MicroPython 1.4.5

https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-announce-list/2015-August/010865.html

by pfalcon • 11 years ago

90 16 11 years ago

mail.python.org

minthd3• 11 years ago

For those interested in simplified embedded development , this[1] paper implemented a python like language on microcontrollers , that does include the actor model, and they show it enables higher abstraction(and reuse) in microcontroller systems - which are usually event driven.

[1]https://www.usenix.org/system/files/conference/atc14/atc14-p...

pekk• 11 years ago

What's wrong with MicroPython?

mianos3• 11 years ago

Owl is more 'pretty much normal python runtime ported to an ARM MCU'. micropython is a written from scratch implementation for MCUs. Maybe I am replying to the wrong thread here. What could be wrong? There are probably a lot of the standard libraries which are more work to get running on micropython than Owl. Some of the language features that are already in python 2.7 are not in micropython (which is a 3.X based system). That said, micropython is a fantastic project. I have a micropython board and also have it running in the ESP8266 with my own C modules. The whole framework is very well thought out and a pleasure to work with. It's not the python I use in my day job but I don't actually care as I have more C than python anyway :)

minthd3• 11 years ago

In that paper they added "a small set of extension"(3KB of code) to OWL[1]. Those extensions, together with a special hardware bridging mechanism enable using the actor model in an mcu context.

Why use the actor model ? because it brings, to event

[1]OWL seems pretty similar to micro python - but they started working on it before micro python was availble.

joshu• 11 years ago

This seems neat. Did it ship?

pfalcon6• 11 years ago

Very interesting link, thanks! Shows very well viability and benefits of using Python on constrained systems.

Using message passing for concurrent programming is a well-known technique, it's nice that they tested it in embedded Python context. However, regarding syntax extensions - I wished they run them thru python-ideas list. Because otherwise all the pattern matching can be done in Python already, perhaps with a little more syntax - well, the paper links to http://candygram.sourceforge.net/ which implemented it 10+ years ago.

minthd3• 11 years ago

Maybe there's a reason they implemented actors using extension ? performance/latency ?

Maybe you guys should collaborate with the guys behind the paper ? they can offer their expertise - and if they built it inside micropython, that means many more people will use the technology - and they will get much more academic citations.

sbierwagen• 11 years ago

We use PyMite at work, (Python 2.x) which works pretty well. The longer you use it, the more things you find that aren't implemented, though. No int() or float(), no try except, longs don't exist at all, no keyword arguments, etc etc. You give up a lot to fit in 55 kilobytes.

pfalcon6• 11 years ago

Feel free to give MicroPython a try - it currently scales down to 77K (ARM Thumb2), but that includes compiler (i.e. you can start it and type Python source to execute - no "compilation" step is necessary).

616c• 11 years ago

If you want to hear a good interview with the developer:

http://podcastinit.podbean.com/e/episode-15-damien-george-ta...

MicroPython 1.4.5

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