litteBits Cloudbit

I recently bought a CLOUDBIT kit from littleBits and it's expected to arrive in a few days. What interested me the most is the application they advertise for a doorbell switch that will send you a text message when the switch is pressed. The idea is to indicate someone is at your door even if you aren't home at the time.

I found this idea interesting because there are so many projects where I'd like to receive a text message indicating something timed out or a process completed. That way I don't have to sit and monitor it or check back often. One such process is 3D prints. When a print is done I'd like to receive a text message letting me know.

littleBits CLOUDBIT Module

I've read about multiple different modules that allow you to connect to the internet but I found most of them very confusing. That was until I found littleBits. The module has a linux computer on-board so this is more than just a little plug and play module, it's a very complicated module that reduces the internet access down to a high/low signal.

The module relies on an internet service called IFTTT which stands for If That Then This. I've visited the site and it appears to be some kind of scripting language setup that allows you to easily create actions based on various inputs and outputs all connected through the internet. I hope to understand it a lot better when I get the CLOUDBIT running on my Davinci 3D printer so stay tuned if you have any interest in this type of project.