Example snippet showing use of shell to display ping status on LEDs

monitor_hosts_loop.sh

#! /bin/sh

LED_CONTROL_CMD="switch_led"
LED_CONTROL_CMD="echo"
BASE_LED_NUMBER="5"
INTERVAL="30"

HOSTS="
        google.com
        slashdot.org
        no-such-host.net
"

while true
do
        LED_NO="$BASE_LED_NUMBER"
        for TARGET in $HOSTS
        do
                if ping -n -c 1 $TARGET  >/dev/null 2>&1
                then
                        "$LED_CONTROL_CMD" "$LED_NO" 1
                else
                        "$LED_CONTROL_CMD" "$LED_NO" 0
                fi
                LED_NO=$(($LED_NO + 1))
        done
        sleep "$INTERVAL"
done

This Gist was in response to a request for scripting help in the Element 14 Raspberry Pi forum at thread http://www.element14.com/community/thread/20951?tstart=0

How this see in Python?

Hi, I think somebody already should have found complete solution for this. I am also doing a project in which I required similar functionality but couldn't figure out how it will be done. Please post the complete solution. Thank you very much.