Programming 1980s Lego Robotics

Presented at The Circle Of HOPE (2018), July 22, 2018, 10 a.m. (60 minutes).

Everyone knows about Lego's present-day Mindstorms robotics system. It is very popular, eminently hackable, and quite expensive. But virtually nobody knows that Lego also produced a robotics kit in the 1980s! It was only sold to schools and few ever bought it. Programs were developed on your choice of an Apple II or an IBM PC, using languages such as BASIC, LOGO, or assembly. Although the programming techniques are vintage, not modern, they're easy to understand. Evan will show several examples, explain how it all works and why it works, and will teach how anyone can obtain or replicate the 1980s kit for their own modern fun at home.


Presenters:

  • Evan Koblentz
    **Evan Koblentz** (@vcfederation) is executive director of Vintage Computer Federation, author of the book Abacus to Smartphone: The Evolution of Mobile and Portable Computers, and a lifelong Lego fan.

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