Book review: Raspberry Pi for Radio Amateurs

The Raspberry Pi is a rewarding platform for radio amateurs, and here at Elektor we have already paid attention to this a few times. But there is a deep knowledge gap between the world of amateur radio and the Raspberry Pi. Dogan Ibrahim, a licensed radio amateur himself for decades and also author of many books about the Raspberry Pi, brings both worlds together in his new book Raspberry Pi for Radio Amateurs.

It is important to take the title literally: this is a book for radio amateurs without (or a little) knowledge about the Raspberry Pi. If you are already experienced with the Raspberry Pi you will probably be disappointed as half of the book is not about radio stuff at all, but about the different Raspberry Pi models, how to install Raspberry Pi OS, how to use the command line and desktop and programming GPIO’s. But if you are a radio amateur who wants to take the very first steps in the world of Raspberry Pi, the audience for which this book is intended, then this is a great opportunity to explore the minicomputer more detailed.

The further you read the book, the closer the projects get to the amateur radio world. Those projects do require some knowledge of Python programming language. You learn how to control a relay to switch equipment on and off, about time, GPS coordinates or display sensor measurements on a small LCD screen and generating waveforms. A frequency counter, FM transmitter and RF power meter are discussed as well.

The most interesting topics of the book are described at the end. The chapter about the RTL-SDR is a good introduction of using software-defined radio with the popular RTL-SDR stick and more powerful alternatives. In the last chapter, the author discusses a dozen of interesting software programs for radio amateurs, but it is a pity for many that this is limited to installation instructions and a brief explanation of how to use them. Still, all in all, the book offers a good overview regarding features of the Raspberry Pi for radio amateurs, and it provides a sufficient basis to learn more about it yourself. An affordable bundle with the book and the RTL-SDR kit is available at the Elektor Store. 
 
Author: Dogan Ibrahim
Publisher: Elektor International Media
Price: € 34.95
ISBN: 978-3-89576-404-2
Book: elektor.com/rpi-radio-amateurs
Bundle: elektor.com/elektor-raspberry-pi-rtl-sdr-kit
 
Translation: Hans Adams