DIY ESP32 Clock Kit: NTP Time, Live News Ticker & On-This-Day History on a 0.96" OLED

Looking for a desk clock that does more than just tell time? Our new ESP32 DIY Clock Kit packs a Wi-Fi-synced analog and digital clock, a live news ticker from major world outlets, and a daily "on this day in history" card — all on a tiny 0.96-inch OLED display. It's the perfect weekend build for makers, students, and anyone learning electronics or embedded programming. Get Parts: esp32 + 0.96 Oled I2C

Step 1 — Wire the OLED to the ESP32

Only four wires needed. Power the display from the ESP32's 3.3V rail (not 5V — it will work, but 3.3V is safer on this screen) and connect the two I²C data lines to GPIO 8 and 9.

Note: if you're using a different ESP32 board that doesn't expose GPIO 8 and 9, you can change the pin assignment in the sketch (see Step 4 below).

Step 2 — Install the Arduino IDE and ESP32 Board Support

1. Download and install the latest Arduino IDE from arduino.cc.
2. Open File → Preferences and paste this URL into the "Additional Board Manager URLs" field:
   https://raw.githubusercontent.com/espressif/arduino-esp32/gh-pages/package_esp32_index.json
3. Open Tools → Board → Boards Manager, search for esp32, and install "esp32 by Espressif Systems".
4. Under Tools → Board, select the ESP32 variant that matches the board in your kit (e.g. "ESP32C3 Dev Module" or "ESP32 Dev Module").

Step 3 — Install the Required Libraries

Open Tools → Manage Libraries and install these two (the ESP32 core includes everything else):

• Adafruit GFX Library — by Adafruit
• Adafruit SSD1306 — by Adafruit

Everything else used by the sketch — WiFi, HTTPClient, WiFiClientSecure, Wire, time.h, and FreeRTOS — comes bundled with the ESP32 core. No extra installs needed.

Step 4 — Download the Firmware and Edit Three Lines

Download both sketch files (clock-ntp-rss-366-events.ino and history_events.h) and place them in a folder named clock-ntp-rss-366-events. Open the .ino file in the Arduino IDE.

Near the top of the sketch you'll see a USER SETTINGS block. Change these three lines to match your Wi-Fi and time zone:

// ================== USER SETTINGS ================== const char* WIFI_SSID = "YourWiFiNameHere"; // [[-- change this const char* WIFI_PASS = "YourWiFiPasswordHere"; // [[-- change this #define TZ_EASTERN "EST5EDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" #define TZ_CENTRAL "CST6CDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" #define TZ_MOUNTAIN "MST7MDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" #define TZ_PACIFIC "PST8PDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" const char* TIMEZONE = TZ_CENTRAL; // [[-- pick your zone const char* NTP_SERVER = "pool.ntp.org"; // ===================================================

That's it. Three edits and you're ready to flash. If your board uses different I²C pins, you'll also find this block a bit further down — change the numbers to whatever your ESP32 exposes:

#define OLED_ADDR 0x3C #define SDA_PIN 8 #define SCL_PIN 9

Step 5 — Flash and Enjoy Get Parts: esp32 + 0.96 Oled I2C

Plug the ESP32 into your computer with the USB cable, select the correct COM / serial port under Tools → Port, and click the Upload arrow. After a few seconds you'll see the OLED come to life: first "Connecting Wi-Fi", then "Syncing NTP", and finally the analog + digital clock face with the news ticker scrolling along the bottom.

A Peek Inside the Code

The sketch runs three cooperative loops on the ESP32 using FreeRTOS tasks, so the display never stutters — even while a news fetch is in flight. Every day of the year gets its own historical event from a lookup table. Here's a small slice:

struct HistEvent { uint8_t month; uint8_t day; uint16_t year; const char* text; }; const HistEvent HISTORY_EVENTS[] = { { 7, 20, 1969, "Moon landing"}, {11, 9, 1989, "Berlin Wall falls"}, {12, 17, 1903, "Wright Bros first flight"}, {10, 31, 0, "Halloween"}, // ... 391 more entries, covering all 366 days };

Make It Your Own

Because the firmware is open and well-commented, you can easily:

• Swap in your favorite RSS feeds (sports, tech, local news) in the feeds[] array
• Add your own historical events to history_events.h
• Change the refresh interval, scroll speed, or card dwell time
• Re-skin the clock face, or add a weather or crypto-price panel

Get Yours

Grab the ESP32 + 0.96" OLED DIY Clock Kit from our store and have a working internet-connected clock on your desk this weekend. Whether you're a hobbyist, a STEM teacher, or just someone who wants a smarter clock, this kit is a fun, educational, and genuinely useful build.

