works on the Linux kernel, sponsored by the Linux Foundation, which is the nonprofit consortium that promotes Linux and supports its development. The Linux Foundation reports that over 11,800 people from almost 1,200 different companies have contributed to the kernel since 2005.
GNU/Linux brings together the Linux kernel with the GNU components it needs to be a complete operating system, reflecting the work of thousands of people on both the GNU and Linux projects. That so many people could cooperate to build something as complex as an operating system, and then give it away for anyone to use, is a modern miracle.
Because GNU/Linux can be modified and distributed by anyone, lots of different versions of it exist. They’re called distributions, or distros, but not all of them are suitable for the Raspberry Pi. The recommended distribution of Linux for the Raspberry Pi is Raspbian. (See Chapter 3.) Software created for one version of Linux usually works on another version, but Linux isn’t designed to run Windows or Mac OS software.
Strictly speaking, Linux is just the kernel in the operating system, but as is commonly done, we refer to GNU/Linux as Linux in the rest of this book.
Creating a NOOBS Card
The easiest way to get started with the Raspberry Pi is to use the NOOBS software. NOOBS is short for new-out-of-box software, although it’s also a pun on the term noob, sometimes used to describe beginners in any field of computing. Don’t underestimate the power of this software, though, especially if you’re a more experienced user: NOOBS is easy to copy to the SD or MicroSD card, but provides you with a simple menu for installing a number of different operating systems, including different versions of Linux and the Kodi media center software. The options are described in more depth in Chapter 3.
As we say in Chapter 1, you can buy a card with NOOBS already on it, and that might be the quickest way to get started. If you’ve got one of these, you can skip ahead to Chapter 3 – but maybe read through this chapter while you’re waiting for the OS to install. It’s useful to know how to create your own NOOBS cards: It means you can get started with a new card in about 20 minutes, rather than having to wait for the postman to deliver one to you.
In your web browser, visit www.raspberrypi.org/downloads/noobs. Two versions of NOOBS are available: The main version of NOOBS includes Raspbian, the officially supported operating system, so you can use it even if you don't have a network connection on your Raspberry Pi; NOOBS also includes a menu for choosing other operating systems to download and install from the Raspberry Pi, if you have a network connection. We recommend you download NOOBS for your first operating system.
NOOBS Lite leaves out the Raspbian software download and includes a menu to download whichever operating system you want to use. It's a smaller initial download, and it's ideal if you don't plan to use Raspbian. It needs a network connection on your Raspberry Pi to download an operating system, though.
For best results, you need to format the SD or MicroSD card. You can use a program, available from the SD Association, called SD Card Formatter on Mac and Windows, and you can find it at www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4. You need to read and accept the license agreement before you can download.
If you’re using Linux, you can use GParted to format the card, as we will show you.
Earlier models of the Pi used a physically larger SD card, but later ones use a MicroSD card. Make sure you have the right sort. The MicroSD cards often come with a holder to make them look and work like SD cards. (Refer to Figure 1-3, in Chapter 1.) You might have to plug the MicroSD card into this holder to format it on your desktop or laptop computer.
Using Windows
The Windows SD Card Formatter software downloads as an executable (.exe) file, so double-click it to run the installation program. Click Next to work through the steps. The program suggests where to install SD Card Formatter, but you can change this location if you want. Finally, click the Install button. You may receive an alert from Windows telling you that a program is trying to make changes to your computer and asking whether this is allowed.
After installing SD Card Formatter, you can use the Windows Search feature to find it and run it. On Windows 10, click in the box on the taskbar in the bottom left of the screen to start the search. If you’re using Windows 8.1, move the mouse to the top-right corner and click the magnifying glass to open the search. In either version of Windows, type SD and then click the program name when it appears. (On older versions of Windows, run SD Card Formatter from the Start menu in the bottom left of the screen.) When you run the program you might be prompted to confirm it is allowed to make changes to your computer.
Figure 2-1 shows the SD Card Formatter software on Windows. Where it says Select card, select the drive that contains the SD or MicroSD card. If no drive is shown, try clicking Refresh. Check the drive displayed here, and double-check it as often as you need to, because SD Card Formatter erases everything on this drive. It’s a sensible precaution to disconnect USB drives and any other removable storage devices, to protect them from accidental deletion before you go any further.
FIGURE 2-1: SD Card Formatter, used to format the SD or MicroSD card, on Windows.
The Quick Format option is fast but not secure, so you’ll receive a warning that data might still be recoverable after formatting. (Don’t count on being able to do so, though!) Click OK to start the formatting. On Sean’s computer, this took a few seconds.
Using a Mac
The Mac version of SD Card Formatter downloads as an installation package. Double-click this package to install the software. The software installs by default into the Applications folder. Note: You will need to enter your Mac’s password to do this, and also every time you run this utility.
Insert the SD or MicroSD card into your Mac’s slot, or into a card reader connected to your Mac, and then double-click the SD Card Formatter icon in the Applications folder. When the software opens, the main screen looks like
