Books people really want?

The comment by Meefus the Great in Rick's last post on this blog makes me wonder... Just what are people really looking for in an NXT book? Do people want theoretical instruction (words with illustrative figures), models to build, or hacking ideas? Personally, I'd like one thorough handbook for various mechanisms that could be used in any robot, but I'd also like "cool" models (not too complicated) that teach me to use those different mechanisms. Are you game for an informal poll?

Here are some response options:

A. Traditional robot-building education (words with appropriate illustrations) including subjects like complex mechanisms, robotic theory, advanced programming for LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT...
B. Simple but cool models with detailed instructions for building and programming.
C. Complicated models with clear building steps and complete programs.
D. Models with a mechanism theme---walking robots, advanced wheeled robots, grabbing robots, learning robots....
E. Robots that show some artistic creativity---characters from stories, models with non-LEGO materials added...(I'd put Jim's Mayan Adventure book here)
F. Hacks, hacks and more hacks!
G. A handbook for creating digital versions of NXT models (I had to throw this one in : )
H. Your own wish list item---Please explain!

Feel free to elaborate.

I haven't posted for this purpose, but assuming that NXT publishers (and authors) are reading this blog, this is your chance to tell them what you are really interested in. Who knows, you just might get it!

Celebrating MINDSTORMS with a Remix - Part 3

The ROBOTMAK3RS continued their celebration of the 25th Anniversary of MINDSTORMS through these Fall and Winter remix projects. Each ROBOTMAK3R was tasked with selecting one LEGO set of their choice and combining it with a MINDSTORMS set. Below are the five amazing models they came up with. Braill3 by Jerry Nicholls Braill3 is an EV3-based LEGO Braille bricks reader. This robot uses its fingertip, made from three touch switches, to read messages written using the LEGO Braille bricks and will speak out what it detected. If it sees a simple maths problem it will attempt to solve it and give the answer as well. To learn more about the process of creating this machine, read Jerry's blog . Braill3 can be viewed here . Set Review: The Braille Bricks set is well thought out. The ratios of the letters is suitable for general use and the addition of some punctuation and arithmetic operators is excellent. There is a card showing what bricks there are and their quantities, but no form of sort...

Celebrating MINDSTORMS with a Remix - Part 2

The ROBOTMAK3RS continued their celebration of the 25th Anniversary of MINDSTORMS through these summer and fall remix projects. Each ROBOTMAK3R was tasked with selecting one LEGO set of their choice and combining it with a MINDSTORMS set. Below are the five amazing models they came up with. Remote controlled material handle r by Jozua van Ravenhorst (aka Mr Jo) This remix combines the LEGO Technic Material Handler (42144) with MINDSTORMS EV3 (31313) It uses the power of pneumatic cylinders to move objects around. By using a bluetooth remote control, very precise movements can be made with this model. Touch sensors in the base chassis prevent the turret twisting the cables that go through the turntable to much. The program has several protections to prevent over pressurizing the system for each of the 3 individual pumps and valves that control the 2 booms and claws. The real version of this machine is mostly used in waste material sites to bring the material to machines that sort and...

Celebrating 25 Years of MINDSTORMS

In celebration of the 25th Anniversary of MINDSTORMS, we take a trip through history. Please also visit ROBOTMAK3RS Community every week as we highlight different projects all through 2023 in celebration of the anniversary. Some of the early history is based on the content shared by Coder Shah in our MINDSTORMS EV3 Community Group . Some of the text and links may have been edited from his original posts for consistency and clarity. 1984 - Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen watched a TV program called "Talking Turtle," where MIT professor Seymour Papert demonstrated how children could control robot "turtles" using LOGO, a programming language he developed. 1988 - The collaboration between MIT and LEGO resulted in LEGO TC Logo in 1988, which allowed students to control LEGO models using computer commands. The video shows Papert demonstrating TC Logo. 1990 - LEGO TC Logo was hampered since the robots you built had to be tethered to a personal computer. LEGO and MIT...

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