# OSHWA Project Display With Adafruit MagTag

## Overview

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/105/408/medium800/projects_4-Adafruit-Open-Source-Hardware-Logo.jpg?1634138069)

October is open-source month. What better way to celebrate it than by using open-source hardware and software to celebrate all of the amazing open-source hardware that's been certified by OSHWA over the last few years!

In this project, you'll program an Adafruit MagTag to display one project from OSHWA every hour. You'll display the title of the project, the description, and a QR code you can easily scan to look at the full project.

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/105/414/medium800thumb/projects_ezgif.com-gif-maker_%289%29.jpg?1634144760)

## Parts
This kit contains all the necessary parts except for a USB cable

### Adafruit MagTag Starter Kit - ADABOX017 Essentials

[Adafruit MagTag Starter Kit - ADABOX017 Essentials](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4819)
The **Adafruit MagTag** combines the new ESP32-S2 wireless module and a 2.9" grayscale E-Ink display to make a low-power IoT display that can show data on its screen even when power is removed! The ESP32-S2 is great because it builds on the years of code and support for the...

In Stock
[Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4819)
[Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/4819/guides)
![MagTag dev board with enclosure pieces, four magnet feet, and lipoly battery](https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/640x480/4819-02.jpg)

Or get the pieces separately:

### Adafruit MagTag - 2.9" Grayscale E-Ink WiFi Display

[Adafruit MagTag - 2.9" Grayscale E-Ink WiFi Display](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4800)
The Adafruit MagTag combines the ESP32-S2 wireless module and a 2.9" grayscale E-Ink display to make a low-power IoT display that can show data on its screen even when power is removed! The ESP32-S2 is great because it builds on the years of code and support for the ESP32 and also adds...

In Stock
[Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4800)
[Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/4800/guides)
![Angled shot of rectangle-shaped electronic ink display breakout with the text: "MAGTAG 2025 Edition with SSD1680 Chipset"](https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/640x480/4800-10.jpg)

### Mini Magnet Feet for RGB LED Matrices (Pack of 4)

[Mini Magnet Feet for RGB LED Matrices (Pack of 4)](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4631)
Got a glorious&nbsp;RGB Matrix project you want to mount and display in your workspace or home? If you have one of the matrix panels listed below, you'll need a pack of these **Mini-Magnet Feet.** &nbsp;We got these specifically&nbsp;for our RGB LED Matrices, which no longer...

In Stock
[Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4631)
[Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/4631/guides)
![Angled shot of four magnet feet.](https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/640x480/4631-00.jpg)

### Lithium Ion Polymer Battery with Short Cable - 3.7V 420mAh

[Lithium Ion Polymer Battery with Short Cable - 3.7V 420mAh](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4236)
Lithium-ion polymer (also known as 'lipo' or 'lipoly') batteries are thin, light, and powerful. The output ranges from 4.2V when completely charged to 3.7V. This battery has a capacity of 420mAh for a total of about 1.55 Wh. If you need a larger (or smaller!) battery, <a...></a...>

In Stock
[Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4236)
[Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/4236/guides)
![Lithium Ion Polymer Battery 3.7v 420mAh with JST 2-PH connector and short cable](https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/640x480/4236-04.jpg)

This is optional, but useful if you want to secure the battery to the MagTag.

### Clear Adhesive Squares - 6 pack

[Clear Adhesive Squares - 6 pack](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4813)
 **UGlu Dashes** &nbsp;are perfect for a variety of small projects. These adhesive squares provide a stronger bond to most surfaces and are cleaner and easier to remove&nbsp;without the wait, mess, or hassle.

Adheres to a wide variety of surfaces, including, but not limited...

In Stock
[Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4813)
[Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/4813/guides)
![ 6 pack of Clear Adhesive Squares](https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/640x480/4813-01.jpg)

Last but not least, make sure to pick up a USB-C cable, if you don't already have one.

### USB Type A to Type C Cable - 1ft - 0.3 meter

[USB Type A to Type C Cable - 1ft - 0.3 meter](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4473)
As technology changes and adapts, so does Adafruit. This&nbsp;&nbsp; **USB Type A to Type C** cable will help you with the transition to USB C, even if you're still totin' around a USB Type A hub, computer or laptop.

USB C is the latest industry-standard connector for...

