So you want to be a programmer, huh? Here are 27 ways to learn online Whether you are looking to switch careers and become a full-time programmer, want to try to build a website or app on the side, or are just looking to round out your skill set, learning to code has certainly been something a lot of people have started to do lately. And while being a programmer might not be for everyone, there is a lot to be said about gaining a better, more educated view of how all those pixels get moved around all those screens. Before we delve into our list of learning resources sites, we wanted to share some advice from Marissa Louie, a self-taught product designer for Ness Computing. A former startup founder, Louie told TNW that the hardest part of being self-taught – whether it’s design, programming, or any other discipline is, “gathering the courage. F**k it, we'll do it live! Our biggest ever edition of TNW Conference is fast approaching! 1. MIT’s Open Courseware offers 2100 courses in a variety of topics, including Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. 2.
Robotics & Engineering | gealgerobophysiculus LEGO Robotics resources I enjoy teaching students the engineering process, building, and programming using the LEGO Mindstorms kits. I currently am running an exploratory course for middle school students and have developed the following sequence of challenges for them to follow as they learn basic programming. I have used variations of this sequence to train students (and their coaches) to solve FIRST LEGO League related challenges. Challenge Set 1: Basic Motor control Students must use a single motor block to move exactly the length of their work table without falling off.Students must do a perfect 90 degree turn.The robot must drive straight along one edge of a rectangular table, turn left (or right), make a sound, and then drive along another edge. Download the loop program to your robot and watch what happens. Set up a copy paper box and a robot with motors on B and C. Challenge Set 5: Making Decisions with a Switch (decision making with a switch.rbt) and
$200K for a computer science degree? Or these free online classes? | Application Development I've been taking free business courses online at Coursera, despite some annoying limitations. I love it, especially since I don't have a few years and a few hundred thousand bucks to blow attending our local business school -- which I'm sure is very good, but hey, I have a business to run. But there's more to Coursera. I was recently interviewed by a reporter from the BBC about my post questioning the value of the modern computer science degree. At the time, Coursera didn't have a great background in theory. This has now changed. [ Also on InfoWorld: Is a computer science degree worth the paper it's printed on? Coursera offers what could be considered a basic grounding in computer science theory from some of the most prestigious universities. That said, I don't think any of this gives you the help you may need to learn enough Java/C++/whatever to understand the materials. MIT has more or less the whole shebang online, although the quality of the offerings is hit and miss.
How to Make a Robot – Lesson 3: Making Sense of Actuators Lessons Menu: Making Sense of Actuators Now that we learned about robotics in general in Lesson 1 and decided on the robot to make in Lesson 2, we will now choose the actuators that will make the robot move. What is an actuator? An “actuator” can be defined as a device that converts energy (in robotics, that energy tends to be electrical) into physical motion. Choosing the right actuators for your robot requires an understanding of what actuators are available, some imagination, and a bit of math and physics. Rotational Actuators As the name indicates, this type of actuators transform electrical energy into a rotating motion. AC Motor AC (alternating current) is rarely used in mobile robots since most of them are powered with direct current (DC) coming from batteries. DC Motors DC motors come in a variety of shapes and sized although most are cylindrical. To incorporate a motor into a robot, you need to fix the body of the motor to the frame of the robot. Geared DC Motors R/C Servo Motors Tools
LEGO NXT Resources Getting started with a new robot kit Our getting started building advice LEGO Education downloads Before clicking on the link below - please note: once you get there you should check one of the checkboxes, e.g. NXT troubleshooting Having trouble using your NXT 2.1 software under Windows 7? NXT programming tutorials NXT Books - Programming and more Classroom Tips Here's a nice page on how to store LEGO in the classroom if you've got a lot of it. LEGO Design An oldie, but a goodie, my favorite technical paper on LEGO Design is The Art of LEGO Design by Fred Martin whose research at MIT was the foundation for the LEGO Mindstorms series of robots. Advanced Problem Solving So your motors aren't actually perfectly matched up, huh... well, I found this (haven't tried it personally but it looks good) guide to calibrating your motors Buying more LEGO robots Finding money to buy robots You may want to look at the LEGO Education Grant resources web site. Finding a reason to use robots and robot programming