Adding a LCD to any project immediately kicks it up a notch. This tutorial explains how to connect a inexpensive HDD44780 compatible LCD to the raspberry pi using 6 GPIOs. While there are other ways to connect using I2C or the UART this is the most direct method that get right down to the bare metal.
+
+
This technique:
+
+
* allows for inexpensive LCDs to be used
+
* does not require any i2c drivers
+
* won't steal the only serial port on the Pi.
+
+
+
The example python code sends date, time and the ip address to the display. If you are running a Pi in headless mode being able to determine the IP address at a glance is really handy.