Finally, a robots book for people who don't know the first thing about robotics! Absolute Beginner's Guide to Robots is well-written, inviting, and action-packed, with engaging ideas and fascinating factoids about robots and robot-related arts and sciences. You are led gently into the intimidating world of robotics, but nearly 400 pages later, you emerge with a respectable knowledge of robot history, the major fields and "schools" of robotics today, and the basic skills and resources needed to create hobby robots. By the end of the book, you will be the proud owner of three bots, the first two of which demonstrate key robotic principles. The third is a programmable/expandable robot, which serves as a platform for future experimentation. And best of all, these robots are built with simple to get and inexpensive parts - many of which you already have around the house!

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 20 Ratings

Not what i expected - 2004-10-15
Reviewer Rating:
When the title of the book says Absolute Beginners's guide it means it. The book does a good job of explaining the history of robotics, and describing the various types. But there is a definate lack of explaination when it comes to the robots them selves. Its simply "asseble part A with part B, then move on to C." With no reasoning behind why you're doing it. In short the book does a poor job of teaching you robotics but instead is an exercise in how to follow directions.

Great projects for a beginner - 2004-09-07
Reviewer Rating:
I have been fascinated with robots ever since I was a little kid. When I was young, I would go to the library and check out books about robots. Most of these books talked about movie robots and then told about the many different kinds of robots that could be purchased commerically at the time. I loved to read through those books and imagine what it would be like to have my own robot. Years later, I have gotten the robotics bug again and I have been interested in building my own simple robot. I bought this book and I loved the history section. It told about the history of actual robotics and how various roboticists have influenced each other's work. It also talks about different approaches to tackling different problems. After covering the theory and history of robotics, the book tells you exactly what tools you need and what you need to get started with building 3 simple robots. He even has sections on the electronic components and how to solder. This book is really written for beginners! Each project helps you build a different kind of robot that with increasing complexity. The instructions seem very clear and the illustrations are very good too. The best thing about this book is the fact that there is a very active web forum where people can discuss their progress on the projects and the author has been very eager to help people that have questions.

Some other comments here have complained that the book's projects are not original or that there are missing parts. The author never claimed the projects to be original. He gives credit to the original designers and has made variations that make the projects more foolproof for beginners. He has built them all multiple times and provides original instructions that are very clear and easy to follow. He also has the active website (very unusual for a robot book in my experience) where you can ask questions and he can clarify anything that you have trouble with.

I highly recommend this book for anyone that wants to learn about the history of robotics to date or that wants to get started building their own robot.

Good begining book - 2005-12-06
Reviewer Rating:
This is a very good beginner book on a very complex subject. By the end you will have built a few robots, and that is where all the love/hate is. The author also has a webpage where he offers advice and help with problems you may have. Personally, I am very happy with this purchase, and staying up late working on my robots...advice: Radio Shack will not have all the parts you need (he includes where to obtain parts).

Best tech writer out there! - 2004-10-26
Reviewer Rating:
Gareth Branwyn could make even the most simple tech stuff interesting...oh, wait, he just did! Not many tech books tell stories, this one does. So for readers who suffer from M.E.G.O (my eyes glaze over) when reading how-to's, this book is an absolute gift. Funny, informative and practical (no having to get Morton-Thiokol on the phone for spare parts) it's a great little book. Want more from this guy, especially on the tech history side.

Bots to begin with - 2008-11-20
Reviewer Rating:
This book is definitely reader friendly. It covers a broad range of topics, from the definition of the word "robot" to how to actually build robots and where to find robot-related resources online. The text is written in easy-to-read, informal and conversational style, rather than stiff prose I've encountered in other books. Plus there are plenty of photographs and diagrams throughout to entertain, as well as to illustrate various robots.

Browse Similar Topics

Top Level Categories:
Hardware

Sub-Categories:
Hardware > Introduction