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Microsoft Formally Releases Robotics Software

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the i-am-the-atomic-microsoft-robot-please-give-my-best-wishes-to-everybody dept.

futuresheet writes "Microsoft formally released its robotics software yesterday, giving would-be robot builders a new tool to make them do the things they do. The license for the software is $399, and the 'standard' Pioneer P3DX robot that's made for home use is $40,000. Just the same, if you want to give it a try, it is downloadable for free for non-commercial use, and includes a simulator to try things out on your computer." From the article: "It represents a new effort for the company that has Chairman Bill Gates raving about potential growth in a robotics industry that's already worth an estimated $11 billion a year or more. '[A]s I look at the trends that are now starting to converge, I can envision a future in which robotic devices will become a nearly ubiquitous part of our day-to-day lives,' Gates writes in the January issue of Scientific American. Microsoft is not making robots. Its Robotics Studio is software designed to program the devices to collect data from an array of sensors and perform all manner of functions."

2 of 173 comments (clear)

  1. Congratulations, Microsoft by eldavojohn · · Score: 0, Troll
    The license for the software is $399, and the 'standard' Pioneer P3DX robot that's made for home use is $40,000.
    You're telling me that this is made for home use? What is it supposed to do at my house? I used them for my robotics class in college and I wasn't too impressed.

    Oh, and, by the way, the simulation software we used to test our software was a little project called player/stage. I didn't delve into the licensing prices on it but I think it comes to about $0. And don't give me that "Yeah but you have to train in it so it costs you more" crap.

    [A]s I look at the trends that are now starting to converge, I can envision a future in which robotic devices will become a nearly ubiquitous part of our day-to-day lives,' Gates writes in the January issue of Scientific American.
    Congratulations, Bill, did you just finish reading I, Robot? Or maybe you caught a trailer for the terrible movie by the same name? Or perhaps you picked up any sci-fi novel from 1955-present? Oh, no, I think I've got it. You're trying to enter a field you haven't done any research in by using your mountains of cash again? Sounds familiar, I wish you the best of luck. I just hope your robots aren't running Windows Vista or CE.
    --
    My work here is dung.
  2. Lawsuit coming? by imstriker · · Score: 0, Troll

    Crap, did they bundle hands with their robot? That seems like a monopolistic practice to me, let's sue them.