Robotics needn’t be about building  intimidating humanoid automatons.   We can build machines that can perform all  kinds of other useful, instructive or fun functions. Even better, you can power them with Linux. 

You won’t need costly electronics to build these  devices. A Raspberry Pi will do just fine. It doesn’t need  to be any more advanced than constructing a LEGO  set, either. There are plenty of off-the-shelf kits suitable  for any budding electronics enthusiast.

We’ll reveal how to put together your own roving  robot, and show you a couple of neat Python programs  to get you started. And if you’re feeling more  adventurous, then why not build your own robotic  helpers from scratch? All the components are easy to  get hold of, thanks to the growing maker community.