Learning robotics by yourself isnt easy, but it helps when the encouragement comes from an expert whos spent years in the field. Not only does Author David Cook assist you in understanding the component parts of robot development, but he also presents valuable techniques that prepare you to achieve new discoveries on your own.

Cook begins with the anatomy of a homemade robot and gives you the best advice on how to proceed successfully. General sources for tools and parts are provided in a consolidated list, and specific parts are recommended throughout the book. Also, basic safety precautions and essential measuring and numbering systems are promoted throughout.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 47 Ratings

Great for more than just robots! - 2009-01-02
Reviewer Rating:
I have been using First Robotics, VEX, and BotBall bots for quite a while now. Someone gave me this book for Christmas and I have to say that it is an amazing primer for anyone getting into robotics/electronics. Although it pertains to smaller robots, the information can be easily translated to any size. The authors tips and instructions are clear and dead on.

I particularly appreciated the electronics tips on how to use a multimeter. I cannot count how many times a student of mine have popped a multimeter because they were taking a resistance reading with the circuit activated. That is covered in the book though.

The author also suggests places to buy equipment and the book comes with a PCB (printed circuit board) which dramatically cuts down on the difficulty of the build and results in a clean awesome looking bot.

Create a simple robot and lay down the foundations for future ones - 2009-09-06
Reviewer Rating:
I am providing this feedback in the hope of guiding potential buyer's expectations about the goals of this book. After going through this book you will have:

1. a simple reflex robot (reflex in the sense that it reacts "naively' to detection of light). This is neither good nor bad, again it depends on your expectations. No coding will be involved and the robot cannot do much else
2. you will learn Ohms law and how it is applied in building this robot's circuit
3. you will learn about basic building blocks and how they work, diodes, resistors, comparators, photoresistors, etc
4. you will accumulate a collection of tools and materials that you can reuse
5. you will learn how to do soldering and machining of some parts

In my opinion this is a book for the long haul. If you want to get up and running really fast the author himself suggest going the Lego route or with other kits that you assemble together quickly. If you want to learn the basic principles and collect the necessary tools to build parts and/or whole robots it is a good place to start. Bare in mind it is a START. If you are serious about robot building you will ultimately gravitate in building parts and circuits based on skills and knowledge the author describes. The book takes you through a lot of basic skills and knowledge and it has a lot of illustrations, actually multiple per step, which I found invaluable.

So no fancy, intelligent robot here, just laying some serious foundations. Make sure that you visit the author's website and you look for the "sandwich" the robot being built. It will give you a lot of helpful information such as a shopping list for all the tools, components needed. One big concern is the cost involved. When all the tools and materials are purchased, we are talking about several hundred dollars. Yes most of them will be for materials and tools that you will use in other projects, if you are seriously committed in sticking with this as a hobby. If you are not, take the Lego or other kit route.

I hope this helps and I personally found quite rewarding being able to build the different parts myself and the robot. I already have David's intermediate book and I look forward to the next level of complexity.

Excelent - 2008-09-20
Reviewer Rating:
I had a lot of fun and learned a lot following this book and the quest of getting parts and building a robot.

Great Book - 2008-09-09
Reviewer Rating:
This book covers the fundamental in robotics. I highly recommends this book to anyone trying to learn robotics at an amateur level.

Excellent Practical Advice - 2008-04-26
Reviewer Rating:
I went to school for Electrical Engineer. Unfortunately, most of the education is theoretical and made for cubical dwellers. This book is a perfect companion for those wanting to get their hands dirty; which comes in handy if one's technician assistant takes the day off. I also found this to be a great book to share with my 10 year old. I would not expect kids to enjoy reading it; however, it helped explain the details in ways he would understand as we built the robot.

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