text:
How is this brick attached to the pregnant minifig?
While Google-image-searching pregnant minifigs (don't ask) I came across this fig, and other variations on it, but I can't figure out how the 2x2 round brick is attached.

I'd hazard a guess at glue or Blu Tack...

They used an adhesive of some sort. You can see from the side that the piece is attached flush to the body of the minifig, and there is no additional gap between the torso and legs pieces to account for any sort of bracket.

Could be done with 2 brackets I guess (part# 42446).

holes over the leg-studs.

I don't have a huge quantity of those parts, but the ones I have, of various ages, do not fit on any of my minifig's hips. The studs on the hips are thicker than the regular studs.

I don't have these brackets at all so I'm not able to check it out. A standard 2x1 brick will fit over the studs on the hips. But you did check it with brackets right?

I tried several brackets on my newest and oldest (30 years old) minifigs at hand. None fit.

Ah, I see. Well, we remain in mystery then at least for now.

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 How close are they to fitting?  Would a small amount of modification allow them to fit?  That might be what we're looking at.

@Nick2253 On my older minifig they fit slightly better; I can jam the bracket down about 1mm. If the leg studs or the bracket were shaved a bit, it could be made to work, but I'm not willing to test that.

What about putting the lady in a dress by using a slope instead of legs? It does restrict movement, but the brackets would then work.

You would be able to see those brackets, both from the side as well as the front in the corners of the dome. That's clearly not what is being used here.


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Which block manufacturer made this type of person in the 80s
I always thought this was LEGO, and played with it in my LEGOs my whole life (got this in the 80s) but found out recently that it is not LEGO. What brand is it? Who made it? He can hold lego tools, etc, and he has holes in his feet and can be stood on lego bricks. I have several friends with this type person who thought it was LEGO as well.

He's made by Tyco as part of their "Super Blocks" range

You can see the guy on the label.

That figure is a Tyco Super Blocks minifigure.
I can't find any sets that your figure came in, but you can see in the following picture that the soldiers are the same proportion and style as your figure.

Unfortunately, Tyco Super Blocks is one of the oldest LEGO-clone brands, so there's not a lot of information on their product on the internet.

I had a bucket of Tyco bricks as a kid, and it came with the minifig the OP posted.  It may have come in sets, but my bucket was just the general "use your imagination" bucket of 500 or so pieces.  http://s3item.bookooinc.netdna-cdn.com/s400_478e0c9ebadfd64537eae47475689.jpg

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text:
Not detecting motor port D
We are trying to program in LabVIEW, using all 4 motor ports. On the port selector, port D is not even showing up.

Can you be more detailed in your question? What have you tried to do, what is LabVIEW telling you, what have you already researched on the Internet and how is your situation different than what you can find on Google and the likes?

I think LabVIEW only works with 3 motors. You could use EV3-G instead.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


text:
Programming Mindstorms on a chromebook
I know there is no official way to program NXT/EV3 on a Chromebook.
But a Chromebook can have Ubuntu installed via Crouton in developer mode.
So, is there a relatively painless way to program NXT/EV3 on Ubuntu?

Update Dec 2016
There is now an app for chromebooks on the chrome store:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/lego-mindstorms-education/jhnhfnolmcleankdkhfklakpchnccipg?hl=en-US
I have used it to program EV3 version of the bricks. It connects via bluetooth to the EV3 brick (I don't think USB is even supported).  The bluetooth connection can be buggy at times and I've found myself having to re-pair the brick.
The chrome app saves programs in a format (.ev3m format) which is not compatible with the Mac/Windows desktop versions of the programming app.   Attempts to load programs written on Mac/Windows (.ev3 format) will not load in the app.  Suffice to say transferring programs between a chromebook and the desktop version of the EV3 programming software is difficult and perhaps not possible. There may be a way to download the program from the chrome app onto the brick and then pull the software using the 'Memory Browser' tool into the desktop version but I haven't had time to look into it.
My chromebook has only 2 GB of RAM and the program sometimes struggles to load so I recommend at least 4 GB of RAM in your chromebook.
There is a pretty good Q/A article here:
https://education.lego.com/en-us/middle-school/explore/c/ev3-chromebook-faq

Your best bet1 for EV3 is ev3dev.
For NXT, you should be able to get BricxCC running on Linux.
You can also checkout leJOS and MonoBrick. There is a good change you can get either one of those working on Linux as well.
1: As a core contributor to ev3dev, this may not be entirely objective ;-)

ev3dev isn't exactly a Mindstorms IDE, but the Linux link is interesting, thanks. It's disappointing that Windows is still involved though.

Windows should not be needed for anything that I suggested.

