Getting and Installing the Software

In order to start this course you are going to need access to the Arduino IDE software. An IDE is an integrated development environment where you code your programs, debug them and upload them to your Arduino board. This software is free and open-source.

As of writing this, the latest version of this software is V2.2.1 but any version 2.x.x should work the same. Download the software by visiting https://www.arduino.cc/en/software and choose the correct version for your computer’s operating system.

Once you have downloaded and installed this software come back to this course. The Arduino community have produced an installation guide if you need it.

If you are using a Chromebook, the full IDE is not available to use. However, you can use the Arduino Web Editor and although things will look different, most programs should still function perfectly well. This can also work if your computer’s security settings prevent you from installing software.

You may have the Legacy IDE (V1.8.x) installed on your machine already. This will work and you do not have to update to the newer version. However, some of the commands will be in different places and some functionality will be different.  It is recommended that you upgrade to the 2.2.x versions if you can.