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Amazon's Raspberry Pi Guide Lets Coders Build An Echo (bbc.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from BBC: Amazon has published an online guide explaining how to access its virtual assistant Alexa via a Raspberry Pi. The walkthrough includes access to the necessary app data and certificates in order to link the budget computer up to the tech giant's servers. Amazon says that users require at least the second-generation model, released in February 2015, as well as: a plug-in USB microphone, microSD card, ethernet cable, Wi-Fi wireless adapter, mouse, keyboard, and screen. The coding involved is limited to typing in sets of commands, but the guide explains the purpose of each one. Users also need to register for an Amazon Developer Account, which they can get for free.
Just built one of these today actually. Only took me about 2 hours to get through setting up the Amazon keys/policies and the pi software and get it to successfully connect.
There are 3 things that do make it a little bit of a pain-
1- The setup is client/server with the client using Java and the server using Node.js. So there's multiple config files and dependencies to set up, hence multiple points of failure. This can make troubleshooting more difficult if there are issues.
2- you have to log onto Amazon.com via a web browser and generate a token EVERY time you start the Java client. This is noticeably awkward and an extra step. (I don't know how long the token lasts either.)
3- The license terms prohibit having the unit always listening like the Echo does. So you have to press a button or interact with the device somehow to activate 'listen' mode.
For the most part these are limitations that I can understand. Amazon is providing sample code for Alexa AVS to try to increase adoption. The github repo is designed for developers who want to incorporate Alexa into their products, not for end-users.