See https://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=version&iId=33517 for latest instructions.
I recently did some testing to get the EV3 software working on Linux using Wine, and actually got it to work! (The EV3 software can also be used to program the NXT) Here are the instructions:
$ sudo add-apt-repository ppa:wine/wine-builds

$ sudo apt-get install --install-recommends winehq-devel winbind libntlm0 ttf-mscorefonts-installer winetricks

Make sure the folder ~/.wine32 does not exist.
$ WINEPREFIX=~/.wine32 WINEARCH=win32 wineboot

Choose "No" on any prompts to download gecko or Mono
$ WINEPREFIX=~/.wine32 winetricks

Select the default prefix, and click OK
Select Install a "Windows DLL or Component"
Install all of the vcredist libraries, .NET version 4.0, and IE 8.
Select "Change settings"
Check ddr=gdi, and select OK (this fixes sections of the window turning white)
Click "Cancel" twice to exit winetricks
Download "IE8-WindowsXP-KB2936068-x86-ENU.exe" from the Microsoft website
$ WINEPREFIX=~/.wine32 wine '<location of folder with IE8-WindowsXP-KB2936068-x86-ENU.exe>/IE8-WindowsXP-KB2936068-x86-ENU.exe'

$ WINEPREFIX=~/.wine32 winecfg

In the libraries tab, add an override for "*urlmon.dll", making sure to include the *
Select the override just created, and click "Edit..."
Choose Native, and click OK
Click Apply, then OK
$ WINEPREFIX=~/.wine32 wine '<location of folder with mindstorms installer>/LMS-EV3-WIN32-ENUS-01-01-01-full-setup.exe' (or whatever the filename of the installer is)

Install the software.
Delete the .lnk file on the desktop, it is unnecessary and could cause problems
Double-click the launcher on the desktop.
I have not tested downloading to the brick yet, but creating a new project, adding a block, saving it, and reopening it works.
Hope this helps.  If you have any problems or questions, let me know.

c4ev3 has an Eclipse CDT Plugin based on GNUARMEclipse so you can do your C/C++ Programming for the EV3 and upload/browse the filesystem without leaving Eclipse.
It works with the stock firmware/OS and comes with an API to access sensors/motors.
You can run it on Windows, Linux and OS X. Also compiles on FreeBSD but didn't test if it actually works.
If you don't want to use Eclipse, you can use the uploader (a simple CLI tool written in C) and the C API separately and integrate them into your build process. The uploader can also generate the menu entries for starting the programs on the EV3 menu, so using another IDE won't keep you from experiencing c4ev3's awesomeness [1].
Doesn't support NXT though.

[1] Might be biased because I wrote part of it.

authors: 亞洲餐飲牌照顧問工程有限公司


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Is it possible to run more than two remote control trains on one track?
My son has two passenger trains and a lego cargo train. We can get two trains running on the track using one remote.
But how do you operate a third train?  We do have other remotes which came with each train. Do you use a second remote or do you use the number settings and just use one remote?

Each remote has 2 separate controls (one for "red" and one for "blue"), and 1 channel setting (choice of channel 1,2,3 or 4). Each train has an IR receiver which has 1 channel setting (again choice of channel 1,2,3 or 4) and two connections, one coded "red" and one coded "blue". From what you describe, you have two trains set both to the same channel (I'm assuming channel 1) but for one train you connected the motor to the "red" connector and for the second train you connected the motor to the "blue" connector. Doing so you can control both trains independently from the same remote, also set to use channel 1 (one with the left control, one with the right control). For the third train, set the channel on the IR receiver on the train to channel 2, and then take another remote and set it to channel 2 as well. Take note of which connector on the IR receiver you used to connect the motor to (the "red" or the "blue" one) and then use that color control on the remote to control the third train.
Alternatively, you can use a separate remote for each train, and assign each remote a different channel (e.g. 1, 2 and 3) and each train IR receiver also a different channel, matching to the channels you chose for the remote (e.g. 1,2 and 3).

Or just use one remote and switch its channel to match the train. Red 1, Blue 1, Red 2, Blue 2, etc.

There is (as far as I know) only one channel available with LEGO trains/remotes

Welcome to Bricks Answers.  There's already an answer here that contradicts this.  Did you read it?


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Buying minifigure parts at the Lego Store
Is it possible to buy individual Minifigure parts (like minifig heads only) at the LEGO store? (the physical ones, not the online) if so, how much would they go for?

Short Answer: Yes, you could buy minifig heads at a lego store.
Caveats: The heads are part of the "build-a-mini" feature of the lego store. So while you could technically just pick 1 head, you would still be charged for the whole set ($9.99 in USA, I believe). So you may as well pick whole minifigs + 1 accessory + hair/hat. Variety of head, torso, legs and accessories is limited and poor...
If you're ok with "generic", then it may not be so bad. If you need to build an army of medieval hun knights stormtrooper with galactic helmets... not so much.

Often, the stores will let you pack the minifig packages with the same part, as long as the total number of pieces comes out to be the same as if you had built the figs.

Agree with what's been said here: It's pretty standard to let you put any 15 pieces from the build-a-minifig stand into the container for the $9.99 price.

In Canada, they are $12.99 a pack.

There is the Build-A-Mini station where you can build three minifigs (plus one accessory each) for $9.99.
That said, some stores will let you buy 15 minifig heads and be done with it.
On the other hand, when our local store recently had the ghost pieces, they restricted us to 3 of those per pack of 3 figs.


