Unidirectional Texts

Time to choose your hardware setup!

  • Complete one of these:
    • Option 1: Connect each micro:bit to a different computer.
      • Use USB cables to connect a micro:bit to each computer.
      • In each computer, open the python.microbit.org editor, click the Connect button, and set up the connection.
    • Option 2: Connect the micro:bit modules to different USB ports on the same computer.
      • Use USB cables to connect two micro:bits to two USB ports on your computer.
      • Open two separate chrome browsers, and take each one to python.microbit.org.
      • Click the Connect button in one browser, choose one micro:bit from the list, and confirm by clicking Connect in the dialog.
      • Click the Connect button in the other browser, choose the other micro:bit from the list, and confirm by clicking Connect in the dialog.

If you accidentally connect both browsers to the same micro:bit, you might need to unplug/replug their UB cables and repeat the browser connecting steps.

It is time to decide which micro:bit you want to be the sender and which one you want to be the receiver. You will start with the browser connected to the receiver micro:bit

  • Open the receive_radio_test_message in the receiver micro:bit.
  • Update the script to your assigned channel if you are working in a classroom setting. (Each pair of students should share a channel.  Channels should be evenly spaced in the 0...83 range.)
  • Flash the script.
  • Click the Open Serial button, and make sure the terminal displays the micro:bit radio receiver message.  

Now, you will use the browser connected to the sender micro:bit.

  • Enter, save, and flash the text_terminal_to_radio script to the sender micro:bit.
# text_terminal_to_radio

from microbit import *
import radio

radio.on()
radio.config(channel = 7)

sleep(1000)

print("micro:bit radio sender")

while True:
    message = input("Send: ")
    radio.send(message)
  • Click the Open Serial button.
  • Verify that the “micro:bit radio sender” messages is printed.
  • Click in the transmitter terminal next to the Send: prompt and type a message like  Hello! And press Enter.
  • Verify that the receiver micro:bit’s terminal displays Receive:  Hello!
  • Try typing some more messages and verify that the receiver micro:bit is receiving them.
  • Try sending longer messages. Do all the characters make it through? How many can go through in one message?

Sender terminal


Receiver terminal