The typical beginner question

UncleRoger

I’ve got mine running on a RPi 4 with (iirc) 4gb of memory which seems to be enough. I’ve got a lot of modules divvied up into 3 pages that are selected via a wee macropad (three buttons & a knob) attached below the screen. (My dev version has 6 pages and I’m waiting on a new 6-key macropad so I van put that on the main system.)

I don’t have it behind a mirror; it’s just in a wooden frame.

I (and my family) add stuff to our calendars on our computers/phones; the MM is only for display. If I didn’t have to waste 8+ hours a day at the stupid job thing, and if I had more money (college in the US is outrageously expensive), I would try to get touch working so as to be able to go to the next/previous month on the calendar (MMM-CalendarExt3) but I’m happy with it as is.

I don’t worry about profiles – mostly everyone looks at the dinner menu (I have a google calendar just to say what I’m cooking for the next week or two) or the main calendar. Those are on the first page.

So, based on what you said, I would suggest getting yourself a basic RPi – I think the Pi Zero 2 is a little underpowered, but it’s doable – and an old monitor and start playing with it. Worry about installation and all that once you have it showing what you want and working the way you’d like it to.

I’m fortunate in that I have an extra Pi so I have a copy running on it that I can play around with without breaking the one in the kitchen that everyone looks at.

sdetweil

@UncleRoger said in The typical beginner question:

I would try to get touch working so as to be able to go to the next/previous month on the calendar (MMM-CalendarExt3)

if you use pages, add an instance for each page

mode:month
monthIndex:0/1/2 for each month on each page (this, next and after)
if using MMM-pages, used the class name page definitions, then its easy to set
each instance on a separate page
here is my config for pages and ext3

     {
        module: "MMM-CalendarExt3",
        position: "middle_center",
        classes: "page1",
        order: "*",
        animateIn: "None",
        animateOut: "None",
        index: 0,
        label: "instance 1",
        config: {
          mode: "month",
          fontSize: "30px",
          monthIndex: 0,
          minimalDaysOfNewYear: "1"
        },
        disabled: false,
        hiddenOnStartup: false,
        configDeepMerge: false
      },
      {
        module: "MMM-CalendarExt3",
        position: "middle_center",
        classes: "page2",
        order: "*",
        animateIn: "None",
        animateOut: "None",
        index: 1,
        label: "instance 2",
        config: {
          mode: "month",
          fontSize: "30px",
          monthIndex: 1
        },
        disabled: false,
        hiddenOnStartup: false,
        configDeepMerge: false
      },
      {
        module: "MMM-CalendarExt3",
        position: "middle_center",
        classes: "page3",
        order: "*",
        animateIn: "None",
        animateOut: "None",
        index: 2,
        label: "instance 3",
        config: {
          mode: "month",
          weekIndex: -1,
          dayIndex: -1,
          weeksInView: 3,
          cellDateOptions: {
            month: "short",
            day: "numeric"
          },
          eventTimeOptions: {
            timeStyle: "short"
          },
          headerWeekDayOptions: {
            weekday: "long"
          },
          headerTitleOptions: {
            month: "long"
          },
          maxEventLines: 5,
          fontSize: "30px",
          eventHeight: "22px",
          refreshInterval: 120000,
          waitFetch: 5000,
          glanceTime: 60000,
          animationSpeed: 2000,
          useSymbol: true,
          useWeather: true,
          popoverTemplate: "./popover.html",
          popoverTimeout: 30000,
          popoverPeriodOptions: {
            dateStyle: "short",
            timeStyle: "short"
          },
          popoverDateOptions: {
            dateStyle: "full"
          },
          displayCW: true,
          animateIn: "fadeIn",
          animateOut: "fadeOut",
          showMore: true,
          useIconify: true,
          skipDuplicated: true,
          monthIndex: 2,
          displayLegend: false,
          displayEndTime: false,
          displayWeatherTemp: false,
          skipPassedEventToday: false,
          useMarquee: false,
          customHeader: false,
          weekends: [],
          calendarSet: []
        },
        disabled: false,
        hiddenOnStartup: false,
        configDeepMerge: false
      },
      {
        module: "MMM-pages",
        disabled: false,
        config: {
          modules: [
            [
              "page1"
            ],
            [
              "page2"
            ],
            [
              "page3"
            ]
          ],
          fixed: [
            "fixed"
          ],
          hiddenPages: {
            screenSaver: [],
            admin: []
          },
          rotationTime: 60000
        },
        order: "*"
      },

use the page-indicator module to add buttons for the pages… (and you can customize the buttons with css)

UncleRoger

@sdetweil

An interesting idea but I think I’ve got too many pages as it is – I’ve got three currently and going to switch to six soon – but it’s not enough of an issue to really put much thought into. Thanks though!