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Building a 45 degree brace
I'm trying to reproduce my own house in Lego, and attached is a photo of the porch above my front door that is supported by a 45 degree wooden brace:

At my current scale, the vertical white wood with the '71' on it is one brick wide. What technique can I use to build the 45 degree wooden brace? I guess it doesn't have to be exactly 45 degrees, but my attempts in LDD never join correctly with a horizontal piece to form the roof of the porch (although it's not obvious from this screenshot, I can't extend the horizontal plate to join the brace as the studs don't line up).

Any help much appreciated!

Are you looking for something that's actually load bearing?  Or just something that's aesthetically "close"?

Something aesthetically close, it doesn't need to bear any load.

Have you checked if you elevate or lower the bottom connection by one plate will that allow you to connect the horizontal plate at the top. It may adjust the angle a bit, but at some point the two should connect.

I've had a play around but it's kind of tricky in LDD, and I haven't managed to get anything to work yet. I suppose it'd be easier with real bricks but I don't have any of these kinds, and was hoping it might have been a 'solved problem' !

It's a good idea to have at least one or two of most pieces around so you can experiment with them in real life. LDD is not the best to figure out if two pieces would fit. The pieces you are using here are not expensive, so it may be worth to get some to play around with the angles.

I don't know that those bricks are the best - that's part of the point of my question, I guess. I was hoping to get pointers as to what bricks work for this kind of thing too. They may not be expensive individually but adding postage (there's no store nearby) adds up :(

Yours look like a reasonable solution. I would approach the problem the same way as you did. Perhaps also trying out hinge plates besides just hinge bricks. That way you could smooth down the top with tiles, and also you have more room for adjustments for the angles and connections.

If you are just going for something aesthetically close, and not load bearing, why do you need the hinge piece on the top?  Just push the long hinge plate up in to the "awning" and then your problems are solved.

Nick2253 has a good point.  Or you can not use plates at all, and just use a rod with one end stuck in a tile with clip.

Since no one has answered this, I'll reproduce my comment as an answer:

If you are just going for something aesthetically close, and not load bearing, why do you need the hinge piece on the top? Just push the long hinge plate up in to the "awning" and then your problems are solved.


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I have an idea for a new kind of LEGO, using new types of elements
I have an idea for a new LEGO product (not a LEGO set or anything, I know that the Lego ideas site exists, but a new "kind" of LEGO)
I've been trying to contact LEGO about it without any luck.
So I thought I'd give this site a shot as well since I think the idea has a lot of potential.
Now to the question. Is there any way I can contact a LEGO designer or just anyone at LEGO to pitch my idea to?
Or should I just give up?

We already have some pointers for contacting a designer and it's been pointed out that LEGO don't really take suggestions for new products other than through Ideas.

Re-opened as the duplicate suggestion recommends using ideas, and Oskar's aware of that and that's it's not really appropriate.

If the idea is a new kind of part, element in plastic, you may want to take it into your own hands and try to design it in a free cad app (like Sketchup, Open SCAD, Creo Elements or something). There are people around here (like myself) who have 3d printers, and may be able to suggest or try things out. You can then see if there is a market for such Lego compatible elements - see who else is interested.
Lego are unlikely to take these kind of risks themselves, but there are resources for people to try new things themselves.

This.  You almost never will get traction with a major corporation about adopting your (significant) ideas (because, among other reasons, they'd have to pay you for them - even if you don't want payment); but there's nothing special about 'plastic blocks' such that you couldn't make your own competing (and, more importantly, compatible) product, and then perhaps eventually Lego will see your idea and either make their own, or buy your idea/company.

I'm not entirely sure which direction you're going in for the "new 'kind' of LEGO - but as you point out, unless this is based around existing LEGO elements Ideas is probably not for you:

Your models may only use existing LEGO parts. We do not allow suggestions for new LEGO parts.

So unless it's based on System (and by extension Friends and Elves) or DUPLO you're probably out of luck there - from an older Cusoo FAQ:

Models should not depend on new LEGO element molds. While we love considering new elements, if a model depends on a new element, there are more potential factors on which it can fail review. [...] An existing element in a new color is OK, but a new element in one set isn’t likely.

You might get some traction through the Marketing teams, as product development comes under the "Marketing and Products" division under the CMO - for example the 2011 edition of "The LEGO Group - a short presentation" talks about there being a number of "product development deparments", while the 2014 edition shows "product group 1" and "product group 2" and both state that:

Concept and product development takes place primarily at our Billund headquarters in Denmark. The LEGO Group also has a listening post in Los Angeles to help monitor the
  latest trends.


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How can a Mindstorms robot lift something very heavy?
I have a small LEGO Mindstorms robot and it needs to lift heavy objects, but it doesn't seem possible because the motor cannot bear the load. What methods or mechanisms can I use to make the robot stronger?

The key factors are torque (using the techniques in VolleyJosh's answer) and counter-balancing - to ensure that your robot doesn't tip over if you're trying to "pick it up" with a crane or arm based robot.