👉 Shop ESP32 DIY Kits at eelectronicparts.com

clock-ntp-rss-366-events

// ============================================================================= // NTP Clock — ESP32-S3 MINI + 0.96" OLED // Copyright (c) 2026 eElectronicParts.com // // Licensed under the MIT License (see bottom of file for full text). // // You are free to use, modify, and redistribute this code, including in // commercial projects. If you share a modified version publicly (blog post, // YouTube, GitHub, Instructables, forum), a link back to the original is // appreciated but not required: // // Original project: https://www.eelectronicparts.com/ // // Analog + Digital NTP Clock with RSS ticker, "On this day" cards, // 1-px border, moving seconds bead, source badges, fetch indicators. // Clock circle sits 1 px inside the border; news ticker has 2 px side // margins and is raised 1 px so it no longer touches the bottom border. // ESP32 + SSD1306 128x64 (I2C SDA=8, SCL=9, addr 0x3C) #include [[Wire.h]] #include [[Adafruit_GFX.h]] #include [[Adafruit_SSD1306.h]] #include [[Fonts/TomThumb.h]] #include [[WiFi.h]] #include [[HTTPClient.h]] #include [[WiFiClientSecure.h]] #include [[time.h]] #include [[math.h]] #include [[freertos/FreeRTOS.h]] #include [[freertos/task.h]] #include [[freertos/semphr.h]] #include "history_events.h" // ================== USER SETTINGS ================== const char* WIFI_SSID = "YOUR_WIFI_SSID"; const char* WIFI_PASS = "YOUR_WIFI_PASS"; #define TZ_EASTERN "EST5EDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" #define TZ_CENTRAL "CST6CDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" #define TZ_MOUNTAIN "MST7MDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" #define TZ_PACIFIC "PST8PDT,M3.2.0,M11.1.0" const char* TIMEZONE = TZ_CENTRAL; const char* NTP_SERVER = "pool.ntp.org"; const unsigned long RSS_REFRESH_MIN = 15; const int HEADLINES_PER_FEED = 2; const float SCROLL_SPEED_PXS = 30.0f; const float CARD_SPEED_FACTOR = 0.70f; // card scroll speed factor const unsigned long CARD_DWELL_MS = 20000; // hold time for cards const unsigned long FLASH_DURATION_MS = 600; // fetch-success dot const unsigned long FETCH_ANIM_LINGER = 1500; // WiFi blink after fetch // =================================================== #define SCREEN_WIDTH 128 #define SCREEN_HEIGHT 64 #define OLED_RESET -1 #define OLED_ADDR 0x3C #define SDA_PIN 8 #define SCL_PIN 9 Adafruit_SSD1306 display(SCREEN_WIDTH, SCREEN_HEIGHT, &Wire, OLED_RESET); // Analog clock — R dropped to 25 so the circle sits 1 px inside the border. // CY+R = 52, so circle bottom is 2 rows above the news row at y=55. const int16_t CX = 27; const int16_t CY = 27; const int16_t R = 25; const int16_t NUM_RAD = 18; const int16_t HOUR_LEN = 11; const int16_t MIN_LEN = 19; const int16_t SEC_LEN = 22; const int16_t HOUR_BASE = 3; const int16_t MIN_BASE = 2; // Digital panel (TEXT_X_LEFT follows CX+R+4, so it auto-adjusts) const int16_t TEXT_X_LEFT = CX + R + 4; // = 56 const int16_t TEXT_X_RIGHT = SCREEN_WIDTH - 1; // = 127 const int16_t PANEL_W = TEXT_X_RIGHT - TEXT_X_LEFT + 1; // = 72 const int16_t ROW_Y[4] = { 6, 18, 30, 42 }; const int16_t SIGNAL_ICON_W = 11; // News ticker const int16_t NEWS_Y = 55; // raised 1 px; text now ends at y=62 const int16_t TICKER_MARGIN = 3; // frame(1) + 2 px gap const unsigned long SCROLL_FRAME_MS = 50; // Badge geometry (inverted text in a filled rectangle) const int16_t BADGE_W = 14; const int16_t BADGE_H = 8; const int16_t BADGE_GAP = 1; // trailing spacer const int16_t BADGE_ADVANCE = BADGE_W + BADGE_GAP; // = 15 // Marker bytes embedded in scroll strings #define MARKER_BBC '\001' #define MARKER_NPR '\002' #define MARKER_AJ '\003' #define MARKER_HIST '\004' // RSS feeds struct RssFeed { const char* url; char marker; const char* tag; }; const RssFeed feeds[] = { { "https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/world/rss.xml", MARKER_BBC, "BBC" }, { "https://feeds.npr.org/1001/rss.xml", MARKER_NPR, "NPR" }, { "https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml", MARKER_AJ, "AJ" }, }; const int NUM_FEEDS = sizeof(feeds) / sizeof(feeds[0]); // ---- Shared state (dataMutex) ---- String newsText = ""; uint16_t newsTextW = 0; bool hasNews = false; unsigned long nextRssFetch = 0; SemaphoreHandle_t dataMutex = NULL; // ---- UI state ---- enum TickerMode { TM_NEWS, TM_CARD }; TickerMode tickerMode = TM_NEWS; enum CardPhase { CP_ENTER, CP_DWELL, CP_EXIT, CP_LONG }; CardPhase cardPhase; String cardText; uint16_t cardTextW = 0; int16_t cardDwellX = 0; bool cardFits = false; unsigned long cardPhaseStart = 0; float scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; unsigned long lastScrollTick = 0; unsigned long lastFrame = 0; // ---- Diagnostics (atomic via volatile) ---- volatile unsigned long fetchAnimUntil = 0; volatile unsigned long newsFlashUntil = 0; // ================================================================= // HELPERS // ================================================================= void showMessage(const String& l1, const String& l2 = "") { if (dataMutex && xSemaphoreTake(dataMutex, portMAX_DELAY) != pdTRUE) return; display.clearDisplay(); display.setFont(); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); display.setTextSize(1); display.setCursor(0, 10); display.println(l1); if (l2.length()) { display.setCursor(0, 25); display.println(l2); } display.display(); if (dataMutex) xSemaphoreGive(dataMutex); } static inline void polar(float angleDeg, int16_t length, int16_t& x, int16_t& y) { float a = (angleDeg - 90.0f) * DEG_TO_RAD; x = CX + (int16_t)lroundf(length * cosf(a)); y = CY + (int16_t)lroundf(length * sinf(a)); } void drawWedgeHand(float angleDeg, int16_t length, int16_t baseHalfW) { float a = (angleDeg - 90.0f) * DEG_TO_RAD; float cs = cosf(a), sn = sinf(a); int16_t tipX = CX + (int16_t)lroundf(length * cs); int16_t tipY = CY + (int16_t)lroundf(length * sn); float px = -sn, py = cs; int16_t b1X = CX + (int16_t)lroundf(baseHalfW * px); int16_t b1Y = CY + (int16_t)lroundf(baseHalfW * py); int16_t b2X = CX - (int16_t)lroundf(baseHalfW * px); int16_t b2Y = CY - (int16_t)lroundf(baseHalfW * py); display.fillTriangle(tipX, tipY, b1X, b1Y, b2X, b2Y, SSD1306_WHITE); } void drawHourNumber(int n, float angleDeg, int16_t rad) { String s = String(n); display.setFont(&TomThumb); display.setTextSize(1); int16_t x1, y1; uint16_t w, h; display.getTextBounds(s, 0, 0, &x1, &y1, &w, &h); float a = (angleDeg - 90.0f) * DEG_TO_RAD; int16_t px = CX + (int16_t)lroundf(rad * cosf(a)); int16_t py = CY + (int16_t)lroundf(rad * sinf(a)); display.setCursor(px - (w / 2) - x1, py - (h / 2) - y1); display.print(s); } // Signal icon: normally RSSI-driven bars; during fetch the entire icon // BLINKS on/off (clearly different from any RSSI animation). void drawSignalIcon(int16_t x, int16_t y, int32_t rssi, bool animate) { if (animate) { bool on = ((millis() / 200) % 2) == 0; if (!on) return; for (int i = 0; i [[ 4; i++) { int16_t bx = x + i * 3; int16_t bh = (i + 1) * 2; int16_t by = y + (8 - bh); display.fillRect(bx, by, 2, bh, SSD1306_WHITE); } return; } int bars; if (rssi ]]= -55) bars = 4; else if (rssi ]]= -65) bars = 3; else if (rssi ]]= -75) bars = 2; else if (rssi ]]= -85) bars = 1; else bars = 0; for (int i = 0; i [[ 4; i++) { int16_t bx = x + i * 3; int16_t bh = (i + 1) * 2; int16_t by = y + (8 - bh); if (i [[ bars) display.fillRect(bx, by, 2, bh, SSD1306_WHITE); else display.drawRect(bx, by, 2, bh, SSD1306_WHITE); } } void drawCenteredInPanel(const String& s, int16_t y) { display.setFont(); display.setTextSize(1); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); int16_t x1, y1; uint16_t w, h; display.getTextBounds(s, 0, 0, &x1, &y1, &w, &h); int16_t x = TEXT_X_LEFT + (PANEL_W - (int16_t)w) / 2; display.setCursor(x, y); display.print(s); } // Inverted-text source badge: 14x8 white box, TomThumb text in black. void drawBadge(int16_t x, int16_t y, const char* label) { display.fillRect(x, y, BADGE_W, BADGE_H, SSD1306_WHITE); display.setFont(&TomThumb); display.setTextSize(1); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_BLACK); int16_t x1, y1; uint16_t w, h; display.getTextBounds(label, 