RealityFox
Hi, I'm not really a programmer and I'm not in university for it. But I would like to learn programming with these robots using C (I have programmed in high school and on my own. I just sort of lost interest) - I was wondering how open source can these robots get? Can I create my own colour recognition system from scratch if I really want to? I know the current software with them can do this and allows for users to do possibly more advanced tricks. I find robotics really fasinating but I'm not very hardware knowledgeable enough honestly to go out and build my own robots. I mean I would like to but I have no idea how to code for them either so my thought process is that if I can get my own software working on pre-existing hardware than I can later in the future build my own custom robots using 3d printing. Again this is all sort of in the future and this is presuming I can make enough money after I'm done my schooling. If it is fairly open would it also be possible to use Python on these machines as well? I really enjoy that language and feel it would be a good starting point for learning since it is a fairly fun to use(for me). The whole point of me getting these is so I can have fun learning how to code in C or (possibly) in python. I want to do it the hard way so I can remember it better. It's always been an issue with me, I learn to program but forget because I never use it for anything really practical on a regular basis...
So anyway my dream is just to design funky stuff that is funky functional :P
You can use the SDK along with C# and create your own program which will control the EZ-B. There has also been some success with Python, search the forum for it - if memory serves me correctly, and it usually does, it was a python controlled robosapien.
But C# is probably the best way to go if you are set on using the SDK over ARC. You'll get more help with C# on here (although even that can be few and far between).
Good luck!
I agree with Rich that C# is the way to go for Windows programming instead of C. You can get a free version of Visual Studio from Microsoft here
www.microsoft.com/visualstudio/eng/products/visual-studio-express-products
You could also use VB.NET which is a little easier for beginners, but there are more examples for C# and it is what DJ programs in, so you are more likely to be able to get assistance with questions if you use C#. Also, C# is very similar to Java, so if you learn one, adding the other to your knowledge will be simpler should you want to learn it. I would start with some basic C# tutorials first. Learn the basics of how to make a "hello world" program, and get to the point where you learn to use external .NET components, then download the SDK and carefully read the readme file before trying to build your first EZ project.
There is an open source library for EZ-B as well, although it is not updated as often as the EZ-SDK, and there are less people here using it, so answers are harder to come by. The advantage is that you could program for Linux, Rasberry Pi, iPhone, etc....
code.google.com/p/ez-openbot/
Alan
Thanks for the replies!
I actually already know a little bit about C# - I just never really liked it that much. I might just use C++ since it has it in the SDK. But I'll probably start with C# I suppose, It's easier and I don't know have extensive knowledge of programming. I was hoping that this stuff would be a bit more open to other languages so I could just pick my own and such, I really enjoy Python so I was kinda hoping to use that. Maybe once I have a better understanding of how it works in C#/C++ I can move on to that.
Anyway, thanks again and once I have the time and money I'll probably buy a robot. Seems really fun.
PS: Woud love to use Rasberry Pi with this.