Perhaps a picture of your robot may help make suggestions more specific.

Don't forget to come back and mark an answer as accepted if you like it.

I'm assuming that you meant "the motor is not powerful enough".
Surely you can use a gearing ratio & leverage to assist? Essentially you want the motor to turn many times for each small amount of distance traveled by the lifting arm. This means a small gear on the motor and a large gear driving the lifting. You may need to connect several gears together to get enough of a reduction, like the graphic here.
See the graphic "Reducing Gear Train" here.

Proper down gearing (and strong structures) can indeed make wonders... See this tiny LEGO RCX robot lifting and moving a 44kg load: http://www.philohome.com/hoist/hoist.htm

Pulleys and gears
With a range of pulleys and gears you can build something capable of lifting as much as 100 kilos with LEGO parts, albeit at the risk of putting enormous amounts of stress on the bricks!

Using a small gear to power a larger gear (gearing down), you can greatly improve the torque (rotational force) at the cost of reduced speed. Gear transmissions are favourable to belt pulley system as the teeth of the gears prevent slippage under high loads.
The motor may struggle with too many gears as the level of friction increases.
Ratchets
Ratchets (consisting of a pawl and a gear) are a mechanical device used to ensure rotary motion only proceeds in one direction.

These are notably present on roller coasters where you can hear the audible click of a pawl catching a gear as you ascend a lift hill. If the motor or cable should fail, it acts as a safety measure to prevent the coaster from falling back down the hill.
Ratchets will reduce strain on the motor at the cost of putting more strain on the ratchet and limiting the direction of movement. To reverse the movement, the pawl would need to be disengaged in some way.
Alternative Power
Consider how you can use alternative forms of power, depending on your design however using anything other than an electric motor may not be appropriate.
If you aren't concerned about producing instant motion, think about ways to store and conserve energy. An advanced solution would be to use a solid or fluid as a counterweight. Perhaps using the motor to pump water from a reservoir into a container that can counterbalance the weight you are lifting?
Other Design Considerations
Structural Reinforcement
It is essential to identify weak links and reinforce them structurally. Ensure that parts that parts do not move unless required to. Avoid using long axles/bricks that are prone to bending as well as old/damaged pieces.
Motors
Are you able to use more motors to share the strain of the load? If so, ensure that the construction is well balanced and each motor contributes equally (same gear ratio).
Power
Consider using mains power to power the motors if possible. Motors using batteries will have reduced power in relation to the power left in the battery.

A great alternative to ratchets are worm gears: they too prevent the load backdriving the gear train, but have the added advantage of being reversible.

Try adjusting the torque. If that does not work for you, then use a large motor to help out.

Hi and welcome to bricks SE. Try to be more specific. Describe the details of your solution, add pictures. Usually, we like to see what other builders have created :). Also, look at the previous answers to this question. Especially because it is an old one.

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EV3 FLL Question " outside the box "
I am joining our FLL team and I have a question can you please help me?
I'm working on the mission "outside the box" and my arm on the robot is not strong enough to lift the box in the air, so that the block in the box will fall out.
How can I make my robot arm stronger so that I can lift the box in the air?
Can it be that we have to place the with the gear on another place? for example: the big gear on the right side and the small gear on the left side or the other way around?

You'll need to clarify some things.  First, how are you powering your robot arm?  What gears are you using?  Have you tried other gear ratios to increase torque?

Similar to: How can a lego-mindstorm robot lift something very heavy

Are you able to provide some pictures of what you've tried so far?


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Use of Mindsensors IMU with Labview
I thought someone could help me with a the Mindsensors AbsoluteIMU ACG and its use with the Lego Mindstorms NXT. Is it possible to use it with and get data out of it?


text:
Where to find this green transparent brick?
Where can I find this lego brick?

I have one but I want some more of them for a project.

Your brick appears to be trans-neon-green, an extremely rare color for 2x4 bricks. It never appeared in any set and it is only traded between collectors. You would be paying over $50 for a brick like that if you are lucky enough to find it. It would probably be best to pick another color, or another brick-size for your project. Trans-neon-green also comes in 1x2 size, which is more readily available.

So basically, the better path is to sell this one brick for $50 on bricklink.com, and then use the money to buy a larger quantity of the same brick in trans-yellow for ~$2 each :)

I guess that could work, although as a collector myself, I would never part from a brick like that. It is ultra-rare! :)

If it never appeared in any set, is an official brick and (I presume) was not available in pick-a-brick... What's their story? How did the collectors get their hands on them?

@Maurycy  LEGO does make uniquely colored pieces for LEGOLAND Parks and other special LEGO projects like large sculptures, etc. And they also make pieces in test colors (2x4 bricks are one of the most common for testing colors). Sometimes these escape the factories and design studios, make it to the secondary market, and end up in the hands of LEGO fans. They are highly valued by collectors.

Could it be this one: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=3001f1 ? In translucent yellow it sells for about $2 a piece and is also quite rare.

