Joining the Pi4J team

In my book “Getting Started with Java on Raspberry Pi” I dedicated a chapter on Pi4J, the leading framework to combine the power of Java with the hardware capabilities of the Raspberry Pi. This project which was started in 2012 by Robert Savage, evolved during the years to be able to support all the different Raspberry Pi-versions and many types of hardware components.

In 2019 rework started for a V2-version which should bring the functions of the library back to the core: supporting all the Pi’s and I/O functions. As the underlying library WiringPi got deprecated, the new version will use PiGpio. A system of plugins will allow to support other boards next to the Pi and all types of hardware as stand-alone project, making it a lot easier to keep the core project stable.

To assist Robert in the maintenance of the Pi4J project and to finish the build of the new version, I recently joined the team of this open-source project. While I get into the code, I will first focus on the documentation on the new website, organizing the stuff to be done, etc.

Other volunteers are also interested in contributing so I really believe the second version of Pi4J, the new 8Gb Raspberry Pi 4 and the upcoming 64-bit Raspberry Pi OS will make this an inexpensive but powerfull combination. It will allow us all to build more impressive personal and professional projects combining hard- and (Java-)software.