Hi all – I picked up a pair of small USB speakers to try and give our 'bots the power of speech.
The Pi appears to detect it at startup (it makes a small sound as the Pi boots), but it still sends the signal to the 3.5 audio out (audible with a pair of headphones).
Next step was to shell in and try something like this but figured I’d see if there was anything one could do via the web interface first that I hadn’t happened upon. Any suggestions?
Which OS are you using?
DexterOS? GoPiGo OS? Or Raspbian for Robots?
We don’t officially support USB speakers, and DexterOS won’t let you connect them. But GoPiGo OS and Raspbian for Robots should be fine.
Ah, pardon me – it is DexterOS. Bummer, was hoping to eliminate a cord.
Thanks regardless!
Have you tried the latest version of GoPiGo O/S? It’s an expanded and improved version of DexterOS, so it might work.
If not, maybe @cleoqc can add it to the future enhancement list. (Not that it isn’t long enough already! 
)
Hi @jimrh – thanks for your reply! Our bots are both on 2.4.4 but it looks like we’re now up to 2.5.1. (Could have sworn we were up to date when I originally posted, but what can you do.) I’ll update and see if that does it.
Thanks again!
The latest-and-greatest GoPiGo O/S is now version 3.0 and contains significant changes and advancements - not the least of which is access to the underlying O/S - which allows modification and installation of specialized drivers or software if necessary.
Note:
GoPiGo O/S only works on the GoPiGo-3 version of the GoPiGo robots.
Dexter O/S, (as well as earlier versions of the GoPiGo), have been depreciated and will receive only limited support from Modular Robotics/Dexter Industries.
Though the older versions of the software have been depreciated, and older versions of the GoPiGo will receive only limited support, we on the Dexter Industries forum will continue to try to help. A significant caveat is that pretty much all of us only have the GoPiGo-3, so our ability to help may also be limited.
I, personally, would like to encourage people still using the earlier versions of the GoPiGo to upgrade to a later version of the Raspberry Pi, (preferably the Pi-3,), as well as the latest version of the GoPiGo. This will simplify your life considerably. Additionally it will make support by both the forum and Modular Robotics much easier.
The Pi-4 will also work, but there are technical issues that are still being worked out, so it may not be suitable for “mission critical” applications like a classroom or any other venue that requires absolute plug-and-play compatibility. Another caveat is that it consumes more power and, correspondingly, reduces run-time.
Note that these “technical issues” are not caused by the GoPiGo software itself, these are limitations and issues caused by architecture changes within the Pi-4 and, (to some extent), by the later releases of Raspbian/Raspberry Pi O/S.
Also note that I, myself, use a Pi-4 on my own GoPiGo-3 and it works well. I have also personally worked with the new GoPiGo O/S 3.0 and consider it an excellent piece of work that eliminates many of the pain-points with the older Dexter O/S.
If you have an application that requires more processing power and greater capibilities the Pi-4 is an excellent choice. You may also wish to upgrade to Raspbian for Robots. Though it doesn’t provide the level of hand-holding that GoPiGo O/S does, it is a more advanced environment suitable for advanced experimentation and advanced classwork.
If you have, (or are planning to deploy), the GoPiGo-3, I recommend that you go direct to the new GoPiGo O/S instead of DexterOS.
You can download the new GoPiGo O/S here.
You can download Raspbian for Robots here.