More than a year ago, I bought a PiFace to be able to control power sockets. This is something that I've been doing for a long time with an Aviosys 9258 device. This is nothing much more than an IP interface bundled with four relays to switch power sockets. The box has a web interface for normal users and an API as well to implement more sophisticated uses. I integrated mine to my Asterisk PBX system, so with a phone call I can switch power outlets. This is handy, as I can have programmable keys on the phone for address book entries.
These days security is an important question. Everyone tries to keep stuff as a secret. In this article, I'm focusing on a home solution to keep private things secure. Of course, one may ask: is this really important? This is one point that might worth arguing about. No need to think military grade secrets, but I'm sure there most of us have stuff that should be encrypted. Bank statements, credit card details, passwords, reminders, payslips - or even home videos.
The Raspberry Pi is a low cost, (almost) credit-card sized computer that plugs into a computer monitor or TV, and uses a standard keyboard and mouse. It is a capable mini computer that enables people of all ages to explore computing, and to learn how to program in languages. It’s capable of doing everything you’d expect a desktop computer to do (although - in a bit slower fashion), from browsing the internet and playing high-definition video, to making spreadsheets, word-processing, and playing games.
The Raspberry Pi supports Virtual Local Area Networks, also known as VLANs. Not to confuse VLAN with WLAN, which stands for Wireless LAN, the VLAN is having separate logical networks over one physical wiring. It's quite exciting actually, because using VLANs, the Raspberry Pi is capable of being a router-on-a-stick. Let me dig deeper into this by explaining the terms, and the need for VLANs.
