Lego Mindstorms Nxt or is there something cheaper and better?
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Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:
I want to introduce my six year daughter to building and programming Robots
Jeez if she can do that a 6, forget Lego get her a place at MIT.
Two heads are better than one.
Obviously, she will need my help. Does it really need to be said loudly in a geek site that I always wanted to play with Robots? But have you seen Microsoft Robotics studio, it is pretty easy and simple to program Robots using it.
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Wow... This made me think, that we born too early... :-D
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Obviously, she will need my help. Does it really need to be said loudly in a geek site that I always wanted to play with Robots? But have you seen Microsoft Robotics studio, it is pretty easy and simple to program Robots using it.
Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:
Obviously, she will need my help
I trust that is what you hope for. :)
Luc Pattyn [Forum Guidelines] [Why QA sucks] [My Articles] Nil Volentibus Arduum
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6 years... clearly lego... When she will be a little bit older... then constructing the complete set (mechanically and electronically) + connecting it + programming it with C would be the choice... but at 6 Mindstorms is a good thing.
[www.tamelectromecanica.com] Robots, CNC and PLC machines for grinding and polishing.
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No Rama. 0. There are cheaper kits than Lego, they are not alternatives. 1. FFS it's Lego, go buy some, then buy some more. 2. I am not going to mention bacon.
Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. or "Drink. Get drunk. Fall over." - P O'H
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No Rama. 0. There are cheaper kits than Lego, they are not alternatives. 1. FFS it's Lego, go buy some, then buy some more. 2. I am not going to mention bacon.
Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. or "Drink. Get drunk. Fall over." - P O'H
Vilmos, me old mucker. Have you seen the forthcoming Richard Bacon's Beer and Pizza Club[^], coming to a TV near you soon.
Henry Minute Do not read medical books! You could die of a misprint. - Mark Twain Girl: (staring) "Why do you need an icy cucumber?" “I want to report a fraud. The government is lying to us all.”
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Vilmos, me old mucker. Have you seen the forthcoming Richard Bacon's Beer and Pizza Club[^], coming to a TV near you soon.
Henry Minute Do not read medical books! You could die of a misprint. - Mark Twain Girl: (staring) "Why do you need an icy cucumber?" “I want to report a fraud. The government is lying to us all.”
Henry Minute wrote:
Richard's Bacon Beer and Pizza Club[^],
ftfy
Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. or "Drink. Get drunk. Fall over." - P O'H
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There is Tamiya Educational Series : http://www.tamiya.com/english/kousaku/k_item/robocon.htm[^] Not as expandible as Lego.. but much cheaper. For example, gearboxes can be customized for different ratios etc.. http://www.tamiya.com/english/products/list/technicraft/kit72001.htm[^] Or some funky robots : http://www.tamiya.com/english/kousaku/k_item/robocraft/kit71101.htm[^]
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No Rama. 0. There are cheaper kits than Lego, they are not alternatives. 1. FFS it's Lego, go buy some, then buy some more. 2. I am not going to mention bacon.
Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. or "Drink. Get drunk. Fall over." - P O'H
Mmmmmmm Bacon....Gun[^] :-D
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Quit hiding behind your little girl. You want http://www.trossenrobotics.com/p/bioloid-premium-robot-kit.aspx[^] Now have fun justifying it to your wife :rolleyes:
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Obviously, she will need my help. Does it really need to be said loudly in a geek site that I always wanted to play with Robots? But have you seen Microsoft Robotics studio, it is pretty easy and simple to program Robots using it.
Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:
Obviously, she will need my help get bored after five minutes, and go off to complain about it to Barbie, so I'll be stuck with doing it on my own.
Sometimes it's easy to believe that there is a God.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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The only cheaper alternative I can think of is winning the Hardware competition here at CP (Clickety[^])
If the post was helpful, please vote, eh! Current activities: Playing Star Craft II. Don't bother me, eh? Now and forever, defiant to the end. What is Multiple Sclerosis[^]?
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Not sure if anyone mentioned this site. I would start off by saying the Robots range in difficulty. So there is a lot of room to grow. This site is not just for kids, The complexity of robots you can make from this site is endless. I think a starting robot that you put together, and it will follow a flashlight costs around $20. http://www.robotshop.ca/robots.html For anyone else interested. Check out Phidgets website also. http://www.phidgets.com/ Cheers, Sean Phillips SolidWorks API Developer .Net, VB.Net, C#, Mobile, DirectX, XNA, SolidWorks, SolidWorks Add-ins
Dont turn around, cause your...
