Getting Started in Robotics 1 - Books

Welcome to my first column to be featured in Geek Bulletin's monthly eZine! I got started in robotics about two years ago, and it has been a interesting path so far. I'll warn you... robotics can be a very interesting, fun, and rewarding, as well as an addicting hobby! If you find yourself spending lots of time and money on a robot... you've been warned!
So, let's get started!

I thought I'd start off this column with an introduction to robotics, and I'll start with good books for beginning robotics. These three books should give you all the info you need to see if you want to go deeper in robotics.

Absolute Beginner's Guide to Building Robots Gareth Branwyn ISBN: 0789729717 Que This book has a history of robotics, and gives you a lot of ideas for your first robot. Plus, there's a lot of valuable resources, like where to find parts, etc.

Robot Building For Beginners David Cook ISBN: 1893115445 Apress A great book to learn the very basics of electronics, (all the components, etc.) and in the end, you can build a small robot; "Sandwich". A great follow-up book would be "Intermediate Robot Building", also by David Cook.

Robot Building For Dummies Roger Arrick ISBN: 0764540696 Wiley Publishing A explanation about robotics in "plain"-English. Arrick uses his robot kit, ARobot, to explain and show different necessary concepts.

All are available from Amazon.com, just click on the book's cover to find it.

I'd recommend that you check if your local library has them, so you can see if you really want to buy the book or not.

Well, these books should get you off to a good start! If you read one and find yourself wanting more, next month I'll discuss good kits to get you started! See you next month!

Michael R. is an amateur robotics hobbyist and a D-I-Yer. He can be reached at [email protected] . Check out out his site at: http://geocities.com/kembot3