About

This set of tutorials will show you how to install and use the leJOS replacement firmware for the Lego EV3 robotics kit using a Mac. The process should be fairly similar on Linux and UNIX as well, with some variation in the exact commands and subject to the specifics of the exact OS.

Motivation

The goal of these tutorial is twofold.

  1. To introduce the relevant concepts with minimal abstraction.
  2. To provide some explanations along the way of how and why things work the way they do.

With those objectives in mind we won’t be using build scripts, installers, plugins, IDEs, or similar. I firmly believe it is worth the time and effort to understand how things work “from the ground up,” which imparts knowledge invaluable in future learning and problem solving. These tutorials will adhere to this philosophy as much as it doesn’t impact the learning process.

Prerequisites

As a consequence of the motivation for this effort, these tutorials rely on your knowing how to use the command-line and its tools, which implies some familiarity with the system organization of UNIX and Linux operating systems, from which macOS borrows heavily. Beginner knowledge of Java is also expected. Some common sense and a general ability to problem-solve, troubleshoot, and seek out information are always helpful. The steps presented here are for people unfamiliar with leJOS but otherwise proficient in (at least beginner) software development and system management.

Please use the links in the navigation bar to get started. Have fun!