First setup of the Mathboard

The Mathboard almost works straight out of the box, but there are some initial setup tasks that must be performed. These tasks will depend on the computer that you intend to use the Mathboard with.

Software

If you intend to use the Mathboard on an Apple Mac or any Linux-based operating system, you can skip to the Firmware section. If you intend to use the Mathboard on a Windows computer, you must first install the lightweight application WinCompose which provides support for Unicode input.

Firmware

The firmware of the Mathboard must match the keyboard layout of the computer on which you intend to use it with. This is a consequence of both how operating systems interpret keycodes from keyboards, and the inability of the Mathboard to automatically deduce the keyboard layout of the computer it is plugged in to.

You must therefore upload, or “flash”, a version of the firmware that matches your keyboard layout. Start by figuring out your keyboard layout (google can help you here). Then go to the latest release and download the firmware file for your keyboard layout. Then, plug in the Mathboard and press the reset button (found on the bottom) for at least half a second. When you release the reset button, a folder will open on your computer. Place the firmware file in this folder to flash it to the Mathboard. The folder will automatically close when finished, and the Mathboard will reboot. Done!

Warning

Since the Mathboard is not fully released yet you must build your own firmware if you use a keyboard layout other than US ANSI.

Setting the OS switch

Each operating system [OS] interprets Unicode input differently. The Mathboard must therefore be configured to output Unicode that the OS can understand. Using the illustration on the bottom of the Mathboard, place the OS switch on the back of the Mathboard to the OS your computer is running.