0, 0, &x1, &y1, &w, &h); int16_t tx = x + (BADGE_W - (int16_t)w) / 2 - x1; int16_t ty = y + (BADGE_H - (int16_t)h) / 2 - y1; display.setCursor(tx, ty); display.print(label); display.setFont(); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); } // Scroll rendering: default-font text + badge markers. Characters/badges // are only drawn if ENTIRELY within [LEFT_LIMIT .. RIGHT_LIMIT], which // places them cleanly inside the border with 2 px of visible margin. void drawScrollSegment(const String& s, int16_t startX, int16_t y) { display.setFont(); display.setTextSize(1); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); const int16_t LEFT_LIMIT = TICKER_MARGIN; // 3 const int16_t RIGHT_LIMIT = SCREEN_WIDTH - TICKER_MARGIN; // 125 int16_t x = startX; for (size_t i = 0; i [[ s.length(); i++) { uint8_t c = (uint8_t)s[i]; if (c ]]= 1 && c [[= 4) { if (x ]]= LEFT_LIMIT && x + BADGE_W [[= RIGHT_LIMIT) { const char* lbl = (c == 1) ? "BBC" : (c == 2) ? "NPR" : (c == 3) ? "AJ" : "HIST"; drawBadge(x, y, lbl); } x += BADGE_ADVANCE; } else { if (x ]]= LEFT_LIMIT && x + 6 [[= RIGHT_LIMIT) { display.setCursor(x, y); display.write(c); } x += 6; } if (x ]] RIGHT_LIMIT) break; } } uint16_t computeScrollWidth(const String& s) { uint16_t w = 0; for (size_t i = 0; i [[ s.length(); i++) { uint8_t c = (uint8_t)s[i]; w += (c ]]= 1 && c [[= 4) ? BADGE_ADVANCE : 6; } return w; } // 1-pixel border around the entire display. Drawn last, over everything. void drawBorder() { display.drawRect(0, 0, SCREEN_WIDTH, SCREEN_HEIGHT, SSD1306_WHITE); } // ================================================================= // RSS FETCH & HTML DECODE // ================================================================= // Map a Unicode code point to an ASCII approximation and append to `out`. // Covers Latin accents, smart punctuation, currencies, arrows, and a few // common symbols. Anything we don't recognize becomes '?' so at least the // length is stable and you notice. static void appendAsAscii(String& out, uint32_t cp) { if (cp ]]= 0x20 && cp [[= 0x7E) { out += (char)cp; return; } switch (cp) { // Whitespace / controls case 0x00A0: case 0x2000: case 0x2001: case 0x2002: case 0x2003: case 0x2004: case 0x2005: case 0x2006: case 0x2007: case 0x2008: case 0x2009: case 0x200A: case 0x202F: case 0x205F: out += ' '; return; // Latin-1 punctuation & symbols case 0x00A1: out += '!'; return; case 0x00A2: out += 'c'; return; case 0x00A3: out += "GBP"; return; case 0x00A5: out += "JPY"; return; case 0x00A7: out += '$'; return; case 0x00A9: out += "(c)"; return; case 0x00AA: out += 'a'; return; case 0x00AB: out += '"'; return; case 0x00AE: out += "(R)"; return; case 0x00B0: out += " deg"; return; case 0x00B1: out += "+/-"; return; case 0x00B4: out += '\''; return; case 0x00B7: out += '.'; return; case 0x00BA: out += 'o'; return; case 0x00BB: out += '"'; return; case 0x00BC: out += "1/4"; return; case 0x00BD: out += "1/2"; return; case 0x00BE: out += "3/4"; return; case 0x00BF: out += '?'; return; // Accented letters -]] base letter case 0x00C0: case 0x00C1: case 0x00C2: case 0x00C3: case 0x00C4: case 0x00C5: out += 'A'; return; case 0x00C6: out += "AE"; return; case 0x00C7: out += 'C'; return; case 0x00C8: case 0x00C9: case 0x00CA: case 0x00CB: out += 'E'; return; case 0x00CC: case 0x00CD: case 0x00CE: case 0x00CF: out += 'I'; return; case 0x00D0: out += 'D'; return; case 0x00D1: out += 'N'; return; case 0x00D2: case 0x00D3: case 0x00D4: case 0x00D5: case 0x00D6: case 0x00D8: out += 'O'; return; case 0x00D7: out += 'x'; return; case 0x00D9: case 0x00DA: case 0x00DB: case 0x00DC: out += 'U'; return; case 0x00DD: out += 'Y'; return; case 0x00DE: out += "Th"; return; case 0x00DF: out += "ss"; return; case 0x00E0: case 0x00E1: case 0x00E2: case 0x00E3: case 0x00E4: case 0x00E5: out += 'a'; return; case 0x00E6: out += "ae"; return; case 0x00E7: out += 'c'; return; case 0x00E8: case 0x00E9: case 0x00EA: case 0x00EB: out += 'e'; return; case 0x00EC: case 0x00ED: case 0x00EE: case 0x00EF: out += 'i'; return; case 0x00F0: out += 'd'; return; case 0x00F1: out += 'n'; return; case 0x00F2: case 0x00F3: case 0x00F4: case 0x00F5: case 0x00F6: case 0x00F8: out += 'o'; return; case 0x00F7: out += '/'; return; case 0x00F9: case 0x00FA: case 0x00FB: case 0x00FC: out += 'u'; return; case 0x00FD: case 0x00FF: out += 'y'; return; case 0x00FE: out += "th"; return; // Latin Extended-A (Central/Eastern European) case 0x0100: case 0x0102: case 0x0104: out += 'A'; return; case 0x0101: case 0x0103: case 0x0105: out += 'a'; return; case 0x0106: case 0x0108: case 0x010A: case 0x010C: out += 'C'; return; case 0x0107: case 0x0109: case 0x010B: case 0x010D: out += 'c'; return; case 0x010E: case 0x0110: out += 'D'; return; case 0x010F: case 0x0111: out += 'd'; return; case 0x0112: case 0x0114: case 0x0116: case 0x0118: case 0x011A: out += 'E'; return; case 0x0113: case 0x0115: case 0x0117: case 0x0119: case 0x011B: out += 'e'; return; case 0x011C: case 0x011E: case 0x0120: case 0x0122: out += 'G'; return; case 0x011D: case 0x011F: case 0x0121: case 0x0123: out += 'g'; return; case 0x0139: case 0x013B: case 0x013D: case 0x013F: case 0x0141: out += 'L'; return; case 0x013A: case 0x013C: case 0x013E: case 0x0140: case 0x0142: out += 'l'; return; case 0x0143: case 0x0145: case 0x0147: out += 'N'; return; case 0x0144: case 0x0146: case 0x0148: out += 'n'; return; case 0x014C: case 0x014E: case 0x0150: out += 'O'; return; case 0x014D: case 0x014F: case 0x0151: out += 'o'; return; case 0x0154: case 0x0156: case 0x0158: out += 'R'; return; case 0x0155: case 0x0157: case 0x0159: out += 'r'; return; case 0x015A: case 0x015C: case 0x015E: case 0x0160: out += 'S'; return; case 0x015B: case 0x015D: case 0x015F: case 0x0161: out += 's'; return; case 0x0164: case 0x0166: out += 'T'; return; case 0x0165: case 0x0167: out += 't'; return; case 0x0168: case 0x016A: case 0x016C: case 0x016E: case 0x0170: case 0x0172: out += 'U'; return; case 0x0169: case 0x016B: case 0x016D: case 0x016F: case 0x0171: case 0x0173: out += 'u'; return; case 0x0174: out += 'W'; return; case 0x0175: out += 'w'; return; case 0x0176: case 0x0178: out += 'Y'; return; case 0x0177: out += 'y'; return; case 0x0179: case 0x017B: case 0x017D: out += 'Z'; return; case 0x017A: case 0x017C: case 0x017E: out += 'z'; return; // General Punctuation (U+2000 block) — THE big one for RSS case 0x2010: case 0x2011: case 0x2012: case 0x2013: out += '-'; return; case 0x2014: case 0x2015: out += "--"; return; case 0x2018: case 0x2019: case 0x201A: case 0x201B: out += '\''; return; case 0x201C: case 0x201D: case 0x201E: case 0x201F: out += '"'; return; case 0x2020: case 0x2021: out += '+'; return; case 0x2022: case 0x2023: case 0x25AA: case 0x25CF: case 0x2043: out += '*'; return; case 0x2026: out += "..."; return; case 0x2030: out += "o/oo"; return; case 0x2032: case 0x2035: out += '\''; return; case 0x2033: case 0x2036: out += '"'; return; case 0x2039: out += '[['; return; case 0x203A: out += ']]'; return; case 0x203C: out += "!!"; return; case 0x2047: out += "??"; return; case 0x2048: out += "?!"; return; // Currency case 0x20A4: out += "GBP"; return; case 0x20AC: out += "EUR"; return; case 0x20B9: out += "INR"; return; case 0x20BD: out += "RUB"; return; case 0x20BF: out += "BTC"; return; // Letterlike / arrows / math case 0x2116: out += "No."; return; case 0x2122: out += "(TM)"; return; case 0x2190: out += "[[-"; return; case 0x2191: out += "^"; return; case 0x2192: out += "-]]"; return; case 0x2193: out += "v"; return; case 0x2194: out += "[[-]]"; return; case 0x21D2: out += "=]]"; return; case 0x21D4: out += "[[=]]"; return; case 0x2212: out += '-'; return; case 0x2260: out += "!