Lego Mindstorms Ev3 Software Home Edition

[Nickie Koskinen]

Ihave a fresh install of Mojave and of Mindstorms Ev3 home edition. It seems to work fine but then randomly all the information disappears from the blocks at the bottom of the screen, and sometimes in the program too. See screenshot. This problem persists until I restart the software. Any tips?

It doesn't make sense because before I did this, I went to "Check For Updates" in Mindstorms and it says there was none. But something clearly changed, because before the reinstall, there was a non-intuitive little tab with the EV3 logo on it on the top left (as seen in the original question's screenshot) and after the reinstall, that tab has "Lobby" labeled next to the icon.

The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 robotics platform has been developed for two different target audiences. We have home users (children and hobbyists) and educational users (students and teachers). LEGO has designed a base set for each group, as well as several add on sets.

You program the robot with software that you can download from the LEGO MINDSTORMS website for free (link). You can also control your robot with your smart phone, or with the infrared remote control that comes with the set.

The set contains 1 EV3 programmable brick, 2 Large Motors, 1 Medium motor, 1 Touch Sensor, 1 Color Sensor, 1 Infrared Sensor and an infrared remote, as shown in Figure 2. The set also includes 7 connector cables and a USB cable for programming.

The set further contains nearly 600 building elements, including beams, axles, gears and connectors, as shown in Figure 3. The inside of the cardboard packaging contains a mission pad (link). You can view an unboxing video of the set here (link).

The LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 Core Set (LEGO #45544, see Figure 4) is available from LEGO Education and various education resellers worldwide (link). The set includes building instructions for one vehicle with various sensor attachments. More building instructions are available here (link). Software tutorials are available as part of the LEGO MINDSTORMS Education EV3 programming software, which can be downloaded for free (link).

The set contains 1 EV3 programmable brick, 2 Large Motors, 1 Medium motor, 2 Touch Sensors, 1 Color Sensor, 1 Ultrasonic Sensor and 1 Gyro sensor, as shown in Figure 4. The set also includes 7 connector cables and a USB cable for programming. The set includes a rechargeable battery for the EV3 brick and a charger.

LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 robots can be programmed from a computer (PC/MAC) or a tablet (iOS/Android). The tablet app is a simplified version, leaving out several programming options. The PC/MAC programming software is the full version (and just as easy to use).

The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Home Edition set (#31313) does not include a software CD in the box. Instead, you will need to download the Home Edition software for free from the LEGO MINDSTORMS website (link). The software includes a programming environment, and building and programming instructions for the robots you can build with the Home Edition set.

The software does not require a license key, so you can download the software early to see if you like the programming language, and to avoid waiting for a big download when you want to get started building and programing.

The software includes a programming environment, and building and programming instructions for the robots you can build with the Education Core Set (#45544) and the Education Expansion set (#45560). In addition, it contains a data logging environment for science experiments. For example, you can plot a graph of the light level in a room, and see it change over time.

The EV3 brick in the Home Edition set is the same as the EV3 brick in the Education Core Set, so you can use either version of the programming software to control your robot. In fact, you can install both versions of the software on the same computer, if you like.

Several LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 books have been published and a few more books are on the way. When you plan to buy one of these books, be sure to check in advance which LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 set is covered. Some books contain instructions for robots you can build with the Home Edition set (#31313) while others contain instructions for the Education Core Set (#45544). Alternatively, just get the book you like, and upgrade your LEGO collection with the pieces needed for the activities in that particular book.

This book is divided into several parts. The first parts (Chapter 1-9) introduce the reader to programming. The programming software for the Education or the Home version is essentially the same, so you can use this book to learn how to program regardless of which set you have. New concepts are demonstrated using a simple vehicle robot. If you have the Education set, you can build the vehicle according to the instructions in that set, and just follow along with the programming tutorials in this book. The same holds for the programming tutorials in Chapters 14-17, which you can also do with the pieces in either set.