_V_

Hey guys

Thanks for all the interesting info.
I guess Ill go as you both advised - Ill get a Pi ( usually I buy overpowered stuff anyways ^^ ) and a flat screen to try around and get things started. If you say, itll be easier to enter with another device like smartphone, this will surely be the way I am following then.

Ill be back with some errors Ill make while setting up the Pi and MM software ;)

@UncleRoger a last question though: Ive read a lot about screens which need to have some ports ( hdmi or something ) located on special place or direction - you dont got a recommendation for a screen 17" to 20" which meets those conditions?

sdetweil

@_V_ use (my) the installer script listed as alternative ways to install

_V_

Guys, thanks for the interesting thoughts.
@sdetweil If you say itll be easier with the phone, Ill surely go that way.

@UncleRoger you maybe wanna share a pic or two of this controller and how it is connected? :)
I guess Ill do as you adviced and get a Pi. Actually I already got one to play some retro games with it.
Usually I buy overpowered hardware, just cause Im one of those victims who can hardly resist ^^

Just a last question: So Ive read a couple of times that people warn to check for the right angle/position/whatever of the hdmi port of the screen - is this more related to the people who plan on put the screen into a housing / behind a frame? I guess with a 90° or even 180° adapter itll be good for me if I am going to attach it to a wall?
Out of curiousity: Any screen suggestions?

Thanks a lot again

sdetweil

@_V_ the hdmi port is really about keeping the mirror box thinner off the wall

they also make adapters for adjusting the angle

UncleRoger

@_V_ said in The typical beginner question:

a last question though: Ive read a lot about screens which need to have some ports ( hdmi or something ) located on special place or direction - you dont got a recommendation for a screen 17" to 20" which meets those conditions?

I just used a monitor I had lying about. iirc, I used a 90° right-angle m-f hdmi adapter to get the cable going in the right direction. I also played around with a few different cables to find ones with small enough connectors. But that’s something to worry about once you go from getting modules set up and all to the point of actually figuring out how you’re going to mount it.

UncleRoger

@_V_ said in The typical beginner question:

you maybe wanna share a pic or two of this controller and how it is connected? :)
I guess Ill do as you adviced and get a Pi. Actually I already got one to play some retro games with it.
Usually I buy overpowered hardware, just cause Im one of those victims who can hardly resist ^^

Unfortunately, I don’t really have any good pictures of how the Pi and monitor are connected. The Pi itself sits in a little bracket my son designed and 3d printed.

The whole mounting process went a little cattywumpus because it turns out that the box that holds the monitor electronics isn’t connected to the screen, other than by a couple of pieces of tape and I was mounting everything and then it started to fall apart and fall off the wall so I panicked and just screwed it to the wall. One of these days, I’m going to have to deal with that but that’s a problem for future me. 8^)

UncleRoger

@_V_ said in The typical beginner question:

Just a last question: So Ive read a couple of times that people warn to check for the right angle/position/whatever of the hdmi port of the screen - is this more related to the people who plan on put the screen into a housing / behind a frame? I guess with a 90° or even 180° adapter itll be good for me if I am going to attach it to a wall?
Out of curiousity: Any screen suggestions?

The adapters are really just so you can get things to fit in the frame or whatever you’re using to mount it. I’m working on a small one for my son where I have 180° adapters for power & hdmi for the screen to save space and get the cables going in the right direction. I went through a lot of different adapters to get that right. (Aliexpress can be your friend here.)

I just used a monitor I had already. It happened to fit the space I wanted it for. Basically, any monitor will work. Note that different size screens (esp. screen ratio – width to height) will display things differently.