="; return; case 0x2264: out += "[[="; return; case 0x2265: out += "]]="; return; case 0x2713: case 0x2714: out += 'v'; return; case 0x2717: case 0x2718: out += 'x'; return; default: out += '?'; return; } } // Decode HTML/XML entities (named, decimal, hex) and raw UTF-8 bytes in // one pass. Output is pure printable ASCII so the default font can draw it. // Stray tags (rare in RSS [[title]]) are stripped at the end. String decodeEntities(const String& in) { String out; out.reserve(in.length()); size_t i = 0; while (i [[ in.length()) { uint8_t c = (uint8_t)in[i]; // --- HTML entity? ----------------------------------------------- if (c == '&') { int semi = in.indexOf(';', i + 1); if (semi ]] 0 && semi - i [[= 10) { String ent = in.substring(i + 1, semi); uint32_t cp = 0; bool decoded = false; if (ent.length() ]] 1 && ent[0] == '#') { // Numeric entity — decimal or hex. if (ent[1] == 'x' || ent[1] == 'X') { cp = strtoul(ent.c_str() + 2, NULL, 16); } else { cp = strtoul(ent.c_str() + 1, NULL, 10); } decoded = (cp ]] 0); } else { // Named entity — short table of the ones RSS feeds actually use. if (ent == "amp") { cp = '&'; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "lt") { cp = '[['; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "gt") { cp = ']]'; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "quot") { cp = '"'; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "apos") { cp = '\''; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "nbsp") { cp = ' '; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "ndash") { cp = 0x2013; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "mdash") { cp = 0x2014; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "hellip") { cp = 0x2026; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "lsquo") { cp = 0x2018; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "rsquo") { cp = 0x2019; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "ldquo") { cp = 0x201C; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "rdquo") { cp = 0x201D; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "sbquo") { cp = 0x201A; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "bdquo") { cp = 0x201E; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "bull") { cp = 0x2022; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "middot") { cp = 0x00B7; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "copy") { cp = 0x00A9; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "reg") { cp = 0x00AE; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "trade") { cp = 0x2122; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "euro") { cp = 0x20AC; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "pound") { cp = 0x00A3; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "yen") { cp = 0x00A5; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "cent") { cp = 0x00A2; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "deg") { cp = 0x00B0; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "plusmn") { cp = 0x00B1; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "times") { cp = 0x00D7; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "divide") { cp = 0x00F7; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "laquo") { cp = 0x00AB; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "raquo") { cp = 0x00BB; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "iexcl") { cp = 0x00A1; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "iquest") { cp = 0x00BF; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "eacute") { cp = 0x00E9; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "Eacute") { cp = 0x00C9; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "aacute") { cp = 0x00E1; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "iacute") { cp = 0x00ED; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "oacute") { cp = 0x00F3; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "uacute") { cp = 0x00FA; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "ntilde") { cp = 0x00F1; decoded = true; } else if (ent == "Ntilde") { cp = 0x00D1; decoded = true; } } if (decoded) { appendAsAscii(out, cp); i = semi + 1; continue; } } // Fall through: treat '&' as a literal if the entity didn't parse. } // --- UTF-8 multi-byte sequence? -------------------------------- if (c ]]= 0x80) { uint32_t cp = 0; int len = 0; if ((c & 0xE0) == 0xC0) { cp = c & 0x1F; len = 2; } else if ((c & 0xF0) == 0xE0) { cp = c & 0x0F; len = 3; } else if ((c & 0xF8) == 0xF0) { cp = c & 0x07; len = 4; } else { i++; continue; } // bad start byte, skip bool valid = true; for (int k = 1; k [[ len; k++) { if (i + k ]]= in.length() || ((uint8_t)in[i + k] & 0xC0) != 0x80) { valid = false; break; } cp = (cp [[[[ 6) | ((uint8_t)in[i + k] & 0x3F); } if (valid) { appendAsAscii(out, cp); i += len; } else { i++; } continue; } // --- Plain ASCII ---------------------------------------------- if (c ]]= 0x20 && c [[= 0x7E) out += (char)c; else if (c == '\n' || c == '\r' || c == '\t') out += ' '; // else: strip control byte silently i++; } // Strip any stray tags (rare in [[title]], but harmless safety pass) while (true) { int lt = out.indexOf('[['); if (lt [[ 0) break; int gt = out.indexOf(']]', lt); if (gt [[ 0) break; out.remove(lt, gt - lt + 1); } return out; } String parseHeadlines(const String& xml, char marker, int maxN) { String out; int pos = 0, count = 0; while (count [[ maxN) { int itemStart = xml.indexOf("[[item", pos); if (itemStart [[ 0) break; int itemEnd = xml.indexOf("[[/item]]", itemStart); if (itemEnd [[ 0) break; int tOpen = xml.indexOf("[[title", itemStart); if (tOpen [[ 0 || tOpen ]] itemEnd) { pos = itemEnd + 7; continue; } int tContent = xml.indexOf(']]', tOpen); if (tContent [[ 0) { pos = itemEnd + 7; continue; } tContent++; int tClose = xml.indexOf("[[/title]]", tContent); if (tClose [[ 0 || tClose ]] itemEnd) { pos = itemEnd + 7; continue; } String title = xml.substring(tContent, tClose); title.replace("[[![CDATA[", ""); title.replace("]]]]", ""); title.trim(); title = decodeEntities(title); if (title.length() ]] 0) { if (out.length() ]] 0) out += " "; out += marker; out += ' '; out += title; count++; } pos = itemEnd + 7; } return out; } String fetchFeed(const RssFeed& feed) { WiFiClientSecure client; client.setInsecure(); client.setTimeout(8000); HTTPClient http; http.setTimeout(8000); http.setUserAgent("ESP32-Clock/1.0"); http.setFollowRedirects(HTTPC_STRICT_FOLLOW_REDIRECTS); if (!http.begin(client, feed.url)) return ""; int code = http.GET(); if (code != HTTP_CODE_OK) { Serial.printf("Feed %s HTTP %d\n", feed.tag, code); http.end(); return ""; } String body = http.getString(); http.end(); return parseHeadlines(body, feed.marker, HEADLINES_PER_FEED); } bool fetchNews() { fetchAnimUntil = millis() + 60000UL; // animate "indefinitely" during fetch String combined; for (int i = 0; i [[ NUM_FEEDS; i++) { String chunk = fetchFeed(feeds[i]); if (chunk.length() ]] 0) { if (combined.length() ]] 0) combined += " "; combined += chunk; } vTaskDelay(pdMS_TO_TICKS(100)); } bool ok = (combined.length() ]] 0); if (ok) { combined += " "; uint16_t width = computeScrollWidth(combined); if (xSemaphoreTake(dataMutex, portMAX_DELAY) == pdTRUE) { newsText = combined; newsTextW = width; hasNews = true; xSemaphoreGive(dataMutex); } newsFlashUntil = millis() + FLASH_DURATION_MS; Serial.printf("News updated: %u chars, %u px\n", (unsigned)combined.length(), (unsigned)width); } fetchAnimUntil = millis() + FETCH_ANIM_LINGER; // linger after finish return ok; } // ================================================================= // ON-THIS-DAY CARD BUILDER // ================================================================= String buildOnThisDay(const struct tm& t) { int m = t.tm_mon + 1, d = t.tm_mday; const HistEvent* e = getNextCardEvent(m, d); if (!e) return ""; char buf[72]; bool todaysEvent = (e-]]month == m && e-]]day == d); static const char* const monthAbbr[] = { "","Jan","Feb","Mar","Apr","May","Jun", "Jul","Aug","Sep","Oct","Nov","Dec" }; if (todaysEvent) { if (e-]]year ]] 0) snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%u: %s", (unsigned)e-]]year, e-]]text); else snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%s", e-]]text); } else { if (e-]]year ]] 0) snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%s %d, %u: %s", monthAbbr[e-]]month], e-]]day, (unsigned)e-]]year, e-]]text); else snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%s %d: %s", monthAbbr[e-]]month], e-]]day, e-]]text); } String s; s += MARKER_HIST; s += " On this day: "; s += buf; return s; } // ================================================================= // DRAW