The Raspberry Pi Foundation's credit card-sized computer was born in an attempt to reignite programming in schools with a cheap computing platform that kids could buy themselves. But despite targeting students, the project captured the imaginations of tinkerers worldwide, and to foster the community around it Raspberry Pi has decided to launch its very own dedicated software store. The idea is to provide developers with an easy way share their creations and a one-stop shop for those new to the Raspberry Pi to get going quickly.
The store is accessible from the web or as a standalone application under Raspbian. At launch, 23 free titles are included along a single commercial app, the platform game Storm in a Teacup from Cobra Mobile which is selling for $3.18 (or £1.99). Free downloads range from utilities like LibreOffice and Asterisk to classic games like Freeciv and OpenTTD and Raspberry Pi exclusive Iridium Rising.
According to the announcement, developers are free to submit their own content for moderation and release. IndieCity is providing the payments system, and besides the option to charge for apps, there's also a tip jar feature that lets users shell out a little cash towards the developers, even if their app is free.
"Our driving aim has always been to use Raspberry Pi to encourage and introduce a generation of children to programming and creative computer science. By now enabling Raspberry Pi users of all ages to gain critical and commercial success from their work through the new Pi Store we also believe it will be a powerful incentive for others to get involved and further spread the word," Raspberry Pi's Eben Upton told Eurogamer.
An updated Raspbian image with the built-in Pi Store is available for the foundation's website. Raspbian users can add the Pi Store application to their existing install by typing the following command:
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install pistore