Out of Stock
[Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/4473)
[Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/4473/guides)
![Angled shot of a one-foot-long, black, USB Type A to Type C Cable](https://cdn-shop.adafruit.com/640x480/4473-02.jpg)

# OSHWA Project Display With Adafruit MagTag

## Install CircuitPython

Danger: Make sure that you [update the TinyUF2 Bootloader](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag/update-tinyuf2-bootloader-for-circuitpython-10-4mb-boards-only) before installing CircuitPython!

### Adafruit MagTag - Update TinyUF2 Bootloader for CircuitPython 10 and Later

[Adafruit MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag)
[Update TinyUF2 Bootloader for CircuitPython 10 and Later](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag/update-tinyuf2-bootloader-for-circuitpython-10-4mb-boards-only)
[CircuitPython](https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython) is a derivative of [MicroPython](https://micropython.org) designed to simplify experimentation and education on low-cost microcontrollers. It makes it easier than ever to get prototyping by requiring no upfront desktop software downloads. Simply copy and edit files on the **CIRCUITPY** drive to iterate.

## Set Up CircuitPython

Follow the steps to get CircuitPython installed on your MagTag.

[CircuitPython Download for MagTag](https://circuitpython.org/board/adafruit_magtag_2.9_grayscale/)
Warning: WARNING: The updated Adafruit MagTag 2025 Edition will not work with CircuitPython 9.2.x or earlier. Make sure you install 10.x.x or later!

 **Click the link above and download the latest .BIN and .UF2 file**

You can use a 9.x.x release for a pre-2025 MagTag. You&nbsp; **must** use a 10.x.x release for the updated MagTag 2025 Edition.

(depending on how you program the ESP32S2 board you may need one or the other, might as well get both)

Download and save it to your desktop (or wherever is handy).

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/138/625/medium640/adafruit_products_magtag-9.2.8.png?1753973423)

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/138/626/medium640/adafruit_products_magtag-10.0.0-beta.2.png?1753973581)

Plug your MagTag into your computer using a known-good USB cable.

**A lot of people end up using charge-only USB cables and it is very frustrating! So make sure you have a USB cable you know is good for data sync.**

![adafruit_products_MagTag_top.jpg](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/096/955/medium640/adafruit_products_MagTag_top.jpg?1605035864)

# Option 1 - Load with UF2 Bootloader

This is by far the easiest way to load CircuitPython. **However it requires your board has the UF2 bootloader installed. Some early boards do not (we hadn't written UF2 yet!) - in which case you can load using the built in ROM bootloader.**

Still, try this first!

Warning: Make sure that you [update the TinyUF2 Bootloader](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag/update-tinyuf2-bootloader-for-circuitpython-10-4mb-boards-only) before following these steps for the UF2 bootloader!

## Try Launching UF2 Bootloader

Loading CircuitPython by drag-n-drop UF2 bootloader is the easier way and we recommend it. If you have a MagTag where the front of the board is black, your MagTag came with UF2 already on it.

![adafruit_products_IMG_0169.jpg](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/429/medium640/adafruit_products_IMG_0169.jpg?1607200225)

Launch UF2 by **double-clicking** the Reset button (the one next to the USB C port). You may have to try a few times to get the timing right.

![adafruit_products_MagTag_pinouts_Reset_and_Boot0.jpg](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/430/medium640/adafruit_products_MagTag_pinouts_Reset_and_Boot0.jpg?1607202717)

If the UF2 bootloader is installed, you will see a new disk drive appear called **MAGTAGBOOT**

![adafruit_products_image.png](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/431/medium640/adafruit_products_image.png?1607202820)

Copy the **UF2** file you downloaded at the first step of this tutorial onto the **MAGTAGBOOT** drive

![adafruit_products_image.png](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/432/medium640/adafruit_products_image.png?1607202977)

If you're using Windows and you get an error at the end of the file copy that says **Error from the file copy, Error 0x800701B1: A device which does not exist was specified.** You can ignore this error, the bootloader sometimes disconnects without telling Windows, the install completed just fine and you can continue.[If its really annoying, you can also upgrade the bootloader (the latest version of the UF2 bootloader fixes this warning)](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag/install-uf2-bootloader)

Your board should auto-reset into CircuitPython, or you may need to press reset. A **CIRCUITPY** drive will appear. You're done! Go to the next pages.

![adafruit_products_image.png](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/433/medium640/adafruit_products_image.png?1607203475)

# Option 2 - Use esptool to load BIN file

If you have an original MagTag with while soldermask on the front, we didn't have UF2 written for the ESP32S2 yet so it will not come with the UF2 bootloader.