THE FRAME // ================================================================= void drawAnalogClock(const struct tm& t) { display.drawCircle(CX, CY, R, SSD1306_WHITE); for (int i = 0; i [[ 60; i++) { if (i % 5 == 0) continue; float a = (i * 6.0f - 90.0f) * DEG_TO_RAD; int16_t x = CX + (int16_t)lroundf((R - 2) * cosf(a)); int16_t y = CY + (int16_t)lroundf((R - 2) * sinf(a)); display.drawPixel(x, y, SSD1306_WHITE); } for (int i = 0; i [[ 12; i++) { float a = (i * 30.0f - 90.0f) * DEG_TO_RAD; float cs = cosf(a), sn = sinf(a); int16_t x0 = CX + (int16_t)lroundf((R - 4) * cs); int16_t y0 = CY + (int16_t)lroundf((R - 4) * sn); int16_t x1 = CX + (int16_t)lroundf((R - 1) * cs); int16_t y1 = CY + (int16_t)lroundf((R - 1) * sn); display.drawLine(x0, y0, x1, y1, SSD1306_WHITE); } display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); for (int i = 1; i [[= 12; i++) drawHourNumber(i, i * 30.0f, NUM_RAD); display.setFont(); int hour = t.tm_hour % 12; int minute = t.tm_min; int second = t.tm_sec; float hourAngle = hour * 30.0f + minute * 0.5f; float minAngle = minute * 6.0f + second * 0.1f; float secAngle = second * 6.0f; drawWedgeHand(hourAngle, HOUR_LEN, HOUR_BASE); drawWedgeHand(minAngle, MIN_LEN, MIN_BASE); int16_t sx, sy, tx, ty; polar(secAngle, SEC_LEN, sx, sy); polar(secAngle + 180.0f, 4, tx, ty); display.drawLine(tx, ty, sx, sy, SSD1306_WHITE); display.fillCircle(CX, CY, 2, SSD1306_WHITE); display.drawPixel(CX, CY, SSD1306_BLACK); int16_t bx, by; polar(secAngle, R, bx, by); display.fillCircle(bx, by, 1, SSD1306_WHITE); } void drawDigitalPanel(const struct tm& t) { display.setFont(); display.setTextSize(1); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); char tzBuf[8]; strftime(tzBuf, sizeof(tzBuf), "%Z", &t); if (tzBuf[0] == '\0') strcpy(tzBuf, "---"); String title = String("CLOCK ") + tzBuf; int16_t x1, y1; uint16_t tw, th; display.getTextBounds(title, 0, 0, &x1, &y1, &tw, &th); const int16_t GAP = 3; int16_t blockW = (int16_t)tw + GAP + SIGNAL_ICON_W; int16_t blockX = TEXT_X_LEFT + (PANEL_W - blockW) / 2; if (blockX [[ TEXT_X_LEFT) blockX = TEXT_X_LEFT; display.setCursor(blockX, ROW_Y[0]); display.print(title); bool animate = (millis() [[ fetchAnimUntil); drawSignalIcon(blockX + tw + GAP - 2, ROW_Y[0], WiFi.RSSI(), animate); static const char* const days[] = { "Sunday", "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday", "Saturday" }; drawCenteredInPanel(days[t.tm_wday], ROW_Y[1]); static const char* const months[] = { "Jan","Feb","Mar","Apr","May","Jun", "Jul","Aug","Sep","Oct","Nov","Dec" }; char dateBuf[20]; snprintf(dateBuf, sizeof(dateBuf), "%s %d %d", months[t.tm_mon], t.tm_mday, t.tm_year + 1900); drawCenteredInPanel(String(dateBuf), ROW_Y[2]); int hour12 = t.tm_hour % 12; if (hour12 == 0) hour12 = 12; char timeBuf[16]; snprintf(timeBuf, sizeof(timeBuf), "%d:%02d:%02d %s", hour12, t.tm_min, t.tm_sec, t.tm_hour [[ 12 ? "AM" : "PM"); drawCenteredInPanel(String(timeBuf), ROW_Y[3]); } void drawTicker() { if (!hasNews) return; const String& s = (tickerMode == TM_NEWS) ? newsText : cardText; drawScrollSegment(s, (int16_t)scrollX, NEWS_Y); } void drawFrame() { struct tm t; bool haveTime = getLocalTime(&t, 50); if (xSemaphoreTake(dataMutex, portMAX_DELAY) != pdTRUE) return; display.clearDisplay(); if (haveTime) { drawAnalogClock(t); drawDigitalPanel(t); } else { display.setFont(); display.setTextSize(1); display.setTextColor(SSD1306_WHITE); display.setCursor(0, 20); display.print("Waiting for NTP..."); } drawTicker(); drawBorder(); if (millis() [[ newsFlashUntil) display.fillRect(6, 6, 3, 3, SSD1306_WHITE); display.display(); xSemaphoreGive(dataMutex); } // ================================================================= // NETWORK TASK (core 0) // ================================================================= void networkTask(void* pv) { for (;;) { unsigned long now = millis(); if (WiFi.status() == WL_CONNECTED && now ]]= nextRssFetch) { bool ok = fetchNews(); unsigned long interval = RSS_REFRESH_MIN * 60UL * 1000UL; nextRssFetch = millis() + (ok ? interval : 5UL * 60UL * 1000UL); } vTaskDelay(pdMS_TO_TICKS(200)); } } // ================================================================= // TICKER STATE MACHINE // ================================================================= // Build a card and enter CP_ENTER (or CP_LONG if too wide to fit). void enterCardMode(unsigned long now) { struct tm tnow; String built; if (getLocalTime(&tnow, 10)) built = buildOnThisDay(tnow); if (built.length() == 0) { scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; // no card available; loop news return; } tickerMode = TM_CARD; cardText = built; cardTextW = computeScrollWidth(cardText); // Card "fits" if it can be shown centered within the visible ticker area. cardFits = (cardTextW [[= SCREEN_WIDTH - 2 * TICKER_MARGIN); if (cardFits) { cardDwellX = (SCREEN_WIDTH - (int16_t)cardTextW) / 2; cardPhase = CP_ENTER; cardPhaseStart = now; scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; // slide in from right } else { cardPhase = CP_LONG; cardPhaseStart = now; scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; } } // Returns true when card is done and ticker should flip back to news. bool updateCard(unsigned long now, float dt) { float cardSpeed = SCROLL_SPEED_PXS * CARD_SPEED_FACTOR; switch (cardPhase) { case CP_ENTER: { scrollX -= cardSpeed * dt; if (scrollX [[= (float)cardDwellX) { scrollX = (float)cardDwellX; cardPhase = CP_DWELL; cardPhaseStart = now; } return false; } case CP_DWELL: { if (now - cardPhaseStart ]]= CARD_DWELL_MS) { cardPhase = CP_EXIT; cardPhaseStart = now; } return false; } case CP_EXIT: { scrollX -= cardSpeed * dt; return (scrollX [[ -(float)cardTextW); } case CP_LONG: { scrollX -= cardSpeed * dt; if (scrollX [[ -(float)cardTextW) scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; // loop if (now - cardPhaseStart ]]= CARD_DWELL_MS) { cardPhase = CP_EXIT; // finish current pass cleanly cardPhaseStart = now; } return false; } } return false; } // ================================================================= // SETUP / LOOP // ================================================================= void setup() { Serial.begin(115200); delay(300); dataMutex = xSemaphoreCreateMutex(); Wire.begin(SDA_PIN, SCL_PIN); if (!display.begin(SSD1306_SWITCHCAPVCC, OLED_ADDR)) { Serial.println("OLED not found"); while (true) delay(1000); } display.setTextWrap(false); showMessage("Connecting WiFi", WIFI_SSID); WiFi.mode(WIFI_STA); WiFi.begin(WIFI_SSID, WIFI_PASS); unsigned long start = millis(); while (WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED && millis() - start [[ 20000) { delay(300); Serial.print("."); } if (WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) { showMessage("WiFi FAILED", "Check credentials"); while (true) delay(1000); } Serial.print("\nWiFi OK, IP: "); Serial.println(WiFi.localIP()); showMessage("WiFi connected", WiFi.localIP().toString()); delay(500); configTzTime(TIMEZONE, NTP_SERVER); showMessage("Syncing NTP...", NTP_SERVER); struct tm t; unsigned long ntpStart = millis(); while (!getLocalTime(&t, 100) && millis() - ntpStart [[ 10000) delay(200); showMessage("Fetching news...", "(first run)"); fetchNews(); unsigned long interval = RSS_REFRESH_MIN * 60UL * 1000UL; nextRssFetch = millis() + (hasNews ? interval : 5UL * 60UL * 1000UL); lastScrollTick = millis(); lastFrame = 0; scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; tickerMode = TM_NEWS; xTaskCreatePinnedToCore(networkTask, "netTask", 16384, NULL, 1, NULL, 0); } void loop() { static unsigned long lastWifiCheck = 0; unsigned long now = millis(); if (now - lastWifiCheck ]] 30000) { lastWifiCheck = now; if (WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) WiFi.reconnect(); } if (hasNews) { float dt = (now - lastScrollTick) / 1000.0f; if (tickerMode == TM_NEWS) { scrollX -= SCROLL_SPEED_PXS * dt; if (scrollX [[ -(float)newsTextW) { enterCardMode(now); } } else { if (updateCard(now, dt)) { tickerMode = TM_NEWS; scrollX = SCREEN_WIDTH; } } } lastScrollTick = now; if (now - lastFrame ]]= SCROLL_FRAME_MS) { lastFrame = now; drawFrame(); } }