I have thought of that, but the OP's photo definitely looks more neon color than yellow. Especially at the edges. It could be just picture quality though. Trans-yellow is definitely easier to find. You linked to the one with frosted interior, and there is also the regular one listed here: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogPG.asp?P=3001&colorID=19

At the time of this answer, 8 are listed in Bricklink:

They appear slightly different than the one in the photo though:

You get a discount if you buy more than one.  For only $275.00-ish USD they can be yours!  That is going to be one very expensive MOC :D

Could this be what you're looking for?

The link is broken.

Ouch, that hurts.


text:
How can a brick/color combination exist but not be part of a set?
In a recent question the 2x4 transparent brick in neon green came up as a rare part (see Where to find this green transparent brick?). It doesn't seem to be listed as part of a set (at least not on bricklink) but definitely gets traded sometimes (last sale on bricklink is for $75 in Oct14). How can a brick in a specific color not be part of a set but still be available? Why would LEGO make such a piece? Anyone who can provide some insights into this?

Some of these pieces are released as collectors items (Gifts for Lego employees) or sold as novelties at LEGOLAND parks or stores pick a brick areas, others are from official Lego events (grand openings of stores, new LEGOLANDs, etc.) they are often given as gifts to people attending the events.  Some are test bricks that somehow made their way out of the factory to the Lego community.
They often have unique colors or images (there is a whole series of transparent/sparkle bricks that were made as tests for new colors and manufacturing techniques.)
The LEGOLAND parks and builders also have access to parts and color combinations not available to the general public for use in making new sets, if they are not used in a set I imagine some of these could also make their way to the larger community of Lego enthusiasts.

I guess the LEGOLAND, the PaB and the test bricks you mention make sense - I don't see how individual bricks are being handed out at events though ..... You'd think that running a specific mold in a different color would be expensive and hence used more than a "rare" amount

We had a similar question about Milky White with Sparkles bricks.

I fully agree with the previous answer, but would also like to note that there are a few pieces that can only be found in LEGO pick-a-brick as well.


text:
What kind of Lego-compatible figures are these?
Can anyone tell me about these Lego-compatible figures? They clearly aren't Lego brand, they don't look like Mega Blok figures or Tyco figures that I have seen (not that they couldn't be one of those brands potentially). They have no brand markings on them anywhere that I've found, but they can attach to standard Lego bricks. (bonus: how valuable are they? not very?) edit: some of the football characters (but not the coaches/plain people) have levers on their back and one locking leg.

I have some of that. It's a asian brand that consists of blocks with not studs, but rods.

did you ever find any more out about these? I have been given a box load of bricks, plates and figures that look just like yours!! More minifigures

I found the answer! They are early Best-Lock, before Best-Lock merged with Cobi and was still manufactured in Colne, UK. In fact, here is the set that gave it away!

My first guess is that these are early generation Oyo Sportstoys (http://www.oyosports.com). The legs on the current version of Oyo figures are different (they have an articulated foot) but perhaps there was an earlier iteration of them that looks like the ones you have?

I've seen things like this called "soldier bear". they're made of really light grade plastic and their hats plug into heads inversely to legos.

Your photo looks like a perfect match as to the type of figure, but I've never heard of Soldier Bear before and was unsuccessful in finding any information or pictures using soldier bear as one of my search keywords. Do you have any additional information about the brand, packaging, etc?

Uh.. no. My bro keeps it in a second-hand box. If it helps, the set contains 3 (maybe originally 4) soldiers, a tank, a palm tree, and a small fortress. No pieces bear (hehe, bad pun) a brand name.


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Lego RCX 1.0 problem with communication
I have a problem with communication between the tower (it's installed and it's working - green light when communicating by IR ) and a RCX 1.0. It's not downloading .lgo file. I've tried with few versions of this file and it's the same.
Now I'm trying on my PC in ROBOTC. Green light is lighting but RCX doesn't respond. I think it is failed. But manually with built in programs it's working

What operating system are you running on your PC?

Try to use this (Windows XP x86):
RIS v2.0 software -> http://www.mediafire.com/download/vrg2iajcv4uxkf3
Updated USB Tower drivers -> http://www.philohome.com/sdk25/tower164.zip
Also maybe you have a faulty RCX or IR tower. Try to change the battery of the IR tower.
I recommend the use of the Windows XP x86 (32 bits) for install the RIS v2.0 software. You have to uninstall any QuickTime installed in the PC and install the QuickTime that comes with the RIS v2.0.

I've tried with RIS v2.0 - there is a problem with quicktime, I don't know why.
Than I.ve tried with ROBOTC for RCX and tower is lighting green when I'm downloading firmware but there is communicate that there is no connection with brick. Maybe I'll try to change battery in tower?? What do you think??
Regards

You say it says there's some problem with quicktime? You need to make sure you have a version of quicktime between 4.0 and 6.4 installed, otherwise you'll get this error.

I've installed RIS v2.0 from cd into my other computer (notebook), withouts any problems, than downloaded and instaled drivers for converter rs 232 to usb. Ris 2.0 is working fine but doesn't see my IR tower (serial). I've changed battery for new one and still nothing.

