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1. Introduction
If you've seen those cool Lego Mindstorms kits, but despaired at the big "requires Windows" stickers on the side, don't despair: there is hope for you yet. Not only is there software that allows you to program your RCX from GNU/Linux, odds are you can do it in your favorite languages: C, Perl, Java and Forth are all available for your use. This document is not intended as documentation for all of these: rather, I hope to provide highlights and contact information for each of the various Linux options, so that this document can serve as a starting point for Linux users who are considering purchasing Mindstorms kits, or for Mindstorms owners who are considering switching to Linux and wonder whether or not they can continue to use their most expensive toys :)
It is extremely important to note that while I try to keep a pretty good finger on the pulse of the online Mindstorms community, I'm not omniscient: it's quite possible that this list is incomplete. If you know of other Mindstorms options that run on Linux, please drop me a note at luge@users.sourceforge.netso that I can add to the document and share the options with others who may be considering buying a Mindstorms to use with their GNU/Linux computers.
1.1. Acknowledgements
I'd like to thank the authors of the programs listed below, both for writing them in the first place for all of us to use and also for giving the earliest version of this document a once-over.
Additionally, I'd like to thank Dave Baum, who asked me to join with him in writing the book "Extreme Mindstorms". Writing that let me spend a lot of time with the Mindstorms that I wouldn't have had otherwise, including the time that led to this HOWTO. If you are interested in exploring "power programming" for the RCX, I'd strongly suggest this book. There are some other good books out there (notably the O'Reilly book) but this one is extremely up to date, and more importantly, just about every line of code in it (as far as I know) will work with Linux. I know this is a pretty shameless plug, but I'm pretty proud of it :) You can buy the book here.
Also, Steve Baker and Matthew Miller, and many others on Lugnet, provided many helpful suggestions to several early versions of this text. Their thoughts are present in several places throughout the text, and can be assumed to be responsible for all the good stuff. :)
Finally, thought not direcly related, Michael Littman, formerly of Duke University and now of AT&T actually paid me to play with LEGO last summer. Without the opportunity that he gave me, I would not be as involved or as knowledgeable with the online Mindstorms community as I now am.
1.2. Disclaimer
The LEGO Company (http://www.lego.com/) is very, very protective of their trademarks. This document is not in any way authorized by or associated with The LEGO Company, nor do I as the author claim to have any relationship with The LEGO Company. To see more about their policy on legal usage of their trademark, check out http://www.lego.com/info/fair.asp, particularly the part (about halfway down) titled "How LEGO(r) Enthusiasts May Refer to LEGO Products on The Internet." I have attempted to abide by those guidelines faithfully; like everything else in this document, though, if you spot a violation of the guidelines, please let me know by writing me.
1.3. Copyright
This document is distributed under the LDP Copyright. You can find a copy of it here.
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