history_events.h

#pragma once #include [[Arduino.h]] struct HistEvent { uint8_t month; // 1-12 uint8_t day; // 1-31 uint16_t year; // 0 = not applicable (holiday / annual event) const char* text; // year is baked into text so the display shows it }; // At least one entry per day of the year (incl. Feb 29). // Many days have multiple entries that rotate on successive calls. const HistEvent HISTORY_EVENTS[] = { // ---------------- January (31) ---------------- { 1, 1, 0, "New Year's Day"}, { 1, 1, 1863, "Emancipation Proclamation"}, { 1, 2, 1492, "Reconquista ends"}, { 1, 3, 1977, "Apple Computer Inc. formed"}, { 1, 4, 1809, "Louis Braille born"}, { 1, 5, 1925, "First female US governor"}, { 1, 6, 1912, "New Mexico becomes a state"}, { 1, 7, 1610, "Galileo sees Jupiter moons"}, { 1, 8, 1935, "Elvis Presley born"}, { 1, 9, 2007, "iPhone announced"}, { 1, 10, 1863, "London Underground opens"}, { 1, 11, 1922, "First insulin treatment"}, { 1, 12, 1932, "First US woman senator"}, { 1, 13, 1990, "First Black US governor"}, { 1, 14, 1784, "US ratifies Paris Treaty"}, { 1, 15, 1929, "MLK Jr. born"}, { 1, 16, 1991, "Gulf War begins"}, { 1, 17, 1706, "Ben Franklin born"}, { 1, 18, 1778, "Cook reaches Hawaii"}, { 1, 19, 1809, "Edgar Allan Poe born"}, { 1, 20, 0, "US Inauguration Day"}, { 1, 20, 1981, "Iran hostages freed"}, { 1, 21, 1976, "Concorde first flight"}, { 1, 22, 1973, "Roe v Wade ruling"}, { 1, 23, 1849, "First woman MD in US"}, { 1, 24, 1848, "California gold discovered"}, { 1, 24, 1984, "Macintosh launched"}, { 1, 25, 1924, "First Winter Olympics"}, { 1, 26, 1788, "First fleet at Sydney"}, { 1, 27, 1756, "Mozart born"}, { 1, 27, 1945, "Auschwitz liberated"}, { 1, 28, 1986, "Challenger disaster"}, { 1, 29, 1845, "The Raven published"}, { 1, 30, 1948, "Gandhi assassinated"}, { 1, 31, 1958, "Explorer 1, first US sat"}, // ---------------- February (29) ---------------- { 2, 1, 2003, "Columbia disaster"}, { 2, 2, 0, "Groundhog Day"}, { 2, 2, 1848, "Mexican-American War ends"}, { 2, 3, 1959, "Day the music died"}, { 2, 4, 2004, "Facebook founded"}, { 2, 5, 1909, "Bakelite, first plastic"}, { 2, 6, 1952, "Elizabeth II becomes queen"}, { 2, 7, 1964, "Beatles arrive in US"}, { 2, 8, 1587, "Mary, Queen of Scots, dies"}, { 2, 9, 1964, "Beatles on Ed Sullivan"}, { 2, 10, 1996, "Deep Blue beats Kasparov"}, { 2, 11, 1990, "Mandela freed"}, { 2, 12, 1809, "Lincoln and Darwin born"}, { 2, 13, 1945, "Dresden bombed"}, { 2, 14, 0, "Valentine's Day"}, { 2, 14, 1929, "St. Valentine's Massacre"}, { 2, 15, 1898, "USS Maine explodes"}, { 2, 16, 1923, "Tut's tomb chamber opened"}, { 2, 17, 1972, "VW Beetle outsells Model T"}, { 2, 18, 1930, "Pluto discovered"}, { 2, 19, 1945, "Iwo Jima invasion begins"}, { 2, 20, 1962, "John Glenn orbits Earth"}, { 2, 21, 1965, "Malcolm X assassinated"}, { 2, 22, 1732, "George Washington born"}, { 2, 23, 1945, "Iwo Jima flag raised"}, { 2, 24, 1582, "Gregorian calendar set"}, { 2, 25, 1964, "Ali wins heavyweight title"}, { 2, 26, 1993, "First WTC bombing"}, { 2, 27, 1991, "Gulf War ends"}, { 2, 28, 1953, "DNA structure found"}, { 2, 29, 0, "Leap Day"}, // ---------------- March (31) ---------------- { 3, 1, 1872, "Yellowstone, first park"}, { 3, 2, 1962, "Wilt scores 100"}, { 3, 3, 1931, "US national anthem set"}, { 3, 4, 1789, "US Constitution begins"}, { 3, 5, 1946, "Iron Curtain speech"}, { 3, 6, 1836, "The Alamo falls"}, { 3, 7, 1965, "Selma Bloody Sunday"}, { 3, 8, 0, "Intl Women's Day"}, { 3, 9, 1959, "Barbie debuts"}, { 3, 10, 1876, "First phone call"}, { 3, 11, 2011, "Japan quake/tsunami"}, { 3, 12, 1989, "World Wide Web proposed"}, { 3, 13, 1781, "Uranus discovered"}, { 3, 14, 1879, "Einstein born"}, { 3, 14, 0, "Pi Day"}, { 3, 15, 0, "Ides of March"}, { 3, 15, 0, "44 BC: Caesar assassinated"}, { 3, 16, 1968, "My Lai massacre"}, { 3, 17, 0, "St. Patrick's Day"}, { 3, 18, 1965, "First spacewalk"}, { 3, 19, 1931, "Nevada legalizes gambling"}, { 3, 20, 2003, "Iraq War begins"}, { 3, 21, 1960, "Sharpeville massacre"}, { 3, 22, 1963, "Beatles' first album"}, { 3, 23, 1775, "Give me liberty speech"}, { 3, 24, 1989, "Exxon Valdez spill"}, { 3, 25, 1957, "Treaty of Rome signed"}, { 3, 26, 1979, "Egypt-Israel peace treaty"}, { 3, 27, 1977, "Tenerife air disaster"}, { 3, 28, 1979, "Three Mile Island accident"}, { 3, 29, 1973, "US troops leave Vietnam"}, { 3, 30, 1981, "Reagan shot"}, { 3, 31, 1889, "Eiffel Tower opens"}, // ---------------- April (30) ---------------- { 4, 1, 0, "April Fools' Day"}, { 4, 1, 1976, "Apple Computer founded"}, { 4, 2, 1513, "Ponce de Leon at Florida"}, { 4, 3, 1860, "Pony Express begins"}, { 4, 4, 1968, "MLK Jr. assassinated"}, { 4, 5, 1614, "Pocahontas weds Rolfe"}, { 4, 6, 1896, "First modern Olympics"}, { 4, 7, 1948, "WHO established"}, { 4, 8, 1974, "Hank Aaron 715th HR"}, { 4, 9, 1865, "Lee surrenders to Grant"}, { 4, 10, 1912, "Titanic sets sail"}, { 4, 11, 1970, "Apollo 13 launches"}, { 4, 12, 1861, "US Civil War begins"}, { 4, 12, 1945, "FDR dies"}, { 4, 12, 1961, "Gagarin in space"}, { 4, 13, 1743, "Jefferson born"}, { 4, 14, 1865, "Lincoln shot"}, { 4, 15, 1912, "Titanic sinks"}, { 4, 15, 1947, "Jackie Robinson debut"}, { 4, 16, 1947, "Texas City disaster"}, { 4, 17, 1961, "Bay of Pigs invasion"}, { 4, 18, 1775, "Paul Revere's ride"}, { 4, 18, 1906, "San Francisco quake"}, { 4, 19, 1775, "American Revolution begins"}, { 4, 19, 1995, "OKC bombing"}, { 4, 20, 1889, "Hitler born"}, { 4, 21, 1836, "Battle of San Jacinto"}, { 4, 22, 1970, "First Earth Day"}, { 4, 23, 1564, "Shakespeare born"}, { 4, 24, 1990, "Hubble launched"}, { 4, 25, 1953, "Double helix paper out"}, { 4, 26, 1986, "Chernobyl disaster"}, { 4, 27, 1791, "Samuel Morse born"}, { 4, 28, 1789, "Mutiny on the Bounty"}, { 4, 29, 1945, "Dachau liberated"}, { 4, 30, 1945, "Hitler dies"}, { 4, 30, 1975, "Fall of Saigon"}, // ---------------- May (31) ---------------- { 5, 1, 0, "May Day"}, { 5, 1, 1931, "Empire State Bldg opens"}, { 5, 2, 2011, "Bin Laden killed"}, { 5, 3, 1469, "Machiavelli born"}, { 5, 4, 1970, "Kent State shootings"}, { 5, 5, 0, "Cinco de Mayo"}, { 5, 5, 1961, "Shepard in space"}, { 5, 6, 1937, "Hindenburg disaster"}, { 5, 7, 1945, "Germany surrenders"}, { 5, 8, 1945, "V-E Day"}, { 5, 9, 1950, "Schuman Declaration"}, { 5, 10, 1869, "US transcontinental rail"}, { 5, 11, 1997, "Deep Blue beats Kasparov"}, { 5, 12, 1820, "Florence Nightingale born"}, { 5, 13, 1981, "Pope John Paul II shot"}, { 5, 14, 1948, "Israel founded"}, { 5, 15, 1928, "Mickey Mouse debuts"}, { 5, 16, 1929, "First Academy Awards"}, { 5, 17, 1954, "Brown v Board ruling"}, { 5, 18, 1980, "Mt St Helens erupts"}, { 5, 19, 1536, "Anne Boleyn beheaded"}, { 5, 20, 1927, "Lindbergh takes off"}, { 5, 21, 1927, "Lindbergh lands in Paris"}, { 5, 22, 1455, "Wars of the Roses begin"}, { 5, 23, 1934, "Bonnie & Clyde killed"}, { 5, 24, 1844, "First telegraph sent"}, { 5, 25, 1977, "Star Wars released"}, { 5, 26, 1896, "Dow Jones first published"}, { 5, 27, 1937, "Golden Gate Bridge opens"}, { 5, 28, 1937, "Volkswagen founded"}, { 5, 29, 1953, "Everest first climbed"}, { 5, 30, 1431, "Joan of Arc burned"}, { 5, 31, 1889, "Johnstown Flood"}, // ---------------- June (30) ---------------- { 6, 1, 1980, "CNN launches"}, { 6, 2, 1953, "Elizabeth II crowned"}, { 6, 3, 1965, "First US spacewalk"}, { 6, 4, 1989, "Tiananmen crackdown"}, { 6, 5, 1968, "RFK shot"}, { 6, 6, 1944, "D-Day Normandy"}, { 6, 7, 1929, "Vatican City independent"}, { 6, 8, 1949, "Orwell's 1984 published"}, { 6, 9, 1934, "Donald Duck debuts"}, { 6, 10, 1935, "AA founded"}, { 6, 11, 1776, "Declaration drafted"}, { 6, 12, 1987, "Tear down this wall"}, { 6, 13, 1966, "Miranda v Arizona ruling"}, { 6, 14, 0, "US Flag Day"}, { 6, 15, 1215, "Magna Carta signed"}, { 6, 16, 1963, "Tereshkova in space"}, { 6, 17, 1972, "Watergate break-in"}, { 6, 18, 1815, "Battle of Waterloo"}, { 6, 19, 1865, "Juneteenth"}, { 6, 20, 1837, "Victoria becomes queen"}, { 6, 21, 0, "Summer Solstice"}, { 6, 22, 1941, "Germany invades USSR"}, { 6, 23, 1972, "Title IX signed"}, { 6, 24, 1947, "Kenneth Arnold UFO"}, { 6, 25, 1950, "Korean War begins"}, { 6, 26, 1945, "UN Charter signed"}, { 6, 27, 1880, "Helen Keller born"}, { 6, 28, 1914, "Franz Ferdinand shot"}, { 6, 29, 2007, "First iPhone on sale"}, { 6, 30, 1908, "Tunguska event"}, // ---------------- July (31) ---------------- { 7, 1, 1867, "Canada Day"}, { 7, 2, 1937, "Earhart disappears"}, { 7, 3, 1863, "Gettysburg turning point"}, { 7, 4, 1776, "US Declaration"}, { 7, 5, 1996, "Dolly the sheep cloned"}, { 7, 