Low-code programming for the Arduino with Snap4Arduino
Cold Snap!

Snap4Arduino brings the power of low-code programming to the Arduino hardware environment.
Scratch [1], from MIT, is a graphical coding environment that was originally designed for young programmers. Scratch is bundled with many Raspberry Pi releases, and it lets you create digital stories, games, and animations that communicate with the Pi's General Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) pins. There also some options for using Scratch with Arduino modules, however most of these implementations are somewhat limiting.
Snap! [2], which was created at the University of California, Berkeley, is an extended implementation of Scratch. The major difference between Snap! and Scratch is that Snap! has a rich set of technical libraries. Some of these Snap! libraries include database and SQL interfaces, graphical trends, matrix manipulation, MQTT (standard messaging protocol for IoT), and Neural Net modeling. These additional libraries and other advanced features mean that Snap! is not just a teaching tool but is also ready to serve as a low-code alternative for IoT solutions.
The graphical low-code model is often useful in IoT environments, where less-experienced programmers are sometimes forced to adapt to the ideosyncracies of unfamiliar hardware. The Snap4Arduino [3] version of Snap! offers a unique set of libraries that will upload and configure Arduino modules without the user needing any Arduino knowledge or software.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 Drops bcachefs
After a clash over some late fixes and disagreements between bcachefs's lead developer and Linus Torvalds, bachefs is out.
-
ONLYOFFICE v9 Embraces AI
Like nearly all office suites on the market (except LibreOffice), ONLYOFFICE has decided to go the AI route.
-
Two Local Privilege Escalation Flaws Discovered in Linux
Qualys researchers have discovered two local privilege escalation vulnerabilities that allow hackers to gain root privileges on major Linux distributions.
-
New TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro Powered by AMD Ryzen AI 300
The TUXEDO InfinityBook Pro 14 Gen10 offers serious power that is ready for your business, development, or entertainment needs.
-
Danish Ministry of Digital Affairs Transitions to Linux
Another major organization has decided to kick Microsoft Windows and Office to the curb in favor of Linux.
-
Linux Mint 20 Reaches EOL
With Linux Mint 20 at its end of life, the time has arrived to upgrade to Linux Mint 22.
-
TuxCare Announces Support for AlmaLinux 9.2
Thanks to TuxCare, AlmaLinux 9.2 (and soon version 9.6) now enjoys years of ongoing patching and compliance.
-
Go-Based Botnet Attacking IoT Devices
Using an SSH credential brute-force attack, the Go-based PumaBot is exploiting IoT devices everywhere.
-
Plasma 6.5 Promises Better Memory Optimization
With the stable Plasma 6.4 on the horizon, KDE has a few new tricks up its sleeve for Plasma 6.5.
-
KaOS 2025.05 Officially Qt5 Free
If you're a fan of independent Linux distributions, the team behind KaOS is proud to announce the latest iteration that includes kernel 6.14 and KDE's Plasma 6.3.5.