<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: For Teenagers
Review: AS a 14 year old, I wanted to find a book that could help me learn about robots but I found most of the books too hard or too juvenile. This book starts right off with pipe-cleaner and lego robots and gradually goes up from there. I'm really excited about this book and I'm looking forward to learning how to build my own robots.
Rating: 
Summary: Buyer beware!
Review: First of all I'm puzzled about this book's intent. It begins with trivial kindergarden level constructions but ends with some pretty sophisticated computer programming. In the middle it deals with *very* basic electronics mixed with some fairly advanced stuff.
However, the big problem is the circuit board provided with the book. It is necessary for most of the experiments and vital for the microprocessor work at the end, but finding the parts for it may be quite difficult. The parts list is inadequate and inaccurate. You can't get what you need from The Shack, you'll have to go to an electronics supply house, and even then, you will have trouble finding what you need. (The author did not supply manufacturers or part numbers.) You may end up, as I did, buying a prebuilt board from the microprocessor manufacturer and they aren't cheap!.
It also calls for other parts I had a lot of trouble finding. Some of the transistors are not garden variety in the US and no mention is made of suitable substitutions.
Rating:
Summary: Robots from the Ground Up
Review: If you don't know _anything_ about robots and don't know where to start - this is probably the book for you. Mr. Predko starts with a few simple robot models and then goes through materials, basic electronics, semiconductors, timers, digital logic, power, introductory programming, computer interfacing and, finally robot design. When you get through all the experiments, you can comfortably call yourself a "roboticist" and have the knowledge to start creating your own small robots. This book is VERY dense with a lot of information in it - don't exepct to get through it in a few days. There are literally ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY THREE experiments in this book, each one nicely thought out and written and not a lot of work - I've done three now (building the PCB that comes with the book, a 555 PWM and servo driver). This is definitely the best book out there for people who want to come up with their robots and don't even know what they have to know. Mr. Predko, well done! JP
Rating:
Summary: A great intro to electronics and robotics
Review: The first 2/3rds of this book are more about electronics in general than robotics, but it's a great way to see how all the parts really work and interrelate. It really takes away a lot of the mystery. The author's writing style is geared towards high-schoolers, but at the same time he doesn't dumb it down. As a 40-year old with little electronics background, but lots of computer programming, this was a great relief to me. Each recipe comes with a full list of parts and tools required, so you can head to RadioShack or wherever knowing you have what you need. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A great intro to electronics and robotics
Review: The first 2/3rds of this book are more about electronics in general than robotics, but it's a great way to see how all the parts really work and interrelate. It really takes away a lot of the mystery. The author's writing style is geared towards high-schoolers, but at the same time he doesn't dumb it down. As a 40-year old with little electronics background, but lots of computer programming, this was a great relief to me. Each recipe comes with a full list of parts and tools required, so you can head to RadioShack or wherever knowing you have what you need. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: A mixed bag of feelings
Review: This is a good book, in the sense that it teaches you a variety of topics from basic electronics to intermediate/advanced robotics, including some MCU programming. It does this in a series of experiments (lessons) that you follow thru. However, the book's goal is *not* to teach you how to build a single unique robot, instead, you learn how the different "parts" (circuits or sub-systems) of a robot do work by themselves. So you understand how each piece of the puzzle works, but it's up to you to actually "assemble" the puzzle on to completion.
I found some of the lessons vague, and not all of them include pictures. Without a picture, you must read the descriptions carefully, and just hope you are doing everything right. Many times, the author simply forgets that a picture speaks for a thousand words.
Another con I find is this: for every lesson, you need a parts list. That is, imagine you are only interested in completing 30% of the lessons. You will then have to travel 37 times to The Shack or some online store to get the parts. And no, no catalog part numbers. And worse yet, for many of the lessons you must buy or get hard-to-find parts that will only be used in that particular lesson. I don't find that neither inexpensive or enjoyable.
It is a good book, but I don't think it would be a good choice for beginners. In fact, I am still unsure of its target audience.
<< 1 >>
| 