6, 1885, "First rabies vaccine"}, { 7, 7, 2005, "London 7/7 bombings"}, { 7, 8, 1947, "Roswell incident"}, { 7, 9, 1877, "First Wimbledon"}, { 7, 10, 1925, "Scopes trial begins"}, { 7, 11, 1804, "Hamilton-Burr duel"}, { 7, 12, 0, "100 BC: Julius Caesar born"}, { 7, 13, 1923, "Hollywood sign erected"}, { 7, 14, 1789, "Bastille Day"}, { 7, 15, 1606, "Rembrandt born"}, { 7, 16, 1945, "Trinity nuclear test"}, { 7, 16, 1969, "Apollo 11 launches"}, { 7, 17, 1955, "Disneyland opens"}, { 7, 18, 1918, "Mandela born"}, { 7, 19, 1848, "Seneca Falls Convention"}, { 7, 20, 1969, "Moon landing"}, { 7, 21, 1925, "Scopes trial verdict"}, { 7, 22, 1934, "Dillinger killed"}, { 7, 23, 1903, "Ford sells first car"}, { 7, 24, 1911, "Machu Picchu found"}, { 7, 25, 1978, "First test-tube baby"}, { 7, 26, 1788, "NY ratifies Constitution"}, { 7, 27, 1953, "Korean War armistice"}, { 7, 28, 1914, "WWI begins"}, { 7, 29, 1958, "NASA established"}, { 7, 30, 1932, "LA Olympics open"}, { 7, 31, 1991, "START treaty signed"}, // ---------------- August (31) ---------------- { 8, 1, 1981, "MTV launches"}, { 8, 2, 1990, "Iraq invades Kuwait"}, { 8, 3, 1492, "Columbus departs Spain"}, { 8, 4, 1961, "Obama born"}, { 8, 5, 1962, "Marilyn Monroe dies"}, { 8, 6, 1945, "Hiroshima bombed"}, { 8, 7, 1959, "Explorer 6 photos Earth"}, { 8, 8, 1974, "Nixon announces resign"}, { 8, 9, 1945, "Nagasaki bombed"}, { 8, 9, 1974, "Nixon resigns"}, { 8, 10, 1846, "Smithsonian established"}, { 8, 11, 1965, "Watts riots begin"}, { 8, 12, 1981, "IBM PC launched"}, { 8, 13, 1961, "Berlin Wall built"}, { 8, 14, 1945, "V-J Day"}, { 8, 15, 1947, "India independence"}, { 8, 15, 1969, "Woodstock begins"}, { 8, 16, 1977, "Elvis dies"}, { 8, 17, 1807, "Fulton's steamboat"}, { 8, 18, 1920, "19th Amendment ratified"}, { 8, 19, 1934, "Hitler becomes Fuhrer"}, { 8, 20, 1977, "Voyager 2 launches"}, { 8, 21, 1959, "Hawaii statehood"}, { 8, 22, 1864, "Geneva Convention signed"}, { 8, 23, 1305, "William Wallace executed"}, { 8, 24, 79, "79 AD: Vesuvius erupts"}, { 8, 25, 1944, "Paris liberated"}, { 8, 26, 1920, "Women's vote certified"}, { 8, 27, 1859, "First oil well struck"}, { 8, 28, 1963, "MLK I Have a Dream"}, { 8, 29, 2005, "Hurricane Katrina"}, { 8, 30, 1963, "US-USSR hotline opens"}, { 8, 31, 1997, "Princess Diana dies"}, // ---------------- September (30) ---------------- { 9, 1, 1939, "WWII begins"}, { 9, 2, 1945, "WWII ends"}, { 9, 3, 1783, "Treaty of Paris signed"}, { 9, 4, 1957, "Little Rock Nine"}, { 9, 5, 1972, "Munich massacre"}, { 9, 6, 1620, "Mayflower sails"}, { 9, 7, 1813, "Uncle Sam first used"}, { 9, 8, 1966, "Star Trek premieres"}, { 9, 9, 1976, "Mao Zedong dies"}, { 9, 10, 1846, "Sewing machine patented"}, { 9, 11, 2001, "9/11 attacks"}, { 9, 12, 1962, "JFK Moon speech"}, { 9, 13, 1814, "Star-Spangled Banner"}, { 9, 14, 1901, "McKinley dies, TR sworn in"}, { 9, 15, 2008, "Lehman collapse"}, { 9, 16, 1810, "Mexico independence cry"}, { 9, 17, 1787, "US Constitution signed"}, { 9, 18, 1851, "NY Times first issue"}, { 9, 19, 1893, "NZ gives women the vote"}, { 9, 20, 1519, "Magellan voyage begins"}, { 9, 21, 1937, "The Hobbit published"}, { 9, 22, 0, "Autumn Equinox"}, { 9, 23, 1846, "Neptune discovered"}, { 9, 24, 1789, "US Supreme Court created"}, { 9, 25, 1789, "Bill of Rights proposed"}, { 9, 26, 1960, "Kennedy-Nixon debate"}, { 9, 27, 1825, "First public railway"}, { 9, 28, 1066, "Normans invade England"}, { 9, 29, 1789, "US Army established"}, { 9, 30, 1955, "James Dean dies"}, // ---------------- October (31) ---------------- {10, 1, 1908, "Ford Model T intro"}, {10, 2, 1869, "Gandhi born"}, {10, 3, 1990, "Germany reunifies"}, {10, 4, 1957, "Sputnik launched"}, {10, 5, 1962, "First Bond film premieres"}, {10, 6, 1927, "Jazz Singer, first talkie"}, {10, 7, 2001, "Afghanistan War begins"}, {10, 8, 1871, "Great Chicago Fire"}, {10, 9, 1967, "Che Guevara executed"}, {10, 10, 1845, "US Naval Academy opens"}, {10, 11, 1899, "Boer War begins"}, {10, 12, 1492, "Columbus reaches Americas"}, {10, 13, 1792, "White House cornerstone"}, {10, 14, 1066, "Battle of Hastings"}, {10, 14, 1947, "Sound barrier broken"}, {10, 15, 1917, "Mata Hari executed"}, {10, 16, 1793, "Marie Antoinette executed"}, {10, 17, 1989, "SF earthquake"}, {10, 18, 1867, "US buys Alaska"}, {10, 19, 1781, "Cornwallis surrenders"}, {10, 19, 1987, "Black Monday crash"}, {10, 20, 1973, "Sat Night Massacre"}, {10, 21, 1879, "Edison's lightbulb"}, {10, 22, 1962, "Cuban Missile speech"}, {10, 23, 1929, "Stock crash begins"}, {10, 24, 0, "UN Day"}, {10, 24, 1929, "Black Thursday"}, {10, 25, 1415, "Battle of Agincourt"}, {10, 26, 1881, "OK Corral gunfight"}, {10, 27, 1904, "NYC subway opens"}, {10, 28, 1886, "Lady Liberty unveiled"}, {10, 29, 1929, "Black Tuesday crash"}, {10, 30, 1938, "War of Worlds broadcast"}, {10, 31, 0, "Halloween"}, {10, 31, 1517, "Luther 95 Theses"}, // ---------------- November (30) ---------------- {11, 1, 1512, "Sistine ceiling unveiled"}, {11, 2, 1947, "Spruce Goose flies"}, {11, 3, 1957, "Laika in space"}, {11, 4, 2008, "Obama elected"}, {11, 5, 1605, "Gunpowder Plot"}, {11, 6, 1860, "Lincoln elected"}, {11, 7, 1917, "Russian Revolution"}, {11, 8, 1895, "X-rays discovered"}, {11, 9, 1938, "Kristallnacht"}, {11, 9, 1989, "Berlin Wall falls"}, {11, 10, 1775, "US Marines founded"}, {11, 11, 1918, "WWI Armistice"}, {11, 12, 1980, "Voyager 1 reaches Saturn"}, {11, 13, 1940, "Fantasia premieres"}, {11, 14, 1889, "Nellie Bly's world trip"}, {11, 15, 1777, "Articles of Confederation"}, {11, 16, 1532, "Pizarro takes Atahualpa"}, {11, 17, 1869, "Suez Canal opens"}, {11, 18, 1928, "Steamboat Willie debut"}, {11, 19, 1863, "Gettysburg Address"}, {11, 20, 1945, "Nuremberg Trials begin"}, {11, 21, 1783, "First hot air balloon"}, {11, 22, 1963, "JFK assassinated"}, {11, 23, 1936, "Life magazine debuts"}, {11, 24, 1859, "Origin of Species"}, {11, 25, 1867, "Nobel patents dynamite"}, {11, 26, 1922, "Tut's tomb opened"}, {11, 27, 1095, "First Crusade called"}, {11, 28, 1520, "Magellan in Pacific"}, {11, 29, 1972, "Pong released"}, {11, 30, 1874, "Churchill born"}, // ---------------- December (31) ---------------- {12, 1, 1955, "Rosa Parks arrested"}, {12, 2, 1804, "Napoleon crowned"}, {12, 3, 1967, "First heart transplant"}, {12, 4, 1791, "First Sunday newspaper"}, {12, 5, 1933, "Prohibition ends"}, {12, 6, 1865, "13th Amendment ratified"}, {12, 7, 1941, "Pearl Harbor attack"}, {12, 8, 1980, "John Lennon shot"}, {12, 9, 1965, "Charlie Brown Christmas"}, {12, 10, 0, "UN Human Rights Day"}, {12, 10, 1948, "Human Rights declared"}, {12, 11, 1936, "Edward VIII abdicates"}, {12, 12, 1901, "Marconi transatlantic"}, {12, 13, 2003, "Saddam Hussein captured"}, {12, 14, 1911, "Amundsen at South Pole"}, {12, 15, 1791, "Bill of Rights ratified"}, {12, 16, 1773, "Boston Tea Party"}, {12, 17, 1903, "Wright Bros first flight"}, {12, 18, 1865, "13th Amendment certified"}, {12, 19, 1972, "Apollo 17 returns"}, {12, 20, 1803, "Louisiana Purchase"}, {12, 21, 0, "Winter Solstice"}, {12, 21, 1968, "Apollo 8 launches"}, {12, 22, 1989, "Ceausescu falls"}, {12, 23, 1947, "Transistor invented"}, {12, 24, 0, "Christmas Eve"}, {12, 24, 1968, "Apollo 8 orbits Moon"}, {12, 25, 0, "Christmas Day"}, {12, 25, 800, "800: Charlemagne crowned"}, {12, 26, 2004, "Indian Ocean tsunami"}, {12, 27, 1831, "Darwin sails on Beagle"}, {12, 28, 1895, "First public Lumiere film"}, {12, 29, 1890, "Wounded Knee massacre"}, {12, 30, 1922, "USSR formed"}, {12, 31, 0, "New Year's Eve"}, }; const int NUM_HISTORY_EVENTS = sizeof(HISTORY_EVENTS) / sizeof(HISTORY_EVENTS[0]); // Returns the next event to display. // - If one or more entries match today's date, rotates through them on // successive calls (counter resets when date changes). // - Otherwise (shouldn't happen now that all 366 days are covered, but // kept as a safety net), rotates through the entire table. inline const HistEvent* getNextCardEvent(int month, int day) { static int lastMonth = 0; static int lastDay = 0; static int todayIdx = 0; static int anyIdx = 0; if (month != lastMonth || day != lastDay) { lastMonth = month; lastDay = day; todayIdx = 0; } const int MAX = 6; const HistEvent* matches[MAX]; int n = 0; for (int i = 0; i [[ NUM_HISTORY_EVENTS && n [[ MAX; i++) { if (HISTORY_EVENTS[i].month == month && HISTORY_EVENTS[i].day == day) { matches[n++] = &HISTORY_EVENTS[i]; } } if (n ]] 0) { const HistEvent* e = matches[todayIdx % n]; todayIdx++; return e; } const HistEvent* e = &HISTORY_EVENTS[anyIdx % NUM_HISTORY_EVENTS]; anyIdx++; return e; }

