Using LIFX Color LED Strips and the Bardolph Scripting Language to Create Holiday-Themed Window Shows
By Perry Piazza
Hi. My name is Perry and I am helping Al with the Bardolph project. Articles that I write will cover my experiences with Bardolph.
Introduction
I recently picked up two open-box LIFX 40” Multicolor LED Strips for about $25 each on eBay. This is a pretty good deal since they normally retail for about $50 each. Good news! They both worked perfectly and looked unused. LIFX uses premium LEDs and components in their strips, and it really shows in terms of color and brightness. The strips arrived in early April and Easter was coming up, so I thought I’d create an Easter-themed display for one of the windows in our home that could be seen from either inside or outside. A basic “show” was easy enough to “conjure-up” using the LIFX app on my iPhone, but in order to turn it up a couple of notches I used the LIFX scripting language called Bardolph. Think of Bardolph as a compact, postscript-type programming tool for controlling LIFX lighting devices. Disclaimer: I am affiliated with Bardolph Automation, Inc. and friends with the creator / programmer.
As I was creating the Easter scripts, I got to thinking, why don’t I create light shows for other holidays as well so that I have them at the ready for all of my favorite holidays. So I did just that. And here’s how you can replicate this project and make it your own.
If you’d really like to master the Bardolph scripting language, a good first step would be to acquaint yourself with the extensive, well-written documentation which can be found here (a google search of “LIFX Bardolph” will find it quickly as well). Bardolph is implemented in Python and will require your computer to have both Python and Bardolph installed. And if you plan on running scripts either continuously (for example, daily day/night routines) or via a web server, you’ll want to do so via an “always on” computer. This can be a low-powered SBC (single board computer) like a Raspberry Pi (the “Pi”) running a Linux Distro, which is what I used. A Pi has the advantage of consuming very little electricity and can serve as a smart home hub to control other smart devices as well.