take you through the setup for each of these and show you just how easy it is to go from flashing an LED through developing an ATV receiver to producing a fully-featured windows PC application such as her Mapper entry in the RSGB construction competition.