Raspberry Pi

Support - Assistance technique
1

I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of
the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.
It works great!
I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and
installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).
I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).
The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports
run well and are displayed properly.
I also tested offline data entry which works great. I disconnected
the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then
reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there
was data to upload. I clicked upload and all was good.

In a way, this doesn't surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most
of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for
the browser, client computer and network. Good to see that this all
works very well in practice.

The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a
Broadcom ARM chip. It's similar to most tablets and smartphones. It
costs just $35.00. You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a
monitor (HDMI or composite video). It uses an SD card for program and
data storage (you can also add USB memory).

This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry. It has
very low power requirements (about 3 watts).
Since it's Linux, you don't have to worry about malware. This is a
great dedicated data entry terminal.

The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier
this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and
they are available from distributors.
See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org

This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites
(gmail does work but is very slow).
It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.

Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!

Kind regards,
Mark

···

--
Mark Spohr, MD
mhspohr@gmail.com
+1 530 554 2230

2

Thanks for this summary, Mark, very interesting.

I assume our typical setup of getting mobile internet through a USB
dongle would work well.

I wonder about options for power supply and inexpensive monitors
(which also requires a power supply.

Not sure why they say "None of the browsers for Raspbian “wheezy”
support HTML5", since you had no problem running Chrome.

Knut

···

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Mark Spohr <mhspohr@gmail.com> wrote:

I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of
the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.
It works great!
I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and
installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).
I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).
The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports
run well and are displayed properly.
I also tested offline data entry which works great. I disconnected
the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then
reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there
was data to upload. I clicked upload and all was good.

In a way, this doesn't surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most
of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for
the browser, client computer and network. Good to see that this all
works very well in practice.

The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a
Broadcom ARM chip. It's similar to most tablets and smartphones. It
costs just $35.00. You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a
monitor (HDMI or composite video). It uses an SD card for program and
data storage (you can also add USB memory).

This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry. It has
very low power requirements (about 3 watts).
Since it's Linux, you don't have to worry about malware. This is a
great dedicated data entry terminal.

The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier
this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and
they are available from distributors.
See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org

This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites
(gmail does work but is very slow).
It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.

Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!

Kind regards,
Mark

--
Mark Spohr, MD
mhspohr@gmail.com
+1 530 554 2230

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

--
Knut Staring
Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo
+4791880522

3

Mark,

This is interesting. Would the pi work on usb broadband dongles?

···

Sent from my iPad

On Oct 14, 2012, at 13:13, Knut Staring <knutst@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks for this summary, Mark, very interesting.

I assume our typical setup of getting mobile internet through a USB
dongle would work well.

I wonder about options for power supply and inexpensive monitors
(which also requires a power supply.

Not sure why they say "None of the browsers for Raspbian “wheezy”
support HTML5", since you had no problem running Chrome.
Raspberry Pi Documentation

Knut

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Mark Spohr <mhspohr@gmail.com> wrote:

I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of
the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.
It works great!
I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and
installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).
I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).
The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports
run well and are displayed properly.
I also tested offline data entry which works great. I disconnected
the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then
reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there
was data to upload. I clicked upload and all was good.

In a way, this doesn't surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most
of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for
the browser, client computer and network. Good to see that this all
works very well in practice.

The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a
Broadcom ARM chip. It's similar to most tablets and smartphones. It
costs just $35.00. You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a
monitor (HDMI or composite video). It uses an SD card for program and
data storage (you can also add USB memory).

This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry. It has
very low power requirements (about 3 watts).
Since it's Linux, you don't have to worry about malware. This is a
great dedicated data entry terminal.

The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier
this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and
they are available from distributors.
See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org

This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites
(gmail does work but is very slow).
It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.

Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!

Kind regards,
Mark

--
Mark Spohr, MD
mhspohr@gmail.com
+1 530 554 2230

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

--
Knut Staring
Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo
+4791880522
http://dhis2.org

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

4

Hi,

there are several reports of people using it with mobile internet dongles, though you'd be dependent on having linux drivers that are ARM-friendly, so it may be that not all dongles have such drivers.