I have the same problem. I don't know why, but if I use only the plug adapter  (without batteries inside) it works,  communicates in/out with the tower. With batteries, no. In my case I only use this RCX with energy from plug adapter. (windows vista, robolab 2.9.4 , rcx 1.0 - usb tower).

Hmm...  strange. It really works just because you removed batteries??


text:
Quality issues with tan-colored Lego pieces?
I recently bought an expensive Lego set with a large number of tan-colored pieces. I was very disappointed to find out that more than a dozen (isn't that a spectacularly large number?) of 1x1 bricks had significant cracks (see picture). As I've only had problems with tan pieces, this seems to me like a systematic quality problem.

The tan pieces generally feel weaker than other colors, and it seems probable even more cracks will emerge later.
Question: Is it true that Lego has systematic issues with tan-colored pieces?

Please contact LEGO customer service. They will send you new pieces, and even more importantly, they will make note about the quality issues. The following quote is from the LEGO Ambassador forum in regards to quality issues by Keith Severson, who is the senior manager for community support at LEGO. It is about recent quality problems with another LEGO element (32x32 baseplates), but the same steps apply in your case:

"The only way quality and engineering review potential issues is through data that is gathered through customer service. Every time a customer (such as yourself) call in it is logged with the specific element. Once that element receives a certain about of issues they will review it. So the best thing you can do is have your LUG members to report this through the system."

In the USA you can call LEGO Customer Service at 1-800-835-4386 8am - 10pm (EST) Monday - Friday and 10am to 6pm (EST) on Saturday and Sunday. If you are in another country, you can check the official LEGO website for phone number and hours of operation.

Thanks. I filed a complaint through Bricks and Pieces website and hope to receive new parts within 10 days. This blog post discusses quality problems with tan pieces.

I have received the replacement parts now, no questions asked. The accompanying letter apologized and told me not to hesitate contacting Lego again should any new problems arise.

Awesome! Yes, LEGO's customer service is excellent. :)

I don't know about the quality issues, but my experience has been that you can just call LEGO customer service, tell them the issue and the amount of affected pieces, and they will send you free replacements.


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Variable stick lengths and angles at nodes of building bricks
Is it possible to build 3D toys connecting several LEGO Bricks sticks/rods to make polyhedrons? Lengths and angles between sticks should be variable.

You mean like these lovely polyhedrons?

Yes, they look great! Can they be made to get fixed in any set position? Is it possible to make a user defined rigid net of  convex hull like Fuller domes?

There are several style of hinges available. The first 5 listed on that link are nice, and adding Hinge Plate 1 x 4 to the mix might give you everything you need. Anyway, tons of hinges to explore...


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Some LEGO elements not attaching as usual
I am building a tank made of purely normal LEGO elements, which means no gears or axles or that type of stuff.
I am trying to attach a 6x6 LEGO plate onto the base for support, but it is not working. I have used pieces from other countries and they all worked fine. The LEGO plate doesn't seem to want to be attached. It is hard to get it to stick, and sometimes a part of that LEGO is sticking out, like it was bent. Do you have any idea why this Lego plate is not being attached as well as others?

If you can, adding an image or link to some would really help in determining what the problem is.

I've sometimes found that the larger plates (6x6 and up) have a tendency to warp slightly over time, meaning they often don't stick together well.

Please contact LEGO customer service. They will send you new pieces, and even more importantly, they will make note about the quality issues. The following quote is from the LEGO Ambassador forum in regards to quality issues by Keith Severson, who is the senior manager for community support at LEGO. It is about recent quality problems with another LEGO element (32x32 baseplates), but the same steps apply in your case:

"The only way quality and engineering review potential issues is through data that is gathered through customer service. Every time a customer (such as yourself) call in it is logged with the specific element. Once that element receives a certain about of issues they will review it. So the best thing you can do is have your LUG members to report this through the system."

In the USA you can call LEGO Customer Service at 1-800-835-4386 8am - 10pm (EST) Monday - Friday and 10am to 6pm (EST) on Saturday and Sunday. If you are in another country, you can check the official LEGO website for phone number and hours of operation.


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Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio & RCX Support?
What is the last version of the Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio that supports the RCX?
The Wikipedia link (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Robotics_Developer_Studio) indicates RCX was dropped in the "latest" version but doesn't indicate what version.

I'm not an expert on Robotics Developer Studio, but the phrase indicating that support was dropped in the latest version was added in July 2008, so you'll need to go back to version 1.5 in order to have RCX support.


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Is there a free EV3 simulator (virtual machine) for the Mac OS?
I recently saw this question on a virtual EV3 machine. From the video, I felt that this software will be great. However, I don't have the budget needed to buy a licence. Is there any alternative to this system?

You could try TRIKstudio: https://trikset.com/en/products/trik-studio
This allows you to program a robot based on the LEGO EV3 setup, however while the application itself has English, French and Russian translations, most of the online help is only in Russian.

Can you please expand this answer a little. Have you used the software? How well does it work? Any limitations?

