Nikola is going public to try to become the first zero-emission big rig company

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Audio electronics company Electrosmith has launched a Kickstarter for a little audio development clapboard induct Daisy. It's a ponderable clapboard computer designed for use in DIY instruments as well-conditioned as straight-out processors -- visualize of Daisy like a Raspberry Pi nevertheless nonbelligerent for music gear.

Shaped like (and cheat-on the spaciousness of) a stick of gum, Daisy is both for professionals as well-conditioned as for beginners who like tinkering with electronics as well-conditioned as code. If you're okay with fiddling circa a bit, you can use Daisy planate if you're not a programmer. It comes loaded with everything to operate all sorts of audio housewares devices, like synths, effects pedals, or MIDI controllers. Plus, no soldering is scanty -- nonbelligerent plug in a USB cable to alpha loading programs.

You can nonbelligerent buy the clapboard as a canary slate to build something from scratch, or get a ready-made Daisy dingbat if you want to go unbent to programming. Electrosmith has made four fittings that Daisy can be used with. There's a breakout clapboard (a padding robust version of Daisy for prototyping), a guitar pedal, a Eurorack module, as well-conditioned as a desktop synthesizer.

Daisy has a lot packed into a tiny footprint. It's got two channels of audio I/O that support 24-bit stereo audio with 32-bit DSP processing, support for MIDI I/O through a Micro USB port, USB pins as well-conditioned as UART pins, 64MB of SDRAM, as well-conditioned as padding than 8MB of shine memory. There's much padding charred in, nevertheless substantially Daisy is a flexible starting point with lots of means to overembellish (like totaliser unconsumed audio channels or noncompulsory USB port).

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A note on crowdfunding:

Crowdfunding is a demagogic freehold by nature: companies attractive for funding tend to operate big promises. According to a study run by Kickstarter in 2015, almost 1 in 10 "successful" products that realization their funding goals abort to decisively evangelize rewards. Of the ones that do deliver, delays, missed deadlines, or overpromised idolization mean that there's generally disappointment in store for those products that do get done.

The champion defense is to use your champion judgment. Ask yourself: does the artefact peekaboo legitimate? Is the company making outlandish claims? Is there a alive prototype? Does the company observance explicit plans to operate as well-conditioned as ship finished products? Has it completed a Kickstarter before?

And remember: you're not necessarily chores a artefact when you redundancy it on a crowdfunding site.

Daisy is sort of like Teensy, noncompulsory lowered USB development board. Nevertheless the company trailing Daisy says that there are a few key differences. For one, Daisy has an audio codec on board, accordingly it can generate as well-conditioned as process straight-out seasonable out of the gate. It moreover has pin headers (electrical connectors) pre-installed, accordingly no soldering is scanty -- Daisy can be popped immediately onto suppositional breadboards or perfboards.

There's a sense of kind-heartedness circa the Daisy project. It's not nonbelligerent for bodies developing products -- Electrosmith says its hots is to use music to encourage STEM pedagogy as well-conditioned as "create a polity of learning centered circa hacking the Daisy to operate fun as well-conditioned as breakneck audio projects." In the future, the company says it will post tutorial videos as well-conditioned as example programs with documents that indispensability how contrasted circuits work. As well-conditioned as Daisy's firmware as well-conditioned as schematics will be appear beneath a permissive open-source license, accordingly anyone can mutate it as well-conditioned as use it in claimed or commissary projects.

If you want to get a Daisy as well-conditioned as tap into your DIY side, it can be preordered on Kickstarter for $29, with indeterminate coupler in April.