You can upload with **esptool** to the ROM (hardware) bootloader instead!

Follow the initial steps found in the [Run esptool and check connection section of the ROM Bootloader page](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag/rom-bootloader#run-esptool-and-check-connection-3076823-5) to verify your environment is set up, your board is successfully connected, and which port it's using.

**In the final command to write a binary file to the board, replace the port with your port, and replace "firmware.bin" with the the file you downloaded above.**

The output should look something like the output in the image.

![adafruit_products_Metro_ESP32_S2_binary_install.png](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/096/950/medium640/adafruit_products_Metro_ESP32_S2_binary_install.png?1605031120)

Press reset to exit the bootloader.

Your **CIRCUITPY** drive should appear!

You're all set! Go to the next pages.

![adafruit_products_Metro_ESP32_S2_CIRCUITPY.png](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/096/951/medium640/adafruit_products_Metro_ESP32_S2_CIRCUITPY.png?1605031168)

# Option 3 - Use Chrome Browser To Upload BIN file

If for some reason you cannot get esptool to run, you can always try using the Chrome-browser version of esptool we have written. This is handy if you don't have Python on your computer, or something is really weird with your setup that makes esptool not run (which happens sometimes and isn't worth debugging!) You can follow along on the [Web Serial ESPTool](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag/web-serial-esptool) page and either load the UF2 bootloader and then come back to Option 1 on this page, or you can download the CircuitPython BIN file directly using the tool in the same manner as the bootloader.

# OSHWA Project Display With Adafruit MagTag

## CircuitPython Internet Test

One of the great things about most Espressif microcontrollers are their built-in WiFi capabilities. This page covers the basics of getting connected using CircuitPython.

The first thing you need to do is update your **code.py** to the following (it will error until WiFi details are added). Click the **Download Project Bundle** button to download the necessary libraries and the&nbsp; **code.py** file in a zip file. Extract the contents of the zip file, and copy the **entire**  **lib**  **folder** and the **code.py** file to your **CIRCUITPY** drive.

https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit_Learning_System_Guides/blob/main/ESP32_S2_WiFi_Tests/CPy_Native_WiFi_Test/code.py

Your **CIRCUITPY** drive should resemble the following.

![CIRCUITPY](https://adafruit.github.io/Adafruit_Learning_System_Guides/ESP32_S2_WiFi_Tests_CPy_Native_WiFi_Test.png )

To get connected, the next thing you need to do is update the **settings.toml** file.

## The settings.toml File

We expect people to share tons of projects as they build CircuitPython WiFi widgets. What we want to avoid is people accidentally sharing their passwords or secret tokens and API keys. So, we designed all our examples to use a **settings.toml** file, that is on your&nbsp; **CIRCUITPY** &nbsp;drive, to hold secret/private/custom data. That way you can share your main project without worrying about accidentally sharing private stuff.

If you have a fresh install of CircuitPython on your board, the initial **settings.toml** file on your **CIRCUITPY** drive is empty.

To get started, you can update the **settings.toml** on your **CIRCUITPY** drive to contain the following code.

https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit_Learning_System_Guides/blob/main/ESP32_S2_WiFi_Tests/CPy_Native_WiFi_Test/settings.toml

This file should contain a series of Python variables, each assigned to a string. Each variable should describe what it represents (say&nbsp;`wifi_ssid`), followed by an **=&nbsp;** (equals sign), followed by the data in the form of a Python string (such as `"my-wifi-password"` including the quote marks).

**At a minimum you'll need to add/update your WiFi SSID and WiFi password, so do that now!**

As you make projects you may need more tokens and keys, just add them one line at a time. See for example other tokens such as one for accessing GitHub or the Hackaday API. Other non-secret data like your timezone can also go here.

For the correct time zone string, look at&nbsp;[http://worldtimeapi.org/timezones](http://worldtimeapi.org/timezones)&nbsp;and remember that if your city is not listed, look for a city in the same time zone, for example Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington DC, and Miami are all on the same time as New York.

Of course, don't share your **settings.toml** - keep that out of GitHub, Discord or other project-sharing sites.

Warning: 

If you connect to the serial console, you should see something like the following:

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/014/medium800/adafruit_products_1__screen__Users_brentrubell__screen_.png?1605218222)

In order, the example code...

