Getting Started with BlocklyProp Solo

What it’s about
BlocklyProp Solo is a visual online programming tool. It works with robots and development boards that have a Propeller 1 Multicore Microcontroller brain, such as the ActivityBot 360° and Propeller FLiP module.
BlocklyProp lets you build Propeller programs graphically, piece by piece. Specialized blocks support sensors, servo motors, displays, and more, making it quick and easy to learn programming for new hardware and create complex projects.
What you need to get started
- A Windows, Mac, or Chromebook computer with a USB 2.0 compatible port
- Permission to install BlocklyProp Launcher software (*Schools may need IT assistance)
- Chrome browser (Explorer and Edge are not supported)
- A Propeller board with its USB programming cable, such as:
NEED HELP? Email support@parallax.com. Teachers can call the Educator Hotline (916) 701-8625.
*The Launcher allows a USB connection for downloading code to your Propeller board. BlocklyProp Solo and the Launcher do not require any login, and do not collect any user data at all.
BlocklyProp Launcher
Even though BlocklyProp Solo is an online programming tool, it nees a utility on your computer to make the USB programming connection with your Propeller board.
Installing the Launcher Ahead of Time
- Download and install the BlocklyProp Launcher for Windows or Mac, or get the extension for Chromebook, from the Parallax store site, and then run it. Or, if it is already on your computer, run it now.
BlocklyProp Launcher Downloads
You can also get the latest Launcher for your system through BlocklyProp Solo itself, by making your first project – just follow the steps below. If you have the launcher installed, just skip what doesn’t apply.
Open BlocklyProp Solo

- In the window that opens, type in a Project Name.
- From the dropdown menu, select your Propeller board type.
- Click Continue.

The BlockyProp Solo editor pane will open up. If you have not installed the Launcher ahead of time, you will see a pink alert bar with the message “BlocklyProp Launcher not found. Click here for instructions.”
- If you see the pink alert bar, click on it and continue with the instructions below.
- If you instead see the message “Select the correct port…” skip to the next page.

A download instruction window for BlocklyProp Launcher will open. Under Download the Installer, you should see options for your operating system.
- RIGHT-Click the installer link for your operating system and choose Copy Link Address (If it is not shown, click “Choose a different operating system” to find the best option.)

- OPEN A NEW BROWSER TAB and paste the link address into it.
- Follow the prompts to save the Launcher file to your Windows or Mac computer, or if on a Chromebook, follow the prompts to install.
- If you downloaded an .exe file for Windows, click on the file to start installation.
- If you downloaded a .zip file for Mac or Windows, extract the file first.
- A Setup Wizard will open. Click the Next buttons to follow the prompts through installation.

- Accept default installation with FTDI drivers. Click Finish when complete.
- If you are on a Mac computer, bookmark this page and also https://solo.parallax.com. Reboot and come back!
- Open the Launcher from the desktop icon or from your Start menu, if it is not already running.
- The Status button should turn green and say “Connected!” DON’T CLICK ANY BUTTONS HERE THIS TIME!

- Now, you can return to BlocklyProp Solo in your Chrome browser. Go to the next page to connect your hardware and run your first project.
Connect and Program
Now you have BlocklyProp Solo open in Chrome and the Launcher and drivers installed. It’s time to connect your hardware and run your first project.
Connect your Hardware
- Connect your Propeller board to your computer’s USB port with its programming cable. Below are the Propeller FLiP module on a breadboard (left) and Propeller Activity Board WX (right).


- Connect the other end of the USB cable to your computer’s USB port. Both the Propeller Activity Board and the Propeller FLiP module are powered through the USB connection.
- If you are using an Activity Board, you will also need to move the power switch to position 1:

Create a Project
BlocklyProp programs are also called “projects.” In the Edit pane, you build a project by making selections from the gray block menu to the right of the Edit pane.
- Click Communicate, then Terminal.

- A palette of Terminal blocks will appear. Notice that if you hover over a block, a yellow flyover message will give you hints about its use.
- Click on the Terminal print text block to place it in the Editor pane.

- From the port dropdown menu, select the COM port connected to your Propeller board.

- Click the arrow button to run the project once. (It won’t be saved to the memory on your Propeller board.)

A terminal should open up, showing the “Hello!” messsage.

- If you instead get an error message like the one below:
- Check to make sure your USB cable is connect to both the board and the computer.
- If you are using the Propeller Activity Board WX, make sure its Power switch is in position 1 or 2.
- Check the port number in the error message. Then, check the port options in the BlocklyProp dropdown. If there is another port listed there, try it instead.

- Back in the Edit pane, click inside the Terminal print text block and change the Hello message to something else.
- Also check the new line box at the end of the block.

- Click the Load RAM arrow button again to see your new message displayed.
Saving Projects
There are two basic places where you can save the BlocklyProp projects you create: on your computer, and on your Propeller board’s EEPROM memory. Let’s look at the latter first.
Saving to the Propeller Board EEPROM
When you used the green arrow to run your project, you were loading into RAM. You may have seen the flyover text when you clicked the button (left), or you may have noticed the Load Into RAM popup before the Terminal (right)

RAM, or Random Access Memory, is volatile, meaning it does not retain data if power is interrupted. If you run a project in RAM and then turn your board off and on again, the project will not run again because it is erased from the Propeller microcontroller’s RAM.
The Propeller Activity Board WX, Propeller FLiP, and similar development boards have an EEPROM chip connected to the Propeller microcontroller. EEPROM, or Electrically Erasable Read Only Memory, is non-volatile. When you load a project into EEPROM, it stays there even if the power is cycled, until you write over it with new data. Let’s try it.
- Make sure your Propeller board still connected to your computer, with the power switch on if it has one.
- Run your Terminal print text project again by clicking the Load and run button.

Notice the message now says Load into EEPROM briefly before the terminal opens.

- Press the Reset button on your Propeller board (above the switch on the Propeller Activity Board, or on the edge opposite the USB connector on the FLiP). This interrupts power and resets the Propeller microcontroller.

Each time you press the button, the message will reprint in the Terminal.
Saving to the Computer
It is good practice to save your BlocklyProp projects to your computer frequently while you work. In fact, a message will pop up every 20 minutes to remind you. Once you load a project to your Propeller board EEPROM, you cannot get the project out and back into BlocklyProp.

- Use the Save As dialog to choose a file storage folder, and to rename your project if you like. BlocklyProp Solo saves projects as a specialized .svg file type.
- If your browser is set to automatically download to a default location, the file will be stored there. If there is already a file by that name, it will append a number to the end, such as Hello (1).svg.
- To use a saved file, just click the Open button and browse to the file.