I have used the software, but for other uses. As far as I know, you can program in it, and then debug it in 2D mode.

If you are looking for free software, you can use the now abandoned Microsoft Robotics Studio. It has a virtual robot simulator. The project was shut down around the same time the EV3 was released, so I doubt that there is a virtual EV3. There is a virtual NXT though. And it is possible to create your own virtual robot models if you are willing to put a massive amount of time into it.
Also, this is Windows, software, so you will need Parallels or a VM to run on Mac.

Is this what you're looking for? Actually, this might be closer.
NOTE: The latter is only compatible with iphone/ipad, but it might be closer...Other than that, I'm not sure.


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Programming EV3 with NXC
I'm trying to run  NXC programs (all run well on NXT) but when trying run it on EV3 I find an error. The download from computer to EV3 runs well but trying to run the program with RUN EV3, I have an error.
Can somebody help me with this issue?

Relevant: http://bricks.stackexchange.com/questions/1838/will-mindstorms-ev3-be-backwards-compatible

It's a real pity. Because NXC worked perfectly. It was complete without being overly complicated. Lejos, for me, is too elaborate. RobotC does work pretty well. But when doing "behavior" things or multitasking it switches quite slowly between tasks. I work with MindStorms at school and as a hobby. NXC works good for both.

NXC compiles to machine code that runs in a virtual machine running on the NXT. The EV3 has a completely different virtual machine that is not compatible. So, of course programs compiled for the NXT will not run on the EV3.
The developer of NXC and BrixCC started working on support for the EV3 when it first came out, but has not been actively working on it for some time now. If you are interested, you can find more information at https://mindboards.org/ (search for "BrixCC EV3").
I you would like to use a text based language for the EV3, the most active projects are:

http://www.ev3dev.org
http://www.lejos.org
http://www.monobrick.dk
http://www.robotc.net


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Daisy chaining EV3 with RobotC
I'm trying to run EV3 programs with RobotC and trying run on EV3 Daisy Chaining. I have three independent EV3 bricks labelled A,B,C.
I want, according to the color reading by the color sensor on port 1 on brick A, the motors connected to bricks B and C have distinct behaviours.


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What's an effective strategy for purchasing large numbers of different bricks?
If you want to go on bricklink for example, you search by part but the end up with parts on various different stores. Buying on ebay is extremely expensive for groups of different parts. How do you deal with it?

Welcome to this site! I hope you don't mind, but I've edited your question slightly to make it slightly less subjective, and therefore a better fit for this site.

On bricklink, your example, if you input the parts into a wanted list it allows you to find stores that have all (or most) of the parts on the list letting you minimize shipping costs.


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What are the tiny, single-peg, statuette figures from the SHIELD Helicarrier called?
As this video and this report show, the Marvel S.H.I.E.L.D Helicarrier comes with a number of decorative, single-peg statuettes / figures, representing in tiny scale: 8 agents, Nick Fury, Iron Man, Hawkeye and Captain America.

The short, armless minifigures from the LEGO board games are referred to as "micro-figures" / "micro figures", but what are these tiny, single-peg statuettes from the Helicarrier set called?
Towards the end of the video, the designer refers to a plate printed with a road as usable with "all your microscale creations".  I assume this means the single-peg figures could be called "microscale figures", but I'd like confirmation / clarification.

As you say, the figures used in the LEGO Games are called Micro-figures - these appear to be based on LEGO Part 90398 - Minifig Trophy Statuette, while Marcus refers to them as "Tiny Figures" in his video, the press release that is talked about on most of the sites calls them "micro-figures" as well - I guess LEGO can't call them "Nano-Figures" as that would clash with NanoBlocks - and most of the Games are now retired, so they can re-use the term.
Edit to add:
I've just received an email from LEGO promoting the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier proclaiming the "introduction" of "Microfigures":

And now, introducing microfigures! Includes Iron Man, Captain America, Hawkeye, Nick Fury, and eight S.H.I.E.L.D. agents!

I think they would still want to distinguish between the trophy-based "Micro-Figures" and these "Micro-Scale" figures.  I agree that "Nano" is off the table.

I'm pretty sure it's hard to trademark a phrase like "nano-figure". If Lego already has "minifigure" and "microfigure" then "nanofigure" seems pretty reasonable. I'm not sure some other brand's use of the generic term "nano" would be infringed.

I suggest calling them "trophy figures". Here is my reasoning:
First, we need to understand a key term: Microscale. In Lego terms, microscale means anything smaller than minifig scale. Here is the definition from the Lego MBA Designer Handbook: Kit 2 - Microbuild Designer:

By that definition, both the traditional "microfig" found in the games and a few other sets as well as the statuette would be considered microscale.
Nonetheless, Lego has provided at least one source that names the figure generically, the Lego Digital Designer software. There, part 90398 is named a "mini figure trophy":

For comparison, here is the traditional microfig in the LDD software:

Several online sources use the term "trophy statuette", including Bricklink and Rebrickable.
Based on these sources, I would call the new figures "trophy figures".
There was one previous example, by the way, of this part being printed with character detail in a set:

+1 Nice, backed up with evidence, and I like it. However, the ultimate answer will end up being what either LEGO or the overall community determine.