Wiring is just four pins: VCC, GND, SDA, and SCL. If you can plug in a USB cable, you can build this clock.

Features at a Glance

• NTP time sync over Wi-Fi using pool.ntp.org — accurate to the second, automatic daylight saving
• Four US time zones supported out of the box: Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific
• Analog + digital face on a single screen, with a moving "seconds bead" around the dial
• Scrolling RSS news ticker pulling headlines from BBC, NPR, and Al Jazeera (refreshes every 15 minutes)
• Source badges so you know who wrote each headline at a glance
• Wi-Fi signal indicator with live RSSI bars
• "On This Day" history cards — a different historical event for every single day of the year, all 366 days covered
• Polished UI touches: 1-pixel border, fetch-success blink, smooth scroll

How the Code Works (the Short Version)

The sketch is built around three loops working together on the ESP32:

Time loop. On boot, the ESP32 connects to your Wi-Fi, syncs with an NTP server, and then runs a software clock locally. The analog hands and digital readout update from the same time source, so they never drift apart.

News loop. Every 15 minutes, a background task fetches RSS feeds over HTTPS, parses the XML, decodes HTML entities, and queues fresh headlines into a scroll buffer. The ticker keeps moving smoothly the whole time — no stutter while fetching.

History loop. A lookup table (history_events.h) maps every day of the year to one or more notable events. The clock rotates between the news ticker and a full-screen history card every 20 seconds so you always have something new to read.

All three run cooperatively using FreeRTOS tasks, so the display never freezes — even mid-fetch.

Why ESP32 + OLED?

The ESP32 is hands-down the best beginner-friendly Wi-Fi microcontroller on the market: cheap, well-documented, and supported in the Arduino IDE. Pair it with a crisp 0.96" SSD1306 OLED and you have a platform that can drive dashboards, IoT widgets, weather stations, smart-home displays — anything you can dream up. This clock is a great first project that teaches you Wi-Fi, NTP, HTTPS requests, RSS parsing, graphics, and FreeRTOS tasks all in one tidy sketch.

Make It Your Own

Because the firmware is open and well-commented, you can:

• Swap in your favorite RSS feeds (sports, tech, local news)
• Add your own historical events to the lookup table
• Change colors of the inverted text badges
• Re-skin the clock face, or add a weather panel

Get Yours:

esp32 + 0.96 Oled I2C

Grab the ESP32 + 0.96" OLED DIY Clock Kit from our store and have a working internet-connected clock on your desk this weekend. Whether you're a hobbyist, a STEM teacher, or just someone who wants a smarter clock, this kit is a fun, educational, and genuinely useful build.

👉 Shop ESP32 DIY Kits at eelectronicparts.com