Level 1 · Entry Foundations¶
Goal: get comfortable with the NodeMCU family of boards — ESP8266 and ESP32 — using the Arduino IDE and the Arduino C++ framework. You'll set up the toolchain, blink an LED, read and write digital and analog pins, generate PWM, debug over the Serial monitor, join a WiFi network, and read a real temperature sensor — finishing with a WiFi-connected sensor node that serves its reading over a tiny built-in web page.
A word on hardware. This level assumes you'll eventually run these sketches on a real NodeMCU (ESP8266) or ESP32 dev board with the Arduino IDE and a USB cable. Every sketch here is written to compile cleanly against the documented ESP8266 and ESP32 Arduino-core APIs and is reasoned through carefully against that documentation — but none of it has been flashed to physical hardware in this environment, so treat the "expected output" notes as what the datasheets and core source say should happen, and verify on your own board before relying on it for anything critical.
Modules¶
- What Is NodeMCU (ESP8266 vs ESP32)
- Setting Up the Arduino IDE for ESP Boards
- First Blink Sketch
- GPIO Basics: Digital Read & Write
- Analog Input (ADC)
- PWM Basics
- Serial Monitor Debugging
- Connecting to WiFi
- Reading a Sensor (DHT11 Temperature)
- Capstone — WiFi Sensor Node & Web Server
By the end of this level you'll be able to set up either an ESP8266 or ESP32 board in the Arduino IDE from scratch, drive digital and PWM outputs, read digital and analog inputs, print debug information over Serial, join a WiFi network in station mode, read a temperature/humidity sensor, and combine all of it into a small standalone IoT device with its own local web page.