Checks the ESP32's MAC address.

```python
print(f"My MAC address: {[hex(i) for i in wifi.radio.mac_address]}")
```

Performs a scan of all access points and prints out the access point's name (SSID), signal strength (RSSI), and channel.

```python
print("Available WiFi networks:")
for network in wifi.radio.start_scanning_networks():
    print("\t%s\t\tRSSI: %d\tChannel: %d" % (str(network.ssid, "utf-8"),
                                             network.rssi, network.channel))
wifi.radio.stop_scanning_networks()
```

Connects to the access point you defined in the **settings.toml** file, and prints out its local IP address.

```python
print(f"Connecting to {os.getenv('WIFI_SSID')}")
wifi.radio.connect(os.getenv("WIFI_SSID"), os.getenv("WIFI_PASSWORD"))
print(f"Connected to {os.getenv('WIFI_SSID')}")
print(f"My IP address: {wifi.radio.ipv4_address}")
```

Attempts to ping a Google DNS server to test connectivity. If a ping fails, it returns `None`. Initial pings can sometimes fail for various reasons. So, if the initial ping is successful (`is not None`), it will print the echo speed in ms. If the initial ping fails, it will try one more time to ping, and then print the returned value. If the second ping fails, it will result in `"Ping google.com: None ms"` being printed to the serial console. Failure to ping does not always indicate a lack of connectivity, so the code will continue to run.

```python
ping_ip = ipaddress.IPv4Address("8.8.8.8")
ping = wifi.radio.ping(ip=ping_ip) * 1000
if ping is not None:
    print(f"Ping google.com: {ping} ms")
else:
    ping = wifi.radio.ping(ip=ping_ip)
    print(f"Ping google.com: {ping} ms")
```

The code creates a socketpool using the wifi radio's available sockets. This is performed so we don't need to re-use sockets. Then, it initializes a a new instance of the [requests](http://docs.python-requests.org/en/master/) interface - which makes getting data from the internet _really really easy._

```python
pool = socketpool.SocketPool(wifi.radio)
requests = adafruit_requests.Session(pool, ssl.create_default_context())
```

To read in plain-text from a web URL, call `requests.get` - you may pass in either a http, or a http **s** url for SSL connectivity.&nbsp;

```python
print(f"Fetching text from {TEXT_URL}")
response = requests.get(TEXT_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(response.text)
print("-" * 40)
```

Requests can also display a JSON-formatted response from a web URL using a call to `requests.get`.&nbsp;

```python
print(f"Fetching json from {JSON_QUOTES_URL}")
response = requests.get(JSON_QUOTES_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(response.json())
print("-" * 40)
```

Finally, you can fetch and parse a JSON URL using `requests.get`. This code snippet obtains the `stargazers_count` field from a call to the GitHub API.

```python
print(f"Fetching and parsing json from {JSON_STARS_URL}")
response = requests.get(JSON_STARS_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(f"CircuitPython GitHub Stars: {response.json()['stargazers_count']}")
print("-" * 40)
```

OK you now have your ESP32 board set up with a proper **settings.toml** file and can connect over the Internet. If not, check that your **settings.toml** file has the right SSID and password and retrace your steps until you get the Internet connectivity working!

## IPv6 Networking

Starting in CircuitPython 9.2, IPv6 networking is available on most Espressif wifi boards. Socket-using libraries like **adafruit\_requests** and **adafruit\_ntp** will need to be updated to use the new APIs and for now can only connect to services on IPv4.

### IPv6 connectivity & privacy

IPv6 addresses are divided into many special kinds, and many of those kinds (like those starting with&nbsp; **FC** , **FD** , **FE** ) are private or local; Addresses starting with other prefixes like&nbsp; **2002:** and **2001:** are globally routable. In 2024, far from all ISPs and home networks support IPv6 internet connectivity. For more info consult resources like [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPv6_address#Local_addresses). If you're interested in global IPv6 connectivity you can use services like [Hurricane Electric](https://www.he.net/) to create an "IPv6 tunnel" (free as of 2024, but requires expertise and a compatible router or host computer to set up)

It's also important to be aware that, as currently implemented by Espressif, there are privacy concerns especially when these devices operate on the global IPv6 network: The device's unique identifier (its EUI-64 or MAC address) is used by default as part of its IPv6 address. This means that the device identity can be tracked across multiple networks by any service it connects to.

