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San Francisco, CA, November 30, 2010—The LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT 2.0 set includes an impressive assortment of electronic parts and building elements as well as powerful software. Users can invent thousands of functional robots with these components, but without a detailed user's guide, the set's potential can seem overwhelming. With so many possibilities, where does one begin?
For users who need a leg up, San Francisco–based No Starch Press (publisher of such best-selling LEGO titles as Forbidden LEGO and The Unofficial LEGO Builder's Guide) offers The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Inventor's Guide (No Starch Press, December 2010, 336 pp., $29.95, ISBN 9781593272159).
This revised edition of the best-selling book on the NXT kit has been completely updated to cover the changes in NXT 2.0, including an additional chapter on NXT-G tools and step-by-step instructions for building, programming, and testing six all-new robots. Author David J. Perdue introduces new users to the basics of the NXT 2.0 set and then launches into a detailed discussion of the building elements and construction techniques. After a crash course in the official NXT-G programming language, veteran robot builder Laurens Valk takes over with instructions for the robots, all of which can be built with parts found in the NXT 2.0 set. The robots include:
- Inventor-Bot, a fast, simple, modular vehicle with treads
- Sentry-Bot, a robot guard that shoots balls at intruders
- Table-Bot, a vehicle that uses its antennae to avoid falling off a tabletop
- The Jeep, a four-wheeled vehicle that avoids obstacles and follows lines
- The Lizard, a large walking robot that uses the color sensor to detect and respond to different colored balls
- The Printer, a stationary robot that uses a pen or marker to draw letters, words, and shapes on paper
"This is the sort of guide to building with the NXT 2.0 set that should come in the NXT box," explains No Starch Press publisher Bill Pollock. "It gives new NXT users a great foundation in building and programming, and it includes building instructions for robots that will inspire even the most experienced builders." With an NXT 2.0 set and a copy of The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Inventor's Guide, the creative possibilities are endless.
For more information or to request a review copy of The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Inventor's Guide, contact Travis Peterson at No Starch Press (nostarchpr@oreilly.com, +1.415.863.9900, x300), or visit www.nostarch.com.
About the Author
David J. Perdue (http://www.davidjperdue.com/)
has been inventing robots with MINDSTORMS since 2001. The author of Competitive MINDSTORMS
(Apress, 2004), he has also written for BrickJournal and Computing Unplugged. David is an implementation
delivery engineer for EMC, an information infrastructure provider. He lives in St. Paul, Minnesota.
About the Robot Builder
Laurens Valk is a member of the MINDSTORMS Community Partners (MCP) and has been inventing robots with
the MINDSTORMS NXT sets since their introduction. Laurens is the author of The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Discovery Book, a coauthor of LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT One-Kit Wonders
(both No Starch Press), and a contributor to the popular NXT Step Blog (http://thenxtstep.blogspot.com/).
Laurens lives in the Netherlands where he currently studies Mechanical Engineering at Delft University of Technology.
He maintains a website of his robot projects at http://www.laurensvalk.com/.
Praise for the First Edition of The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT
Inventor's Guide:
"With very solid how-tos, an awesome programming section as well as cool robots, the Inventor's Guide has a lot to offer both brand-new users as well as experienced builders. Best of all, the models described in the book use parts from a single LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT starter set, so you don't have to be a power user to get started building."
—GEEKDAD, WIRED.COM
"This book is an excellent introduction to LEGO robotics and, frankly, is what should have come in the box with the NXT kit. If you want to learn about NXT robots, you need to get this book."
—COMPUTING UNPLUGGED
Additional Resources
Chapter 4: "Understanding the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 pieces" (PDF)
Table of Contents
Detailed Table of Contents (PDF)
Index (PDF)
Catalog Page
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The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 Inventor's Guide by David J. Perdue with Laurens Valk December 2010, 336 pp. ISBN 9781593272159, $29.95 USD order@oreilly.com 1-800-998-9938 1-707-827-7000 |
Available in fine bookstores everywhere, from www.oreilly.com/nostarch, or directly from No Starch Press (http://www.nostarch.com, orders@nostarch.com, 1-800-420-7240).
About No Starch Press
Founded in 1994, No Starch Press
is one of the few remaining independent computer book publishers. We publish the finest in geek entertainment—unique
books on technology, with a focus on open source, security, hacking, programming, alternative operating systems,
LEGO, science, and math. Our titles have personality, our authors are passionate, and our books tackle topics that
people care about. Visit http://www.nostarch.com for a complete catalog.
About O’Reilly
O’Reilly Media spreads the knowledge of innovators through its books, online services, magazines, and conferences. Since 1978, O’Reilly Media has been a chronicler and catalyst of cutting-edge development, homing in on the technology trends that really matter and spurring their adoption by amplifying “faint signals” from the alpha geeks who are creating the future. An active participant in the technology community, the company has a long history of advocacy, meme-making, and evangelism.