Chapter 1. Exploring Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio
Welcome to the world of robotics software! If you are just entering the world of robotics, a warning is in order. Whether you are a hobbyist, a student, or a professional, working with robots can be addictive, and if you are not careful, it can crowd out other worthy pursuits such as your career, social life, and personal hygiene. If you are willing to take that risk, keep reading.
This book is not going to tell you how to build your own robot to fetch beer from the refrigerator or pick up your roommate's socks off the floor. Instead, you will learn how to use an innovative new software development kit (SDK) called Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio (MRDS) to build software for robots already on the market, as well as custom robots and robots yet to be built.
The best feature of MRDS is that it's free for personal, academic, and development use. If you end up shipping an application that uses MRDS, there is a modest licensing fee.
If you have a LEGO NXT or an iRobot Create, or one of several other robots, you can start controlling your robot with MRDS right away. If you have a robot that doesn't yet have MRDS support, this book will show you how to write your own custom robotics services.
You don't have a robot yet? Don't worry about it. MRDS includes a sophisticated 3D simulation environment for virtual robots. You can be driving robots through a virtual environment just minutes after you download the free SDK, and the majority ...
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