### Enable IPv6 networking

Due to the privacy consideration, IPv6 networking is not automatically enabled. Instead, it must be explicitly enabled by a call to `start_dhcp_client` with the `ipv6=True` argument specified:

```python
wifi.start_dhcp_client(ipv6=True)
```

### Check IP addresses

The read-only&nbsp;`addresses` property of the `wifi.radio` object holds all addresses, including IPv4 and IPv6 addresses:

```python
&gt;&gt;&gt; wifi.radio.addresses
('FE80::7EDF:A1FF:FE00:518C', 'FD5F:3F5C:FE50:0:7EDF:A1FF:FE00:518C', '10.0.3.96')
```

The `wifi.radio.dns` servers can be IPv4 or IPv6:

```python
&gt;&gt;&gt; wifi.radio.dns
('FD5F:3F5C:FE50::1',)
&gt;&gt;&gt; wifi.radio.dns = ("1.1.1.1",)
&gt;&gt;&gt; wifi.radio.dns
('1.1.1.1',)
```

### Ping v6 networks

`wifi.radio.ping` accepts v6 addresses and names:

```python
&gt;&gt;&gt; wifi.radio.ping("google.com")
0.043
&gt;&gt;&gt; wifi.radio.ping("ipv6.google.com")
0.048
```

### Create & use IPv6 sockets

Use the address family `socket.AF_INET6`. After the socket is created, use methods like `connect`, `send`, `recfrom_into`, etc just like for IPv4 sockets. This code snippet shows communicating with a private-network NTP server; this IPv6 address will not work on your network:

```python
&gt;&gt;&gt; ntp_addr = ("fd5f:3f5c:fe50::20e", 123)
&gt;&gt;&gt; PACKET_SIZE = 48
&gt;&gt;&gt; 
&gt;&gt;&gt; buf = bytearray(PACKET_SIZE)
&gt;&gt;&gt; with socket.socket(socket.AF_INET6, socket.SOCK_DGRAM) as s:
...     s.settimeout(1)
...     buf[0] = 0b0010_0011
...     s.sendto(buf, ntp_addr)
...     print(s.recvfrom_into(buf))
...     print(buf)
... 
48
(48, ('fd5f:3f5c:fe50::20e', 123))
bytearray(b'$\x01\x03\xeb\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00GGPS\x00\xeaA0h\x07s;\xc0\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\xeaA0n\xeb4\x82-\xeaA0n\xebAU\xb1')
```

# OSHWA Project Display With Adafruit MagTag

## Getting The Date & Time

A very common need for projects is to know the current date and time. Especially when you want to deep sleep until an event, or you want to change your display based on what day, time, date, etc. it is

**Determining the correct local time is really really hard. There are various time zones, Daylight Savings dates, leap seconds, etc.** Trying to get NTP time and then back-calculating what the local time is, is extraordinarily hard on a microcontroller just isn't worth the effort and it will get out of sync as laws change anyways.

For that reason, we have the free adafruit.io time service. **Free for anyone with a free adafruit.io account.** You _do need an account_ because we have to keep accidentally mis-programmed-board from overwhelming adafruit.io and lock them out temporarily. Again, it's free!

Info: 

## Step 1) Make an Adafruit account

It's free! Visit [https://accounts.adafruit.com/](https://accounts.adafruit.com/) to register and make an account if you do not already have one

## Step 2) Sign into Adafruit IO

Head over to [io.adafruit.com](https://io.adafruit.com/) and click **Sign In** to log into IO using your Adafruit account. It's free and fast to join.

## Step 3) Get your Adafruit IO Key

Click on **My Key** in the top bar

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/449/medium800/adafruit_products_image.png?1607208628 "My Key" has been replaced with a key-shaped icon!)

You will get a popup with your **Username** and **Key** (In this screenshot, we've covered it with red blocks)

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/450/medium800/adafruit_products_image.png?1607208767)

Go to the **settings.toml** file on your **CIRCUITPY** drive (or create one with the text editor with your operating system) and add three lines for&nbsp;`AIO_USERNAME`, `ADAFRUIT_AIO_KEY` and `TIMEZONE` so you get something like the following:

```python
# This file is where you keep secret settings, passwords, and tokens!
# If you put them in the code you risk committing that info or sharing it

CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID = "your-wifi-ssid"
CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD = "your-wifi-password"
ADAFRUIT_AIO_USERNAME = "your-adafruit-io-username"
ADAFRUIT_AIO_KEY = "your-adafruit-io-key"
# Timezone names from http://worldtimeapi.org/timezones
TIMEZONE="America/New_York"
```

The timezone is optional, if you don't have that entry, adafruit.io will guess your timezone based on geographic IP address lookup. You can visit [http://worldtimeapi.org/timezones](http://worldtimeapi.org/timezones) to see all the time zones available (even though we do not use Worldtime for time-keeping, we do use the same time zone table).

