Guide: Kit Inventory

Parts kit

Each student is given a CS107e parts kit containing the materials needed for the course assignments and labs. The parts kit contains:

• a Raspberry Pi A+ https://www.raspberrypi.org/products/raspberry-pi-1-model-a-plus/
• a MicroSDHC card https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002533302780.html
  • need only tiny capacity (< 1GB), we buy minimum size we can find
  • be sure manufacturer has known good quality control (cheap unreliable cards are no bargain)
• a CP2102 USB-to-serial breakout board https://www.taydaelectronics.com/cp2102-serial-converter-usb-2-0-to-ttl-uart-ftdi.html
• a 4-digit 7-segment display (common cathode) http://www.lanpade.com/7-segment-led-dot-matrix/5461as.html
• a full-sized breadboard https://www.jameco.com/z/WBU-202-R-Jameco-Valuepro-830-Point-Solderless-Breadboard-6-5-x-2-125-_20723.html
  • Jameco is solid! (cheaper breadboards can have flaky connection points)
• jumpers (5-25 of each kind) https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32891879068.html
  • female-female (10 cm)
  • female-male (10 cm)
• a mini-box containing these small components:
  • resistors (how resistance is encoded in band color, color code calculator)
    • twenty 1K resistors (for leds, 4-digit display, transistors) https://www.taydaelectronics.com/resistors/1k-ohm-1-2w-5-carbon-film-resistor.html
    • four 10K resistors (for push buttons) https://www.taydaelectronics.com/10k-ohm-1-2w-5-carbon-film-resistor.html
  • eight LEDs https://www.taydaelectronics.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=led+5mm+ultra+bright
  • four tactile pushbuttons https://www.taydaelectronics.com/electromechanical/switches-key-pad/tact-switch/tact-switch-12-12mm-7-3mm-through-hole-spst-no-4-pins.html
  • four caps for the pushbuttons (we give 1 each of 4 different colors): blue, yellow, red, green
  • four 2N3904 transistors (BJTs) https://www.taydaelectronics.com/2n3904-npn-general-propose-transistor.html
  • mini claw clips (for cable management) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B089R9R8MH

Lab tools supplement

Doing the labs also requires a few hand tools and supplies, which will have available for use in the lab room.

Hand tools and supplies for breadboarding:

• wire stripper, needlenose pliers, and angled cutter (if you wish to buy your own, see recommendations in our guide to hand tools)
• solid core wire, 22-24 AWG
• male-male jumpers, various lengths
• multimeter

For keyboard lab:

• PS/2 keyboard and mouse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0758BF15X
• inexpensive, low-speed USB logic analyzer https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077LSG5P2
• PS/2 breakout board (optional)
  • we source a custom board from https://www.pcbway.com/
  • other options from Adafruit https://www.adafruit.com/product/804 or Digikey https://www.digikey.com/short/ptjt5f4b
  • can simply wire jumpers directly into keyboard plug (we did this for years and it works fine)

For graphics lab:

• any display (monitor, tv, projector) that accepts HDMI input
• HDMI cable

Sources for parts

We have found that parts from Tayda Electronics are a good value, especially when purchasing in bulk, although it will take a few weeks to arrive.

We often purchase the boxes from Daiso because their physical stores have very good quality boxes for very cheap.

If looking to buy parts for your personal use, we also recommend Jameco, Pololu, Adafruit, and Sparkfun for their high-quality products and excellent customer service.