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The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Idea Book: Design, Invent, and Build Paperback – August 28, 2007

4.5 out of 5 stars 13 customer reviews

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Product Details

  • Paperback: 350 pages
  • Publisher: No Starch Press; 1 edition (August 28, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1593271506
  • ISBN-13: 978-1593271503
  • Product Dimensions: 8 x 1 x 10 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #741,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

By ueberhund VINE VOICE on September 30, 2007
Format: Paperback
I found this to be a very unique book. Many of the other Lego Mindstorms books I have reviewed focus on simply building a cool robot. While building a cool robot is certainly one of the reasons builders like Mindstorms so much, it's not the only reason. This book also focuses on the programming of these robots, which is something I haven't seen adequately covered in any other Mindstorms book.

In fact, this one point--learning how to program your robot--is really the focus of this book. All the models deal with getting your robot's sensors and Bluetooth ability to work as seamlessly as possible--all while accomplishing the specific task the robot was designed for.

While the models are all very interesting (a 3D photo assistant, a crane, a slot machine, etc), the real jewels of this book are the programming and debugging techniques used for Mindstorms. In fact, the first third of the book focuses on how sensors work, how to program them, and how they can be debugged. Without a doubt, this is the best discussion of the subject I've seen anywhere. Period.

My only complaint about the book is that the building instructions are done in black and white (instead of the color instructions provided by Lego). I think most people interested in this type of book would be willing to pay a few extra bucks for color pictures. While the lack of color is certainly a strike against this book, it is not enough to tarnish an otherwise brilliantly executed book. This book is highly recommended not just for the models, but for the outstanding discussion of Mindstorms programming.
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Format: Paperback
This book adopts a cookbook approach. The book briefly explains the basics to get you grounded in the material. But quickly thereafter, the book takes a leap to address intermediate builders. The assumption is that online resources will help bridge the gap. Its an approach that works.

Roughly a third of the Idea Book contains a number of tips and techniques for using the kit.

The remaining two thirds of the book (Part II) is dedicated to building eight robots of varying complexity.
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Format: Paperback
This book contains very clear instructions and diagrams for NXT-G program. The sample robots are creative and very well designed. You can feel the intelligence behind when you build. I especially like the binding of this book, so it can lay open while you build. So I will probablly purchase more book from this press. In fact I have pre-order one. One thing I doesn't like is one of the samples requires two NXT kits, which I don't have at the moment. I guess it's because this book is targeting more senior builders.
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Format: Paperback
The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Idea Book: Design, Invent, and Build

I read this book and I really enjoyed it. This was the first Mindstorms book that I read and it was really easy to understand and got me off to a quick start. The only reason that I didn't give it 5 stars was that the graphics and text are printed on an off white background and it made it a little harder to read and the graphics themselves are all black and white and some of them were a little hard to figure out the robot designs because of it. But dont let this keep you from getting this great robotics book. [...]
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Though this book is for the NXT 1.0 it has great information and robots to build and program. Hopefully the publishers of books for the NXT 1.0 and 2.0 will develop books for the EV3. Even thought he EV3 is spectacular it is still fun to build in the other Mindstorms systems.
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Looking for a birthday gift (15th birthday) for my son that would spark some interest to do something besides playing video games led me to this Lego product and I must say the venture was successful. He has truly enjoyed using his "mind" and "hands" to build his robots and looks forward to coming home after school to do just that instead of craving the Playstation as before. I have to "restrict" his time playing video games but with the Lego NXT he can build at will which is also a real plus. The unit has worked well thus far and at this point my only criticism of the product is that it does not come with a good storage case for all the pieces (you'll have to buy something to do this or pieces are likely to get lost and it is difficult to keep things organized without a storage unit). I also bought two Lego NXT guide books in addition to the unit which have proven worthwhile as the included book is much more limited on what all you can build with the kit. My son has said that he would like to pursue an engineering degree now when he attends college as he would love to continue to design and build new products (such as cars) as a result of his experience with this Lego kit. It is expensive when you look at this set as just another Lego set...but to me it is priceless to see him creating functional robots that makes him and I both feel very proud of his accomplishments in building one that works as intended and all while the Playstation sits and collects dust...what could be better!! I guess only some gift like a bicycle or such that gets your kids outdoors and active could be better than something like this but for now I think I've found a perfect gift to make him active inside his mind.Read more ›
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