## Step 4) Upload Test Python Code

This code is like the Internet Test code from before, but this time it will connect to adafruit.io and get the local time

```python
import ipaddress
import os
import ssl
import wifi
import socketpool
import adafruit_requests


# Get our username, key and desired timezone
ssid = os.getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID")
password = os.getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD")
aio_username = os.getenv("ADAFRUIT_AIO_USERNAME")
aio_key = os.getenv("ADAFRUIT_AIO_KEY")
timezone = os.getenv("TIMEZONE")
TIME_URL = f"https://io.adafruit.com/api/v2/{aio_username}/integrations/time/strftime?x-aio-key={aio_key}&amp;tz={timezone}"
TIME_URL += "&amp;fmt=%25Y-%25m-%25d+%25H%3A%25M%3A%25S.%25L+%25j+%25u+%25z+%25Z"

print("ESP32-S2 Adafruit IO Time test")

print("My MAC addr:", [hex(i) for i in wifi.radio.mac_address])

print("Available WiFi networks:")
for network in wifi.radio.start_scanning_networks():
    print("\t%s\t\tRSSI: %d\tChannel: %d" % (str(network.ssid, "utf-8"),
            network.rssi, network.channel))
wifi.radio.stop_scanning_networks()

print("Connecting to", ssid)
wifi.radio.connect(ssid, password)
print(f"Connected to {ssid}!")
print("My IP address is", wifi.radio.ipv4_address)

ipv4 = ipaddress.ip_address("8.8.4.4")
print("Ping google.com:", wifi.radio.ping(ipv4), "ms")

pool = socketpool.SocketPool(wifi.radio)
requests = adafruit_requests.Session(pool, ssl.create_default_context())

print("Fetching text from", TIME_URL)
response = requests.get(TIME_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(response.text)
print("-" * 40)
```

After running this, you will see something like the below text. We have blocked out the part with the secret username and key data!

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/097/451/medium800/adafruit_products_image.png?1607212430)

Note at the end you will get the date, time, and your timezone! If so, you have correctly configured your **settings.toml** and can continue to the next steps!

# OSHWA Project Display With Adafruit MagTag

## Code the Project Display

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/105/413/medium800/projects_IMG_0569.jpg?1634144205)

Before anything else, plug the battery into the MagTag. The jack is right next to the Adafruit logo on the back of the board. If you would like to use a double-sided adhesive, put it where you want the battery to go, press down firmly, then remove the piece of paper covering the exposed side and stick the battery to it.

## Installing Project Code

To use with CircuitPython, you need to first install a few libraries, into the lib folder on your **CIRCUITPY** drive. Then you need to update **code.py** with the example script.

Thankfully, we can do this in one go. In the example below, click the **Download Project Bundle** button below to download the necessary libraries and the **code.py** file in a zip file. Extract the contents of the zip file, open the directory **oshwa\_magtag\_display/** and then click on the directory that matches the version of CircuitPython you're using and copy the contents of that directory to your **CIRCUITPY** drive.

Your **CIRCUITPY** drive should now look similar to the following image:

![CIRCUITPY](https://adafruit.github.io/Adafruit_Learning_System_Guides/oshwa_magtag_display.png )

You'll need to get an OSHWA API key and paste it in on line 34 of&nbsp; **code.py**.