Best regards,
Lars

···

On 14.10.2012 08:03, alvin.marcelo wrote:

Mark,

This is interesting. Would the pi work on usb broadband dongles?

Sent from my iPad

On Oct 14, 2012, at 13:13, Knut Staring <knutst@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks for this summary, Mark, very interesting.

I assume our typical setup of getting mobile internet through a USB
dongle would work well.

I wonder about options for power supply and inexpensive monitors
(which also requires a power supply.

Not sure why they say "None of the browsers for Raspbian “wheezy”
support HTML5", since you had no problem running Chrome.
Raspberry Pi Documentation

Knut

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Mark Spohr <mhspohr@gmail.com> wrote:

I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of
the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.
It works great!
I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and
installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).
I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).
The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports
run well and are displayed properly.
I also tested offline data entry which works great. I disconnected
the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then
reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there
was data to upload. I clicked upload and all was good.

In a way, this doesn't surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most
of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for
the browser, client computer and network. Good to see that this all
works very well in practice.

The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a
Broadcom ARM chip. It's similar to most tablets and smartphones. It
costs just $35.00. You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a
monitor (HDMI or composite video). It uses an SD card for program and
data storage (you can also add USB memory).

This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry. It has
very low power requirements (about 3 watts).
Since it's Linux, you don't have to worry about malware. This is a
great dedicated data entry terminal.

The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier
this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and
they are available from distributors.
See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org

This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites
(gmail does work but is very slow).
It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.

Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!

Kind regards,
Mark

--
Mark Spohr, MD
mhspohr@gmail.com
+1 530 554 2230

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

--
Knut Staring
Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo
+4791880522
http://dhis2.org

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

--
Lars Kristian Roland
Lars@roland.bz
+47 90733036
www.apus.no - lars.roland.bz

5

Thanks Lars. I’ll appreciate getting in touch with those people and knowing which dongles work with the Pi. The implementations are flaky in the Philippines. Not all the Huawei’s work with Linux for example…

···

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 3:27 PM, Lars Kristian Roland lars@roland.bz wrote:

Hi,

there are several reports of people using it with mobile internet dongles, though you’d be dependent on having linux drivers that are ARM-friendly, so it may be that not all dongles have such drivers.

Best regards,

Lars

On 14.10.2012 08:03, alvin.marcelo wrote:

Mark,

This is interesting. Would the pi work on usb broadband dongles?

Sent from my iPad

On Oct 14, 2012, at 13:13, Knut Staring knutst@gmail.com wrote:

Thanks for this summary, Mark, very interesting.

I assume our typical setup of getting mobile internet through a USB

dongle would work well.

I wonder about options for power supply and inexpensive monitors

(which also requires a power supply.

Not sure why they say "None of the browsers for Raspbian “wheezy”

support HTML5", since you had no problem running Chrome.

http://www.raspberrypi.org/quick-start-guide

Knut

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Mark Spohr mhspohr@gmail.com wrote:

I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of

the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.

It works great!

I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and

installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).

I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).

The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports

run well and are displayed properly.

I also tested offline data entry which works great. I disconnected

the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then

reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there

was data to upload. I clicked upload and all was good.

In a way, this doesn’t surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most

of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for

the browser, client computer and network. Good to see that this all

works very well in practice.

The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a

Broadcom ARM chip. It’s similar to most tablets and smartphones. It

costs just $35.00. You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a

monitor (HDMI or composite video). It uses an SD card for program and

data storage (you can also add USB memory).

This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry. It has

very low power requirements (about 3 watts).

Since it’s Linux, you don’t have to worry about malware. This is a

great dedicated data entry terminal.

The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier

this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and

they are available from distributors.

See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org

This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites

(gmail does work but is very slow).

It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.

Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!

