Lego NXT Mindstorm with Linux
There is a lot of documentation on the NXT and Linux on the Internet. A lot of it is very good, like this page showing Linux setup with NXT. Unfortunately it is scattered all over the place, making it difficult for a complete newbie to make headway with the Lego Mindstorms on Linux. Since you're here already, I guess you already know what the Mindstorm is, what Linux is, and perhaps want them to play well together. This page explains most of the steps as plainly as possible.
Why?
There are a couple of reasons why Linux is much more suited for Lego programming. Mainly this is useful if you already have a Linux machine, and don't want to install Windows (or MacOS) just for using the Mindstorm. But the advantages of Linux go beyond that. Linux is a great programming environment, and interfacing it with the Mindstorm allows you to further connect it to other devices. Linux machines have a good programming interface for Bluetooth, GPS, networking through the Internet, sound, display, and of course brute-force processing. In short, connecting the NXT to Linux opens up a lot of possibilities. Also, many netbook computers are ideal robot building blocks, being small, light and lacking spinning disks. Linux, being more efficient than other systems, runs much better on these devices.Journey
These are the steps you need to be completely up and running with Linux and the NXT. These pages are listed in order, and each page builds upon the previous work.
- Setting up the Linux-NXT Bluetooth connection
- Setting up the Linux-NXT NXC programming environment
- Writing a program that demonstrates NXT Robot-Linux communication over Bluetooth
This page was last modified on: Sun Apr 19 17:57:22 PDT 2009