[Get your API key here](https://certificationapi.oshwa.org/)
https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit_Learning_System_Guides/blob/main/oshwa_magtag_display/code.py

## Code Run Through
First, the code imports all the required libraries.

```python
import random
import ssl
import gc
import wifi
import socketpool
import adafruit_requests as requests
from adafruit_magtag.magtag import MagTag
```

Next, the code gets the WiFi details and Adafruit IO API token from the **settings.toml** file.

```python
ssid = getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID")
password = getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD")

if None in [ssid, password]:
    raise RuntimeError(
        "WiFi settings are kept in settings.toml, "
        "please add them there. The settings file must contain "
        "'CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID', 'CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD', "
        "at a minimum."
    )
```

Now, the `MagTag` object is initialized.

```python
magtag = MagTag()

magtag.set_background("bmps/oshwa_full.bmp")
```

After that, the WiFi is set up and connected to.

```python
# Set up WiFi
wifi.radio.connect(ssid, password)
print(f"Connected to {ssid}!")
print(f"My IP address is {wifi.radio.ipv4_address}")

socket = socketpool.SocketPool(wifi.radio)
https = requests.Session(socket, ssl.create_default_context())
```

This is the part where you'll paste your API token. If you haven't already done so, you can get it [here](https://certificationapi.oshwa.org/).

```python
# Paste your API token below
TOKEN = "YOUR_API_TOKEN"
```

The next two functions are used to wrap the description text by pixels instead of characters. This is because when it was being done by characters, the number of lines would vary greatly and the lines would sometimes go into the QR code, making it unreadable. This first function opens the font file and gets the width of every character.

```python
def font_width_to_dict(font):
    # Reads the font file to determine how wide each character is
    # Used to avoid bad wrapping breaking the QR code
    chars = {}
    with open(font, "r") as file:
        for line in file:
            if "FONTBOUNDINGBOX" in line:
                size = int(line.split(" ")[1])
            if "ENCODING" in line and "_ENCODING" not in line:
                character = chr(int(line.split(" ")[1][:-1]))
                chars[character] = None
            if "SWIDTH" in line:
                swidth = (int(line.split(" ")[1]) / 1000) * size
            if "DWIDTH" in line:
                chars[character] = int(int(line.split(" ")[1]) + swidth)
    return chars
```

The second function does the actual wrapping of the text. It takes the text to format, the max width of the line, the max number of lines, as well as the dictionary that the previous function returns.

```python
def wrap(text, max_width, max_lines, font):
    # Used to wrap the title and description to avoid breaking the QR code
    lines = []
    ellipsis = 3 * font["."]
    line = ""
    line_width = 0
    for word in text.split(" "):
        for character in word:
            line_width += font[character]
            if (
                len(lines) + 1 != max_lines
                or sum(font[i] for i in word) + line_width &lt;= max_width
            ):
                if line_width &gt; max_width:
                    print(str(line_width) + line)
                    line_width = sum(font[i] for i in word)
                    lines.append(line.strip())
                    line = word + " "
                    break
            else:
                for char_1 in word:
                    if line_width + ellipsis + font[char_1] &gt; max_width:
                        line = line + "..."
                        print(str(line_width) + line)
                        lines.append(line)
                        return "\n".join(lines[:max_lines])
                    line = line + char_1
                    line_width += font[char_1]

        else:
            line = line + word + " "

    lines.append(line.strip())
    return "\n".join(lines[:max_lines])
```

This next bit of code gets first 300 items, saving only the OSHWA UIDs. The first 300 are also used to find the number of requests that will need to be made. This was done since if the items themselves were all stored at once, the MagTag would run out of memory. If we just got the number of total projects and chose a random number, that also wouldn't work as you can only get individual projects with an OSHWA UID and these UIDs are prefixed by the country they were registered in, thus making getting it with a simple number in-between 1 and the total number of registered projects impossible unless you only wanted to get projects registered in one country.

```python
URL = "https://certificationapi.oshwa.org/api/projects?limit=300"

print(URL)

payload = {}
headers = {"Content-Type": "application/json", "Authorization": f"Bearer {TOKEN}"}

oshwaID = []

print("Getting number of projects and first set of 300 projects")
with https.get(URL, headers=headers, data=payload) as response:
    R_JSON = response.json()
    total = int(R_JSON["total"])
    print(f"{total} Projects")
    for i in R_JSON["items"]:
        oshwaID.append(i["oshwaUid"])
    R_JSON.clear()
    R_JSON = None
    gc.collect()
```

This loop gets the rest of the OSHWA UIDs in a way that won't fill up all the memory of the MagTag.

```python
print(len(oshwaID))
for i in range(int(total / 300)):
    print(f"Getting request {i+2}")
    url = (
        f"https://certificationapi.oshwa.org/api/projects?limit=300&amp;offset={3*(i+1)}00"
    )
    with https.get(url, headers=headers, data=payload) as response:
        R_JSON = response.json()
        for item in R_JSON["items"]:
            oshwaID.append(item["oshwaUid"])
        R_JSON.clear()
        R_JSON = None
        gc.collect()
    print(f"{len(oshwaID)} IDs gathered")
```