Kind regards,

Mark

–

Mark Spohr, MD

mhspohr@gmail.com

+1 530 554 2230

Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net

Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp

–

Knut Staring

Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo

+4791880522

http://dhis2.org

Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net

Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp

Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net

Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp

–

Lars Kristian Roland

Lars@roland.bz

+47 90733036

www.apus.no - lars.roland.bz

Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net

Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~dhis2-users

More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp

–

Alvin B. Marcelo, MD, FPCS www.alvinmarcelo.com
Senior Vice-president and Chief Information Officer
Philippine Health Insurance Corporation
GPG 0x99CBC54C

Tel: (632) 383 0459

6

As others have pointed out, the USB mobile internet would depend on
having ARM drivers.
It does work with Linux compatible WiFi adapters (I've had success
with both the Asus USB-N13 and OURLink 802.11 b/g/n adapters).
The power supply is a microUSB plug cell phone charger (700 ma or more
recommended) so that is easy.
Monitors would need their own power supply and these need about 20
watts (or more). The Raspberry Pi only has output for HDMI or
composite video (yellow RCA jack). It does not have VGA (15 pin)
component output.
The HDMI is very good quality and the composite is rather poor quality.
Older monitors may not have HDMI capability.

As far as Chromium support, the software ecosystem is maturing quickly
so I assume that it has been fixed recently since it definitely works
now.

Also, to make a more complete workstation, I've installed Abiword
(lightweight word processor) and gnumeric (lightweight spreadsheet).
Gnumeric reads the Excel format files which DHIS outputs so can be
used for lightweight data manipulation. Both of these programs work
well.

You could also install one of the lightweight email clients for ARM
such as Claws or Sylpheed to give it email capability.

This looks promising.

/Mark

···

On Sat, Oct 13, 2012 at 10:13 PM, Knut Staring <knutst@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks for this summary, Mark, very interesting.

I assume our typical setup of getting mobile internet through a USB
dongle would work well.

I wonder about options for power supply and inexpensive monitors
(which also requires a power supply.

Not sure why they say "None of the browsers for Raspbian “wheezy”
support HTML5", since you had no problem running Chrome.
Raspberry Pi Documentation

Knut

On Sun, Oct 14, 2012 at 1:02 AM, Mark Spohr <mhspohr@gmail.com> wrote:

I just thought you might be interested in the results of my tests of
the Raspberry Pi computer for DHIS.
It works great!
I used the current recommended software (Raspbian Wheezy) and
installed the Chrome browser (apt-get install chromium-browser).
I used the DHIS2.org Demo site (Sierra Leone data).
The site loads quickly, data entry and validation are fast. Reports
run well and are displayed properly.
I also tested offline data entry which works great. I disconnected
the network and it went into offline mode; I entered some data then
reconnected the network; it then told me I was back online and there
was data to upload. I clicked upload and all was good.

In a way, this doesn't surprise me since DHIS is designed to do most
of the work on the server and has very lightweight requirements for
the browser, client computer and network. Good to see that this all
works very well in practice.

The Raspberry Pi is a small (credit card sized) computer based on a
Broadcom ARM chip. It's similar to most tablets and smartphones. It
costs just $35.00. You need to add a keyboard and mouse plus a
monitor (HDMI or composite video). It uses an SD card for program and
data storage (you can also add USB memory).

This would make an ideal low cost computer for data entry. It has
very low power requirements (about 3 watts).
Since it's Linux, you don't have to worry about malware. This is a
great dedicated data entry terminal.

The supply of these has been tight since they were released earlier
this year but supply seems to have caught up with demand recently and
they are available from distributors.
See their web site for more information: www.raspberrypi.org

This computer works great for DHIS but is slow with complex web sites
(gmail does work but is very slow).
It does do a good job with video since it has a nice graphics processor.

Anyway, nice to see there is a good inexpensive option for running DHIS!

Kind regards,
Mark

--
Mark Spohr, MD
mhspohr@gmail.com
+1 530 554 2230

_______________________________________________
Mailing list: DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
Post to : dhis2-users@lists.launchpad.net
Unsubscribe : DHIS 2 Users in Launchpad
More help : ListHelp - Launchpad Help

--
Knut Staring
Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo
+4791880522
http://dhis2.org

--
Mark Spohr, MD
mhspohr@gmail.com
+1 530 554 2230