Introduction

The smallest, most inexpensive member of the Raspberry Pi family, the Zero, has once again improved upon its promise of computer accessibility to everyone in the world. At 40 percent of the size of the larger Raspberry Pis and a fraction of the cost (around 5 US dollars), the Raspberry Pi Zero opens more doors to portability, data collection, and experimentation while being affordable so that anyone can get started, anywhere, on learning about computers, Linux, and the Internet of Things.

With such a small form factor, there are some sacrifices made compared to the full-size Raspberry Pi. It uses the same single-core chip as the original Pi, so it is a bit slower than today's quad-core models. It also has limited physical connections, at least by default, compared to the larger Pi models. This chapter will explore some of the differences and how to work around them and get your Raspberry Pi Zero set up for more interesting recipes. The recipes here will focus on getting familiar with the Raspberry Pi Zero board, deciding on an operating system and methods for creating your first SD card, and getting enough things connected so you can start using your Zero.