Next, a random UID from the list of OSHWA UIDs is chosen, and a request is sent over the API for that specific project.

```python
selected = random.choice(oshwaID)

url = f"https://certificationapi.oshwa.org/api/projects/{selected}"
response = https.get(url, headers=headers, data=payload)

selected = response.json()[0]
```

The combination of the OSHWA API not handling all non-alphanumeric characters correctly and the fonts used on the MagTag only having a subset of all characters that could have been used results in the need to remove all the special characters and replace all the punctuation marks that aren't being handled correctly.

```python
# Filters out characters that the API or the MagTag itself isn't handling correctly
for char in range(1, 32):
    selected["projectDescription"].replace(chr(char), "")

selected["projectDescription"] = (
    selected["projectDescription"]
    .replace("&amp;#x27;", "'")
    .replace("&amp;amp;#x27;", "'")
    .replace("&amp;#x2F;", "/")
    .replace("&amp;quot;", '"')
    .replace("’", "'")
)
```

Now, the code creates the two text fields. The first one is for the title, and the second one is for the description.

```python
# Add the two text fields
magtag.add_text(
    text_font="fonts/Arial-12.bdf",
    text_position=(5, -2),
    text_scale=1,
    line_spacing=0.6,
    text_anchor_point=(0, 0),
)

magtag.add_text(
    text_font="fonts/ArialMT-9.bdf",
    text_position=(5, 30),
    text_scale=1,
    line_spacing=0.6,
    text_anchor_point=(0, 0),
)
```

After that, the QR code is created and added to the display.

```python
# Create the QR code
url = f"https://certification.oshwa.org/{selected['oshwaUid'].lower()}.html"
magtag.graphics.qrcode(url, qr_size=4, x=173, y=3)
```

Before adding the text, the code prepares to wrap it correctly by getting the width of each character for the two fonts that will be used.

```python
arial_12 = font_width_to_dict("fonts/Arial-12.bdf")
arial_9 = font_width_to_dict("fonts/ArialMT-9.bdf")
```

Finally, the code sets the text. On some characters which aren't included in the fonts for memory reasons, this fails. If this occurs, the code runs again in 5 seconds.

```python
try:
    magtag.set_text(wrap(selected["projectName"], 530, 2, arial_12), 0, False)
    magtag.set_text(wrap(selected["projectDescription"], 530, 10, arial_9), 1)
    magtag.exit_and_deep_sleep(3600)
except Exception: # pylint: disable=broad-except
    print("Could not set title or description: unsupported glyphs.")
    print("Trying again in 10 seconds.")
    magtag.exit_and_deep_sleep(10)
```


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## Related Guides

- [Adafruit MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-magtag.md)
- [NextBus Transit Predictions for Adafruit MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/nextbus-transit-predictions-for-adafruit-magtag.md)
- [CircuitPython Display_Text Library](https://learn.adafruit.com/circuitpython-display-text-library.md)
- [Clue And MagTag Pep Talk Generator](https://learn.adafruit.com/clue-and-magtag-pep-talk-generator.md)
- [CircuitPython Animated Holiday Wreath Lights](https://learn.adafruit.com/circuitpython-animated-holiday-wreath-lights.md)
- [MagTag Covid Tracking Project IoT Display](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-covid-tracking-project-iot-display.md)
- [MagTag Tides Viewer](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-tides-viewer.md)
- [Microsoft Azure Cost Monitor](https://learn.adafruit.com/azure-cost-monitor.md)
- [MagTag IoT Menorah](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-iot-menorah.md)
- [MagTag Google Calendar Event Display](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-google-calendar-event-display.md)
- [Language Flashcards on the MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-flashcards.md)
- [MagTag Daily Weather Forecast Display](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-weather.md)
- [Google Graveyard with Adafruit MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/google-graveyard-with-adafruit-magtag.md)
- [eInk Literature Quotes Clock for MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/eink-literary-quotes-clock-for-magtag.md)
- [SpaceX Next Launch Display with Adafruit MagTag](https://learn.adafruit.com/spacex-next-launch-display-with-adafruit-magtag.md)
- [MagTag Dishwasher Status](https://learn.adafruit.com/magtag-dishwasher-status.md)
