How to Get Started with Arduino

What is Arduino :

Arduino is an open-source electronics platform based on easy-to-use hardware and software. Arduino boards can read input light on a sensor, a finger on a button, or a Twitter message and turn it into an output activating a motor, turning on an LED, or publishing something online. You can tell your board what to do by sending a set of instructions to the microcontroller on the board. You use the Arduino programming language (based on Wiring), and the Arduino Software (IDE), based on Processing.

Over the years Arduino has been the brain of thousands of projects, from everyday objects to complex scientific instruments. A worldwide community of makers - students, hobbyists, artists, programmers, and professionals has gathered around this open-source platform, their contributions have added up to an incredible amount of accessible knowledge that can be of great help to novices and experts alike.

Arduino was Invented By :

Arduino was Invented By Massimo Banzi in 2005. Massimo Banzi is an interaction designer, educator, open-source hardware pioneer, and TED speaker. His background is in electrical engineering, but he spent most of his early career working as a software architect before spending four years at the Interaction Design Institute Ivrea as an Associate Professor. Ivrea Interaction Design Institute is an easy tool for fast prototyping, aimed at students without a background in electronics and programming. As soon as it reached a wider community, the Arduino board started changing to adapt to new needs and challenges, differentiating its offer from simple 8-bit boards to products for IoT applications, wearable, 3D printing, and embedded environments.

Where is Arduino made?

All Arduino boards and Arduino shields are manufactured in Scarmagno, Italy, a small town near the Olivetti factories on the outskirts of Torino. And Now it is manufactured everywhere. In India, it is mainly manufactured in Kolkata.

Types of Arduino :

There are four(4) Arduino boards and four(4) Arduino shields. They are mentioned below.

Arduino Board	Processor	Analogue I/O
Arduino Uno	16Mhz ATmega328	6 input, 0 output
Arduino Due	84MHz AT91SAM3X8E	12 input, 2 output
Arduino Mega	16MHz ATmega2560	16 input, 0 output
Arduino Leonardo	16MHz ATmega32u4	12 input, 0 output

Which is best :

Arduino UNO is the most popular and best-selling Arduino board. As mentioned, this board is equipped with an ATMEGA328 microcontroller. It has standard female pin headers with 2.54 mm spacing and is compatible with various shields.