Geektoolkit

March Release and Dev Update

Note: Updated the release on 3/27 for a patch fix when using animated gifs.

The March release is here. I'll update the pinned post with the code (you'll always find the latest there). This is a 'code only' update so if you don't have a base image laid down, you'll want to start with that, and then apply this code.

The code for march is: pi2024Mar-fb-33f1cf3. This code goes into the 'store' page. Please see the pinned post for full instructions, the original base image, and links...

Quick Update on February Release

For those new to the Patreon, welcome! Please see the pinned post for the lates release. Welcome abord, you may want to check out the last few posts to catch up on where things are headed and see some cool demos.  Ok now for the good stuff...

If you're in the Discord and message QwkSilver, he has released an alpha release of the February release to the preview channel. Please message him for access.

For the non technical explanation....this release will be more stable, a bi...

New (early) Web UI preview

This is a VERY early peek at the new UI...it's not styled or finalized in any way.  We also have work going on for pi5/bootstrap OS updates, and currently in beta is yet another performance update from Bdlou.

This webUI is under a ton of development and I debated on showing it because it's so rough. But I am also learning that part of the fun is the 'behind the scenes' and seeing things in progress. So that's my goal here is to not show it done and pretty, but show the bit of a me...

January 2024 Release is here!

Please note this is a 'store only' release.  The pinned post is updated with all of the install instructions and docs:
January 2024 Release | Patreon

For those that are up and running and looking to update, please place the following code into the 'store' and hit the green button, you should see a progress bar after a bit and it should update from there:

pi2024Jan-4353bb3

<...

Jan Developer update - release imminent!

Hello Patreons, while I've been quiet here a TON is going on behind the scenes, and we're completing the release process for the next update. This update will be a 'code only' update, so you'll want the previous full release if you don't have it yet and then we'll have  a store code to get you the latest and greatest.  Let me talk about this release and then I'll talk about the other work going on for what's coming next!

Release Imminent - January updates

The January re...

Happy New Year! Latest progress

Welcome everyone to 2024! I hope everyone had a safe and fun holiday.  I wanted to kick off the year with an update of how things are progressing on some big items we're working on.  I'll work to update as we make progress, but please know that these are going to be big items to fix/update so we may be slow to release much till it's in a stable shape.  If you're on the discord and request to be in betas that's the best way to get early peeks at things as we do updates.  Th...

Latest news

Wow. I went out on a holiday vacation with my family, and while I was gone SO much happened, or is happening.  Here's the latest on the project, the next few months, some recent issues and more!


First up...this month:

This month we had 3 image packs released to the store.   "Lighthouses" are some nice photos for those that enjoy the guardians of the sea, "Middle of  a Journey" is some new AI artwork, and "Holiday Image pack" are some with ...

December Preview - Unsplash, Better thumbnails

Video update this time, but two main things are shown in this update:

Unsplash Plugin progress

Unsplash.com is a photo site which has some great high quality photos available.  I've compared it to Pixabay, which we have already working as a plugin, and have been really impressed by the quality of images that it can provide.  While it doesn't have Vectors or illustrations, it does have high quality photos that seem much more at home on a digital frame...

Latest Release

In this pinned post you'll find our latest releases, where to get docs, and how to join the Discord. Please note as of January 30, 2024 Discord invites to the server are automatic if you're accounts are connected.  

FAQ:
 When videos play I get a black screen, but pictures work fine

FIx:
 Please move your video cable to the other 'output'  on the Raspberry pi you're using, and reboot.

Docs:
2023-11-22 07:22:28 +0000 UTC View Post

November Mid Month Updates - Release immiment

Hey Patreons! Lots going on, so wanted to give some updates and answer some questions that have been asked directyl to me via messages as well as in the discord, as well as provide some updates on development.   The 'release imminent' posts are always my favorite...it means the work we've been doing for months is about to become something we can all enjoy!


Next update

First things first...a release is imminent.  All reviews are complete, we h...

Developer Plugin update - GPIOs, Buttons and enhancements

The plugin release is going through the review paces and more progress has been made.  Next up is a beta release, and then a few days later a full release with a full image for November.

Meanwhile I'm running through developing plugins or testing plugins to ensure that developers will have a ton of tools to use for extensability.   One important request that I wanted plugins to handle was the ability to talk to the pi via GPIOs to allow for different sensors, buttons and...

November Plugin Update Demo

This video is a demo of the scheduler, and the second plugin style which I call 'startup' plugins. Startup plugins start with Dynaframe and run alongside Dynaframe, whereas the content plugins are only  called when new content is requested (playlist updates essentially).  

This video is an end to end video as far as it shows how you'll be able to use the store to get a plugin, and then how to configure and use it.  The install, setup, etc. is all handled for you....my go...

Dynaframe Store update!

I just added a ton of content to the store, and tried to cover a bunch of different tastes. Of course there's geeky superhero and star wars (in the style of DaVinci) artwork, but also I added over 180 images from classic artists such as Rembrandt, Seguy, Monet, Renoir, Van Gogh and more!  If you haven't been to the store tab in your Dynaframe in a while, might be nice to take a look!  The Halloween downloads were fixed, and I've created some tools to make store updates MUCH easier (...

Halloween idea - Atmos FX content on Dynaframe

I realized today not everyone may be familiar with AtmosFX.  It's a company that makes what they call digital decorations, which are videos that can be projected or shown on displays.  One thing that's really nice is you can buy a pack, but you can also pick them up as individual scenes for about $10USD each (and sometimes if you sign up to their mailing list they give you a free one!).  I've confirmed that these files work on Dynaframe, and the unliving portraits above have wo...

