Software engineer Mike Linnen is interested in controlling the water used by his home sprinkler system, and created a system to do just that based on the Microsoft .NET, Azure service and Windows Phone 7 environments. Mike uses a netduino plus development board as the main hardware controller, which has a four-relay shield connected to take care of the water valves. For a full explanation, watch Mike's video below:

For detailed notes, explanations and so on, visit Mike's blog starting here. For more news and updates, please follow us on twitter, Facebook and Google+ - and don't forget to check out Ninja Blocks!

If the netduino environment is new to you, a great start is the book "Getting started with netduino" by Chris Walker. This easy-to-follow book provides the step-by-step guidance you need to experiment with Netduino and the .NET Micro Framework.

 

Through a set of simple projects, you’ll learn how to create electronic gadgets—including networked devices that communicate over TCP/IP. Along the way, hobbyists will pick up the basics of .NET programming, and programmers will discover how to work with electronics and microcontrollers. Follow the projects in sequence and learn techniques for building your own Netduino-based devices.