Book Image

Raspberry Pi for Secret Agents - Third Edition

Book Image

Raspberry Pi for Secret Agents - Third Edition

Overview of this book

This book is for all mischievous Raspberry Pi owners who’d like to see their computer transform into a neat spy gadget to be used in a series of practical pranks and projects. No previous skills are required to follow along, and if you’re completely new to Linux, you’ll pick up much of the basics for free. We’ll help you set up your Raspberry Pi Zero, Raspberry Pi 2 and Raspberry Pi 3 and guide you through a number of pranks and secret agent techniques that are so inconspicuous yet high on mischief. You’ll learn how to configure your operating system for maximum mischief and start exploring audio, video, or Wi-Fi techniques. We’ll show you how to record, listen, or talk to people from a distance and how to set up your own phone network. Then, you’ll plug in your webcam and set up a motion detector with an alarm and find out what the other computers on your Wi-Fi network are up to. Once you’ve mastered the techniques, we’ll combine them with a battery pack and GPS for the ultimate off-road spy kit.
Table of Contents (7 chapters)

Raspberry Pi Camera Module


The Raspberry Pi Camera Module is an official Raspberry Pi accessory that works with all models of the Pi, and can be used to take high-definition still and video images. It connects directly to the Pi board's CSI (Camera Serial Interface) port, dedicated for these modules to enable high-speed operation.

The first release of the Raspberry Pi Zero didn't have a dedicated CSI port for the camera, but the latest v1.3 of the Pi Zero board now features this connector, opening all sorts of possibilities by connecting the official camera module. Note that the connector is actually smaller than the one on the standard-sized Pi boards, so you will need a different flat cable to connect to your camera. You can get these from your usual Pi-friendly online stores, such as pimoroni.com.

The latest version 2 of the camera itself is an 8-megapixel fixed-focus sensor supporting 1080p, 720p, and VGA video modes and still captures. The original version was 5 mega-pixels and even that...