You can control your EV3 from your iOS (link) or Android (link) smartphone or tablet. The official Commander app is targeted at Home Edition users, with specific controls for the Home Edition robots, but it also works with the Education Core Set. In particular, if you have the Education Core Set, you can use the TRACK3R controls to drive the Educator Vehicle. In addition, you can create their own customized remote to control each motor connected to the EV3 brick. You can also program the EV3 with a tablet (link).

While this works great for small setups at home, it can be frustrating to set up in classrooms, because classroom computers may not have administrator rights (for Bluetooth drivers) or they might not have access to configure wireless network settings (for WiFi). If you plan to use wireless capabilities in the classroom, consider buying just one dongle so you can try it out before you buy one for each set.

Did I miss some information in this article? Noticed any mistakes? Did a link break? Please post comments and suggestions below. If your question is off topic, please search for the appropriate article on this website and post it there, or use the contact page (link). Thanks!

So if my child is working with a First Lego League team using the education version, and I am considering buying one for home, do you recommend the education version? Or, would the home version suffice?

I believe that during the installation of the Education Version, you can choose whether to install the Teacher Version or whether to install the Student Version. I do not know the exact difference between the two.

the teacher version has more content information, like solutions to the tasks given.

also is it possible to create your own solutions , so now the content editor in the project is split in two, one for the students and one with more explanation mend for the teachers

Do you know if it is possible to get the EV3 Programming Software running on Linux?

Seeing that the software needs Silverlight hurts me to be honest.

As a big LEGO (Technic) and Linux fan I am very enthusiastic about the EV3. Mainly because LEGO choose to create the EV3 based on open source Linux.

But requiring the software to run on non-open standards and end-off-life software like Silverlight surprises me unpleasantly.

What is your vision on this matter?

Did you ever decide to release your person opinion on which is best? I only ask since we are getting the boys this for Christmas. If we get the educational one we were thinking of getting the Homeschool Value Pack. I do not want to waste money but also do not want to have to keep buying additional parts. What are your thoughts? Thank you!

The Home Kit provides a lot of fun and interesting play activities (both remote control and also programming) while the book complements the kit with lots of educational activities such as learning how to build and program.

I have terrible problems with the Ev3 Home Edition. It does not run any more on my iMac. Starts and then gets stuck. Can only be stopped through a forced stop. When the program starts it opens a huge window displaying in the middle a tiny picture of Mindstorms. In the upper left corner menu, the normal options are displayed like: SL_IMPLEMENTED_BA0CEDD8-8BE6-4992-8B32-149BE6CB82BC.

The software did run, but something is disturbing proper functioning.

The list which tells you which bricks to buy to upgrade from education to home edition is poorly done. It suggests to buy too many bricks. because it doesnt tell you, that certain bricks are allready included just in the wrong color.

i have the eve home edition

can i get the expansion set ?

because every body saying that the expansion set is only for the education set

but i want it for the home edition

what is the problem here ?

Is it possible to build from the Expansion Set Building Instructions, if I have the additional items like the Ultrasonic Sensor and the Gyroscopic Sensor? Are there still (additional) certain Technic building elements that is required?

I want to know about this too. Bought EV3 home, and bought Ultrasonic Sensor, Gyro and Touch Sensor and paid for Edu Software. What else is needed that I am missing in Core set? My kids are taking classes for Lego Sore edition and I want to provide them similar experience at home.

Fourth, There was mention that the bulk added to the power brick when using the recargeable battery pack instead of the AA batteries, may conflict with building some of the home editions models. Do you know from of any specific models which would not work with the added thicknees created when using the rechareable battery pack?

The infrared sensor basically has three functions. It can detect approximate distance, it can detect which button on the infrared remote you press, and it can detect the direction and signal strength of the remote. This can be used to create a robot that follows the infrared remote.

I found the commander app quite limited when it comes to creating a customized remote control. For example, you cannot make the robot run a specific task when you trigger a button. (This can be done with the infrared remote and a program.)

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