Episode: 2144
Title: HPR2144: An Interview with All About Code at Manchester BarCamp
Source: https://hub.hackerpublicradio.org/ccdn.php?filename=/eps/hpr2144/hpr2144.mp3
Transcribed: 2025-10-18 14:51:41

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This is an HBR episode 2,144 entitled, an interview with all about Kodat Manchester Barcamp
and is part of the series, Interviews. It is hosted by Tony Humek at Tony H1,212 and is about
8 minutes long. The summer is. This is a follow-up interview with Josh Harky who has been busy
since I last interviewed him. This episode of HBR is brought to you by AnanasThost.com.
Get 15% discount on all shared hosting with the offer code HBR15. That's HBR15.
Better web hosting that's honest and fair at AnanasThost.com.
Okay, this is Tony Humek for Hacker Public Radio and I'm still at Barcamp Manchester and I've got
with me all about Kodat or Josh Lowe as he's commonly known. I interviewed him a few weeks ago when
we were at Blackpool Raspberry Jam but since then he's developed a couple of new projects so I'm
going to ask him to explain about them. So as Tony said, I'm Josh and I'm known as all at all
underscore about underscore code on Twitter and you can find me all about code.co.uk and
not code.co.uk. Josh, would you like to tell us about this new project you've got going?
So I think it was August since I last did the podcast. So in since August I think I mentioned in
the last one about HBR15 which is my Python library and I have recently developed a block format
for it. So what I wanted to do is I wanted to create a bridge between scratch and Python so that's
what Edublox is aiming to do. So Edublox is built in Blockly which is something developed by Google.
It's a piece of open source software and it's written in JavaScript. So what happens is you have
your JavaScript with two things called definitions and generators. So definitions are like you
color blocks. So what color you want them to be, what type they are and what you want them to say,
what the user sees basically and then you've got your generators. So each block you can
use it to do code in different languages. So I think you can have Python, Ruby, Lua,
JavaScript, all the big coding languages and what that basically does is you set a variable to
so it uses Python mind. So you set the variable to the code you want it to run. So if you have
say five blocks it then sets the variable to the code. It then sends it to something called a
Python bottle server. So if you've used flask bottles like a simpler version of that and
what it does is it sets the variable. The index HTML file basically has a workspace where you
can drag and drop the blocks. It then sends it to the server and it runs. So that's available to
download. If you go to EduPyzen.co.uk forward slash hash tag blocks you'll be able to find the
guide there. And is it easy to install and what operating systems will it run on?
Yes. So it's really easy to install. I think it works on most Linux distros on the Raspberry Pi.
So because it uses GPIO pins and Minecraft Pi obviously you can't use it on like you're a
Ubuntu desktop and that. But I'm hopefully getting it so that you can access the HTML file from
a desktop computer or an iPad and it will basically just run it on the Raspberry Pi and it's
basically like you're using it. So it's a two line installer. So let's pound a kind of created
install script. So you do you get it via the command line and then you use sudo bash to execute
the script. So where do you envisage this piece of software going? So I think
since I released it on Sunday and since the day after someone used it in lessons in a school
in Coventry and then the next day they created documentations. So the aim basically is to get
a worldwide kind of known way for the bridge for Scratch to Python. So what I kind of want to do
is my aim is to get maybe a hundred people making that transition. So I'm going to
MOSFEST in London and hopefully make some transitions. My understanding is you've written this
so that children transitioning from Scratch can start to understand the underlying code for Python
and when you put the blocks in can you see the Python code? Yes so the blocks are exactly the same
as Python, indents and everything. So if you make a block program and you type that into Python it
will be exactly the same. So it's basically the same as Python, blocks through blocks.
Thank you very much. I believe you've also designed a kit that you're hoping to get out there
into the community. So I'm currently in talks with CPC and Pomoroni to map my own kit. So the first
one is a starter kit. So that includes LEDs, wires, breadboards, you basic starter electronic kits
and what my idea is is to have these kits for around £8 at the retail price and I'm hopefully
getting them out into schools. So I've selected some schools that are going to get them and once
they have reviewed them and used them in class I hopefully want to get it out to the public in
the next three to six months. Well we're here at BarCamp Manchester but I believe you're going
to be attending another event shortly. Do you want to tell us about that? Yes so at the end of October
which is actually Halloween weekend I've been invited to MOSFES. So what MOSFES is is if you've
ever used Missilla Firefox which I think most people have. It's basically their yearly annual
festival that they do. So that's down in London in a college opposite the O2. So it's basically the
big festival where the whole web community comes together in one venue and I will be in the use
zone. I don't know where it's located in the building but I will be running a workshop on
edu box. So what my idea is to get Minecraft and edu Python integrate them because it's on Halloween
weekend we're going to put a Halloween twist on it. Oh thank you Josh and for the listeners out
there if you want to meet Josh in person and you're going to MOSFES. Lucky me out lucky me up. So this
is Tony Hughes from Hancock Public Radio signing off. Thank you.
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