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LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming Guide (Technology in Action)
 
 
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LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming Guide (Technology in Action) [Paperback]

James Floyd Kelly (Author)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews) |
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Book Description

Publication Date: June 18, 2007 | ISBN-10: 1590598717 | ISBN-13: 978-1590598719 | Edition: 1

LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming Guide is suitable for young programmers, age 10 and up, as well as parents and teachers who want to learn the new language for themselves or be able to assist students/children with learning to properly program their robots.

  • Includes easy-to-follow examples for each and every programming block
  • Provides programming techniques simple enough to be understood by young programmers, ages 10 and up
  • Provides a test robot (with instructions) in the appendix for running the programs

What you’ll learn

  • Understand the basics of computer programming
  • Easily program your robot with the NXT-G visual programming language
  • See how to implement basic, intermediate, and advanced programs
  • Learn how to program for
    • Moving
    • Waiting
    • Recording
    • Stopping
    • Displaying messages
    • Sending messages
    • Defining the duration of an activity
    • Creating random behavior
  • Practice with a free sample program

Who this book is for

This book is for people new to programming (10 years old and up) or for experienced programmers new to the NXT-G programming language.

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Frequently Bought Together

LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming Guide (Technology in Action) + The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Discovery Book: A Beginner's Guide to Building and Programming Robots + The Art of LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming
Price For All Three: $53.72

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  • The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Discovery Book: A Beginner's Guide to Building and Programming Robots by Laurens Valk Paperback $19.77

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  • The Art of LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming by Terry Griffin Paperback $19.18

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Editorial Reviews

Review

From the reviews:

"An introduction to programming Mindstorms NXT robots using the NXT-G programming toolkit by Lego is provided in this book. … The book covers every step needed to write programs, starting from no knowledge of programming and slowly bringing in additional programming constructs. … Overall, the book is clear and well written, intended for an audience with no programming skills who need step-by-step instructions … ." (M. Gini, ACM Computing Reviews, Vol. 49 (12), December, 2008)

About the Author

James Floyd Kelly is a professional writer from Atlanta, Georgia. He has written numerous books on multiple subjects, including LEGO robotics, open source software, and building your own CNC machine as well as a 3D printer. He is the editor-in-chief of the number one MINDSTORMS NXT blog, The NXT Step (TheNXTStep.com), where he is joined by fellow NXT experts who share their knowledge and designs with other robot fans around the world.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 196 pages
  • Publisher: Apress; 1 edition (June 18, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1590598717
  • ISBN-13: 978-1590598719
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.1 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #705,286 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
DISCLAIMER: I am the author of this book - buyer beware :)

The book consists of 26 chapters plus 1 appendix.

The first 2 chapters cover the questions of "What is a robot" and "What is a program" and introduce the topic of pseudo code. There are many different methods when it comes to pseudo code, but this method will hopefully help teachers, parents, and students to understand how to take an idea for a program and turn it into actual NXT-G block code.

All 36 blocks are covered (the book is useful for both the retail version software and the educational version), and each block has its own chapter with the exception of a couple of blocks that share a chapter (such as the Random block and Number-To-Text block that share chapter 14).

There is a chapter dedicated to the concept of data plugs and wires (Chapter 7). This can be one of the more confusing elements of NXT-G, so this chapter uses a simplified method of showing how data types (number, text, logic) are passed between blocks.

Another chapter provides a walkthrough on creating a My Block. My Blocks are powerful methods for simplifying NXT-G programs, and this chapter shows how the ability to re-use My Blocks can be helpful.

Finally, the appendix covers some basic math such as converting back and forth between degrees and rotations. It also explains the LCD screen's resolution and how the X/Y coordinates work.

Teachers, parents, coaches, and kids should find this book useful. It's written in a very friendly and easy-to-read style and provides plenty of sample programs in each chapter to demonstrate how to use the blocks. Also, coverage of each block's configuration panel is also provided. Overall, the book can be used as an additional source of information on the NXT-G programming language to supplement the Help files included with the software.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
When it comes to wanting to do Lego Mindstorm NXT-G, this is the first book you should get. The book shows the reader what different blocks are and how they work. The book also reads in terms that middle school students can understand and follow. Programming is the most difficult item that you have to do with a roboit. This book shows is a great resource for people that are in to lego roboits.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Great Book! February 17, 2008
Format:Paperback
We bought this book for our nine year old son who had recently received the Mindstorms NXT for Christmas. He could not put the book down - read it from cover to cover and thinks it is a great book. Highly recommend.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
good book
used it for a class, did not really need it it turned out since all the information that i needed was available searching on google but still good have it around.
Published 2 months ago by happymojo85
Help for the grandson
I bought this for my grandson to help him with the NXT 2.0. The book has helped him with programming terminology associated with the NXt. Read more
Published on May 15, 2010 by S. Gormley
Dissapointed
I purchased this book for my 10 year old, who has had his lego mindstorms nt-2.0 for about two months. Read more
Published on April 9, 2010 by S. Gedney
Not worth it
I was VERY disappointed in this book. I have three examples, all of which arise from questions from an FLL team. This book answers none of them:
1. Read more
Published on December 23, 2009 by Jack Gregory
Excellent book for a tutorial on NXT-G programming
Until I read this book, I had only a vague idea of the features of the NXT, especially from what I learned in the manual that comes with the kit. Read more
Published on December 15, 2009 by Adam M. Eyring
Not worth buying
This book lacks depth and is, at best, a poor rewrite of the online help file. Anybody who spends a little bit of time with the NXT could have written this book. Read more
Published on September 14, 2009 by Observant
Best guide to NXT-G!
This is the best source for NXT-G programming!

Many Mindstorms NXT books have information on NXT-G, but they either do not go into every detail, or they make it too... Read more
Published on April 21, 2009
Not useful
I was hoping to learn more about NXT-G. I didn't. There is nothing in this book that is not in the online help files that come with the software. There are a number of errors. Read more
Published on October 11, 2008 by Carol Johnson
Great resource for NXT-G programming
This book covers a lot of ground on NXT-G programming and is a must have resource for anyone serious about programming in NXT-G as the on line help included with the NXT set is not... Read more
Published on February 25, 2008 by John S. Kjellman
The Best, Most Complete Guide to NXT-G
There's no other book out there that covers the NXT-G programming language. Jim Kelly covers the subject thoroughly, in a clear, friendly and encouraging style. Read more
Published on July 15, 2007 by Railrho
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
next action, common palette, sound file, complete palette, input data plugs, program your bot, logic keyboard, configuration panel, light sensor detects, block configured, data hub, configure this option, sensor block, sensor button, data wire, robotics kit, color keyboard, right radio button, motor ports, six rotations, rotation sensor, input plug, programming blocks, variable block, configured value
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Hello World, Block Figure, Coast Figure, False Logic, Icon Builder, Name Type, Test Value
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
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