Plugin progress - Scheduler

This was a request when Dynaframe pro first started, and it's something that I've wanted to do since then and have taken a few attempts at it, but never was happy with how it was being implemented.  The request was simple..."I want the screen on the frame to be able to turn on at a certain time, and off at a certain time".  

The spirit of Dynaframe is to make something that is very flexible, and my goal was to create a system where you could do more than turn it on or off, bu...

Home assistant with Dynaframe tutorial

This was requested so I threw together a quick tutorial of how I use home assistant 'scenes' via node red to control Dynaframe.  I can redo this if it's not clear or based on feedback, and hope to do a more formal one soon, but I wanted to unblock those that have been asking for how to control frames from Home assistant.  

For those that don't know, Home assistant is a home automation system that can be run on a raspberry pi and that allows for integrations with quite a large...

New Store Entries - Halloween edition!

So quick but fun update today...we have 2 image packs added to the store...one for "fun" images which include some anime, cartoon and slightly creepy but fun designs for the Halloween season.  I also created a pack that went as scary as I could create using some AI tools.  These are easy to install packs and can help get you into the season for Halloween.  I'll be working this month on some fall/seasonal based ones, as well as more holiday ones.  If we have any requests fo...

Raspberry Pi 5 announcement

https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/introducing-raspberry-pi-5/

I'm excited they're continuing to advance the performance and capabilities of the chipset. The team will order some to work to get support and such going as soon as possible.  That being said, we're going to continue to support Pi4's and work to keep Pi3 in the mix.  My goal as a developer would be to make Dynaframe p...

Dynaframe Pro Plugin Demo

This is the first of a few demo videos to introduce the concept of plugins and show where they're at.  There's still alot of work to be done, but we'll be releasing it as an alpha as soon as the code is reviewed.

Plugins will allow for Dynaframe to be extended to do a a lot of things that have been asked for, but that are challenging to implement into the engine either due to time or different needs.  Plugins allows us to have code that doesn't have to compete with internal ...

September release is ready

Docs:
https://tinyurl.com/Dynaframedoc 

Install video: https://www.patreon.com/posts/august-release-87367741 

Full image (For first time users or if upgrade doesn't work)
2023-09-18 10:39:13 +0000 UTC View Post

Plugin update and next releases

Hello there, it's been quiet but you'll see things fire up again around here as we get out of our summer dev cycle.  I want to talk a bit about the next update, and the status on the plugins.

September will have a beta come out imminently which will become the beta release. This adds the ability to control the video settings that were added in the August release...this is for advanced users who are willing to risk performance or stability in exchange for trying to play 60fps video ...

August MidMonth update - Plugin progress

Note: this update is a bit 'developer focused'.  If it sounds very technical, it's not our normal style of updates, but the audience are developers that will want to extend Dynaframe in the near future.

I've talked about plugins for maybe a year now...actually implemented them and then realized that the way I did it wasn't something that a developer could efficiently build, and it was based on c#.  I scrapped the whole thing and started over about 2 months ago, and this month...

August Release, and intro video

We have the August release ready to go!  If you're new please start here...the above video will help you get started quickly, and this doc will get you started with how to use the software:

 https://tinyurl.com/Dynaframedoc

Full image (for first timers, or if the updater doesn't work)

2023-08-08 07:44:59 +0000 UTC View Post

Store update!

The Dynaframe Pro Store has been updated with content and the entire backend was rewritten this month so we can get more content to it faster.  You can find a directly link to the store here: JSON Data Grid (geek-toolkit.com)

While we call it a store, the concept behind it was to make it easier for users to get content onto frames.  For now the store content is all either AI generated, content I've bee...

Quick update

I planned on an update for the software but have come down with covid. I’m on the upswing but it’ll be a few days before I’m back up to post an update. Replies to messages will be slow till then. We do have updates that will go into the next release to help with reported pain points and I have a next steps draft I’ll publish soon after.

Thankyou for your patience

Joe

July release is ready! Get it here!

July release is ready to go!  First things first...

For newcomers, please start here:

Documentation, getting started, how to use...please start here: https://tinyurl.com/Dynaframedoc 

Full image download: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gzmw8xxPPaq4SQ-Kvs-w73IQ949Ar...

Important update about billing, and the next release

I just was made aware of something that I just fixed which will change how billing is processed for this Patreon (in a good way!).  Also, we have the June release imminent, targeting 6/27 once the full image is tested.

Billing update

The way Patreon defaults for billing, charges are done on the 1st of the month.  I thought that was great and made sense, but the problem is if someone joines on say the 30th of the month, they get billed immediately, and then they get bill...

Mid June Update

We had a few of us away on vacation and have been back and starting to get into the next things. We had a very very bad bug in the last release related to overlays that was caught in beta, and we've re-released the beta with a fix there. When that testing is complete we'll wrap that up and get it out in the next week as the next release. This is still the one that has HEIC support, image extension filters and more.  It's just been a bear to get out.

Once that's out we'll pivot bac...

May end of Month update

Next image update

The Beta for May made it out on the Discord, and is in testing.  I'll be pushing to release in the first to second week of June based on feedback.   If you're new to the Patreon we release betas via Discord towards the end of the month with the goal of releasing at the end of the month or the beginning. Due to some vacations and giving it a bit of extra time, we'll be a bit later (1 week) than normal this month, but we will work to get b...

May End of month updates - Beta approaching

I wanted to give an update of where we are with the next update.  The beta is something we're working day by day to get out, but we have a few bugs that we want to finish up so that when we go to testing we can release...at this point the release would be early June. I'll do a feature walk through in a few days so you know what all is expected.    I'm excited for features like HEIC support, and we've done a ton of work around EXIF data.  We have some cool overlay work...