Project ByTeMoRe

TL:DR; I needed a way to control iTunes without touching the computer, so I create a wireless BlueTooth remote using a cheap BlueTooth module, a microcontroller programmed in BASIC, an array of buttons, and a 20 column 4 row screen from Adafruit.

Project ByTeMoRe was born from an idea I had some years ago, out of frustration. My problem was that I was, and still am, both a music lover and a game player. Unfortunately, most games do not like being minimized; most react badly, taking quite some time to display again once restored; but I needed to do this to change the song or check its title. Essentially, I wanted to be able to manipulate the song that was playing when I was gaming, and because of said game behavior I could not.

My primary computer at the time was a custom built desktop, and as such I had no restrictions on how I might wish to modify it. My idea was essentially quite simple. Cut up a spare front panel cover, re-cycle an old floppy disk drive mount, and add a handful of buttons connected to a PICAXE 20X2 Microcontroller (64MHz, programmed in a flavor of BASIC). Unfortunately, the design was subject to feature creep, and I was soon planning to add a screen and a cheap BlueTooth module. Multiple circuit diagrams later, I was ready to begin soldering.

My first problem with my ambitious idea was that the screen was... rather difficult to solder. Happy with my work, I powered it up... and nothing happened. After quite some time spent sweating and swearing, I transplanted the setup to a spare breadboard, and managed to convince the screen to operate. I here ran into another problem; my two programs, one running on the computer communicating with iTunes written in python, the other on the micro polling the buttons and attempting to control the screen written in BASIC, were having some trouble communicating. At this point, I was yet to add the BlueTooth module to the setup, as I needed no more problematic factors. My problem was now that the program on the micro was always waiting for information from the computer to update the screen, and so wasn't polling the buttons ☹! But now I was starting to get annoyed, and it started to sound much easier to simply put the project in a box for another day. And till this day, that is where it rests.

It remains unfinished.

Also, ByTeMoRe is an acronym, once you remove the lowercase letters; BlueTooth Media Remote :D

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