13 yo new user can't get it flying

[Dogboy2001]

I am trying to help my son get the Crazyflie 2.0 flying. Neither of us have programming experience at this point. We intend to use it with a PC running Window 8. We did get the driver to install using Zadig which we found in another post in this forum. However we are both still sitting looking at a micro quad with flashing lights and we don't know what to do next. We saw some information regarding a PC Client but can't find it. Is there an interface or program we need to download? What do we need to do to at least getting it flying using the computer and our controller? I have search all the info I could find since Christmas but I still can't help him. It seems all the info is over my head.

[chad]

Here's the high-level view:

If you are using a PC with a Crazyradio (do you have a Crazyradio dongle? You need one for controlling with a PC): A controller (Xbox, PS3 or PS4) plugs into a PC and talks to the Crazyflie 2.0 GUI cient telling it what controls are being touched. The Crazyradio plugs into the PC and the client talks to it telling it what the controller is doing. The Crazyradio talks to the Crazyflie, telling it what the client is doing. The Crazyflie responds with the right action.

If you are using a mobile phone: The Mobile client talks directly to the Crazyflie and transmits your gestures as control input and the Crazyflie responds.

The quickest way for you guys to get flying right now is likely by using a mobile device... Indeed, unless you have a Crazyradio, it is the only way.

Do you have an Adroid phone (look at the compatibility list here), or an iPhone (5 or higher)? You can use the Bluetooth low-energy (LE) capability in those phones to control the Crazyflie 2.0. For iPhone it's a simple as downloading the Crazyflie app from the app store (free - as in beer), turning on the Crazyflie, and hitting the "Connect" link at the top of the app. For Android, you can get the app at the Google Play store and follow the instructions here. The mobile clients will get you up and flying quickest.

I'm not a Windows user so I don't know if new installer binaries of the GUI client have been posted by the Bitcraze guys yet. If they haven't, you'll have to install Python and some dependencies, download the GUI client code yourself, then run it. You can get Python 2 for Windows here. Then you can download the Crazyflie GUI client here. The instructions here and here should be applicable.

All this may sound quite complicated but bear in mind, the Crazyflie truly is a development platform. You can certainly use it as a fun quad-copter but people have done quite amazing things with theirs and others have even completed Master's theses with theirs...