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Obviously, she will need my help. Does it really need to be said loudly in a geek site that I always wanted to play with Robots? But have you seen Microsoft Robotics studio, it is pretty easy and simple to program Robots using it.
The Mindstorms Nxt is not really above 6 year-olds. It's very much if...then programming. My 6 year old and my 8 year old and I have built 20+ robots in the last month or so with NXT. The programming is not really great for a 6 year old. My 8 year old gets it, but is a little overwhelmed. I am frustrated by the IDE. The building is fine...the bi-ped is not something your 6 year old will build. It took me and both boys over an hour to build, heads down. On the other hand, I came home from work yesterday and the boys had built "robogator", who uses the ultrasonic sensor to detect proximity, then runs towards the object, snapping it's jaws. There are 5 models of varying complexity that comes with the kit, for which there is a demo program at each of stages of building. My boys are perfect capable of firing up the bluetooth connection, compiling the app and uploading it to the 'brick'. I have a CodeProject article that is 82.7% complete on this topic, I'll get to posting it here before week's end. I will sum it up as this: extended periods of frustration with sudden moments of "holy s#!t look what we freekin' built!". Cheers.
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I teach lego mindstorms robotics classes through 4H. This platform is top-notch. Our classes are able to teach simple mathmatics (gear ratios, etc), logic (if/then) and problem solving all while the kids are having fun. Most don't realize that they are learning something. First, kids aren't intemidated by Legos. Getting past this initial fear is huge... anyone can do legos. Then, their programming interface (which is drag/drop of blocks) is very visual and its easy to keep it simple and get some up front success. As an instructor/dad, my greatest challenge with this is to keep it fresh by coming up with ideas fast enough to challenge my kids. Second, you're working with a huge infrastrucutre. Help kids grow into something that they can use for a long time. My nephew in college just took a robotics class that involved NXT but we've found that the ideal ages for the class we give is 11-14. That shows just how versetile the platform is. With this versatility, you have a lot of options for growth. Also, once they realize that the Lego programming interface is limited, you can launch them into Microsoft's Robotic Studio and still use Mindstorms. Third, there are regional/national/global competitions. Once your kid gets good at this tie them in with other kids that are doing it too. Nothing encourages kids to do something more than knowing they are part of something cool. When their peers are doing it and think its cool then they'll feel part of something. Your kids might be a little young and you'll risk that it'll be an "old toy" by the time they are ready to excel at it. But, if you keep it fresh and its an activity that brings you and your kids together then, yes, go with Lego Mindstorms.
Joel Palmer Data Integration Engineer
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If you ask me, Fischertechnik-Computing is much better than Lego, but I'm not sure weather it is good for such a young child. Fischertechnik itself recomments it for at least 10 jear old childs. http://www.kidzstore24.de/product_info.php?products_id=27956de[^]
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Just a thought but you might want to look at how to get the Lego Mindostorms set at a better rate then how to find an alternative. In this economy there are many more used items for sale out there then ever before and I bet if you tried you could find someone whose kids is not using their Mindstorms set and so they are ready to pitch it for whatveer they can get.
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there are cheaper kits and alternatives but none that blend the two together any better. I would suggest you check out the local schools and ask about the various Robotics programs such as FIRST and the First Lego league (FLL). If a local school has a FIRST team its likely they have some mindstorm kits - Offer to mentor the kids and your daughter can get a REALLY early start on robotics, not to mention prpject management, design, business yada yada. My son was part of a rookie FIRST team which over the course of three years went from 12 confused kids to a serious business (http://www.forsythalliance.com/ FIRST
FLLNothing is impossible, we just don't know the way of it yet.
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NXT is excellent for kids. I have been coaching kids 8 years up in a world wide challenge call First Lego League or FLL. Not only does this program involve teaching building and programming robots but also teamwork and problem solving in a fun competitive environment. Especially great for kids that don't compete in sports. First Lego League
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see: http://www.delicious.com/birbilis/education+robotics[^] http://www.delicious.com/tag/education+robotics[^]
Computer & Informatics Engineer Microsoft MVP J# 2004-2007 Borland "Spirit of Delphi" QuickTime, QTVR, Delphi VCL, ActiveX, COM, .NET, Robotics http://www.kagi.com/birbilis http://birbilis.spaces.live.com