This article is the last in this introductory tutorial series. By now, we have practiced over a dozen Arduino knowledge points and should have a basic understanding of Arduino: from what Arduino is, to how to write programs using the Arduino IDE, and how to drive some basic electronic components. Finally, I will give beginners some suggestions on learning Arduino methods and then discuss the future of Arduino.

Arduino’s Approach

Some people find it hard to get started with Arduino, while others find it too simple after playing with it for a while. Both situations exist. Often, it is a matter of learning methods or patterns of thinking. Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi has a famous theory called flow. Flow can be simply described as a state of being “in the zone”, where our feelings and actions are in the most comfortable and efficient state. This state is mainly determined by the relationship between the difficulty of the task at hand and the individual’s abilities. For example, when you find starting with Arduino difficult, it is likely that the experiments or tutorials you are trying to complete are too challenging, or your existing knowledge and problem-solving skills are insufficient; conversely, if you are a professional programmer or electronic engineer, you may find learning these basics too boring, indicating that the challenges you face are not enough, which is why many people look down on Arduino. The intended users of Arduino are designers and artists who do not have much background in electronics. Therefore, my first suggestion for beginners is to choose tutorials that match their skill level. Of course, if you are already an expert, you might even question whether learning the Arduino platform is suitable for you, as the right tools are the best.

Play

Playing with Arduino is an important attitude. Many people adopt an academic approach right away, first going through Teacher Tan’s C basics, then studying analog electronics. This textbook-like method can kill the fun of playing with Arduino. Don’t worry too much about making mistakes; burning a few components is common, and writing incorrect code won’t cause explosions. The most important thing is to have fun; it is not an exaggeration to say that this is the source of your motivation and sense of achievement throughout the learning process.

Learn by Doing and Learn from Mistakes

Theory is certainly important, but the more crucial aspect of learning Arduino is hands-on experience. Only by trying to follow the tutorials step by step will you know the various pitfalls, and only by stumbling through them will you gain wisdom. This requires a lot of time and energy investment, and there are no shortcuts.

Tinkering

The term “Tinker” doesn’t have an exact corresponding word in Chinese that fits well. Tinkering in English means to fix or to fiddle around a bit. This is also one of the essences that distinguishes Arduino from traditional hardware development thinking. Traditional hardware development emphasizes efficiency, is very linear, and has clear product development goals, moving from A to B. In contrast, Arduino users often do not have a formed idea at the beginning; it is very common to explore while doing. This process emphasizes the diversity of ideas rather than development efficiency.

Using Waste

Nowadays, people casually discard a lot of electronic waste around them: old printers, old radios, mobile phones, computer hard drives, etc. For electronic enthusiasts and poor hackers, these things are treasures. You can reuse many electronic components and modules from old appliances. By disassembling and categorizing reusable items, you can make them shine again in future projects. This not only saves a lot of money but also contributes to environmental protection.

Community Collaboration

Finally, make good use of the power of the community. The community here includes online communities, such as the official Arduino.cc community, which has accumulated a wealth of knowledge, questions, and experiences. However, the drawback of online communities is that the knowledge is scattered and the format is singular, mostly presented in forums and wikis. This is why I hope to help everyone through higher quality and more scientific organization. There are also offline communities, like makerspaces in various places, which have shared spaces and equipment, and more importantly, people with common interests who regularly organize gatherings to learn together and help each other, which is more efficient and fun than doing it alone.

The Future of Arduino

As the hottest Maker prototype platform today, how will Arduino develop in the future? There is a saying that extreme situations lead to opposite outcomes. On one hand, there is a split of interests within Arduino; on the other hand, facing numerous imitators and competitors, can Arduino continue to thrive in such a competitive environment? Is it worth investing time and energy to learn? So, let’s talk about the future of the Arduino platform; of course, these are just my interpretations, and if you have unique insights, you are welcome to discuss further.

As Arduino becomes more popular, the core team is also trying to commercialize Arduino better, whether it is open-source software or open-source hardware. This path seems to be a necessary one and also a difficult one. Examples include Ubuntu in the Linux world and Makerbot, which originated from Reprap. The Arduino core team has become more controlling in terms of brand and supply chain than before. For instance, they have redesigned the Arduino brand image and product packaging, emphasizing official products.

Regarding the supply chain, the original Arduino was “Made in Italy” and was contracted by a local manufacturer in Italy. However, the core team, for better internationalization of Arduino, has partnered with Adafruit in the United States, continuing to use the Arduino TM brand, while creating the “Genuino” brand in non-US regions. For example, in China, they have partnered with Shenzhen’s Seeed Studio to produce and distribute official Genuino development boards. This is also the root cause of the recent “Arduino vs. Arduino” incident — the conflict of interests brought about by internationalization. For us, this is undoubtedly a good thing, as we can now buy reliable official versions of Arduino development boards in today’s mixed market.

When it comes to the development of Arduino hardware and Arduino IDE, in today’s world where IoT and cloud concepts are popular, we can also see the Arduino core team’s layout in this area. For example, Arduino 101 integrates BLE Bluetooth 4.0, Arduino YÚN integrates WiFi modules, and Arduino Due has stronger computing power. However, compared to competitors like Particle, WiFi wonder ESP8266, and Raspberry Pi, the pricing and positioning are awkward. Regarding IDE development, as we have introduced before, the official Arduino is also trying an online cloud IDE, where all coding, compiling, and burning are processed in the cloud, without any local software. This concept is not new, as similar competitors like CodeBender have already taken shape. I believe that cloud IDEs cannot completely replace local IDEs; while they offer conveniences like no installation and cloud compilation, they are heavily reliant on the network and lack efficiency compared to local IDEs, which have incomparable advantages. The Arduino core team should refocus on local IDEs.

Arduino, in terms of open-source hardware, is like Apple in the mobile phone industry; it has established its dominance, and the challenge now is not to surpass others but to surpass itself.

Click to read the original text and purchase the Arduino introductory learning kit