The Lego Mindstorms Nxt Idea Book: Design, Invent, and Build

You would need this book if you own the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Kit. Can't get it work without it!

Lots Of good information on NXT G-code,Bluetooth programming for the NXT, and an informative guide to designing your NXT bots.I thought this book was well worth the money. The "LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT-G Programming Guide (Technology in Action) is a very good intro to this book.

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.

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.

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.