It's going to depend on whether this becomes a common practice or not. They call Voodoo Jack "Mini Jack", so we might see the pieces called "Mini Captain America", etc., in the inventory for this.

I wouldn't consider the "microfig" from the LEGO board games to be "microscale" as you've noted; it's really only approximately 75% the size of a regular minifig, which would still be considered a "giant" per the LEGO definition of microscale that you've posted.

Depends on your interpretation I guess. I understand "microscale" to mean literally anything smaller than minifig scale. I don't think I've ever seen a build scaled for microfigs, though.

I always thought they were called "microfigs", just as the normal LEGO people are called "minifigs". But I'm not the definite source you seem to be looking for :)

That's slang for the full "Micro Figures", I believe.  I'm referring to the tiny figures that are featured in the video.

LEGO fans call them nanofigs, whereas LEGO refers to them as micro-figs. They are about 3/4th of the height of microfigs, and very-very tiny.

@TheBrickBlogger - I think your comment should be upgraded to an official answer :)

@TheBrickBlogger - so if LEGO calls them micro-figs, what do they call the armless ones used for their board games?

My guess is that since LEGO retired the board-games they decided to recycle the name. They do this regularly with retired elements and colors, so it wouldn't be a first.


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6216m2 motor found... what to do?
I recently found a 6216m2 motor in a jumble of old bricks and such - but
no connection wires.

Firstly, how does this motor compare against all others? As it is a 4.5V motor, it is not listed in philo's list of motor comparisions, but I'd still be interested to know how it compares.
Secondly, would there be much use for it, all comparisions made?
Thirdly, I presume it should be simple enough to get replacement cables and such?

Thanks!

Generally speaking, the 4.5V motors have higher torque than the higher voltage variants, but run at a much lower RPM.  I have never personally tested this particular motor so I can't say specifically.
Utility is in the eyes of the beholder.  For some people, this would be the exact motor they need.  For some, it would be useless.  It's hard to say if it would be useful/less without a specific application.
You can always order the LEGO branded cable/connectors from Bricklink or similar sites.  However, it's quite easy to make your own cabling for the 4.5V motors if you are so inclined.


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I need a block that can combine a movement program with NXTbee radio
I am a student. I am working on a science project using LEGO Mindstorms robots enhanced with NXTbees creating a mesh network.
My engineering mentor has me using LabVIEW. I am trying to find a block that can combine a movement program (senses a block in the robot path, stops, then change direction) with NXTbee radio.
I want the NXTbee to override the Bluetooth in the LEGO Mindstorms program. I have tried a number of avenues seeking help, but they haven't worked out.  Can anyone help?

There is a LabVIEW block for the NXTBee. For example, here is a tutorial from the manufacturer.

For mesh you will need the series 2 XBee's I think. It is doable by putting the series 1 to broadcast mode, but series 2 can do real mesh.


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Any elements that can be connected to the cavity under a stud?
Are there any elements that can be connected to the 'cavity' (i.e. the space) under a stud (e.g. on a regular plate or a regular brick)? The cavity measures about 2.4mm in diameter.
So far I've only tried a minifig hand peg (not the clip side, the other side) but unfortunately it is just a bit smaller, it has a diameter of about 2.3mm.
[Edit] I'm talking about the cylindrical cavity with a diameter of 1.5 LU as indicated in the overview posted here -- What are the dimensions of a LEGO brick?.

If I'm understanding you correctly, you're talking about the molding cavity directly underneath the stud (that actually goes up into the stud), and not the main tube cavities under plates/bricks (that are actually offset from the studs).
If that's the case, no, I'm not aware of any element that "intentionally" fits that space.
First off, I don't think that space is made with a high tolerance.  Looking at some of my bricks, the dimensions of that cavity are not nearly as uniform as the other features of the brick.
Secondly, I don't know how many System bricks have components that are not integer multiples of LUs.
You might get lucky and get a minifigure piece that has a detail that is 1.5 LUs, but you'd have to try a lot of them.

Your interpretation is correct :). Hmm, the part about the tolerance is interesting. I was hoping to fit a "Hand Pirate Hook" in the cavity, sounds like there's still some hope.

Without further specification, unless I read your question wrong, ANY normal brick-type element can be connected to the cavity under a stud - the whole principle that LEGO was based on, basically. Anything that has a stud on it will fit.
If you rather meant "non-stud" elements such as hands, signs, rods, etc., please update the question to make it more specific.

Updated the question.

For base plates you can connect the light sabre pieces underneath the base plate but I don't think it was an intentional feature

(Edit: after re-reading your question I realized I misinterpreted the stud with the bar. Leaving the answer for posterity.)
There is. The size in the small holes beneath newer plates is the same size as a connector that doesn't have a fixed name. Bricklink calls it pin, others call it mini pin or stub. It is used in minifig headgears and a few other places, like the old dragon flame. It's not a connection people often use, but it can be done:

This picture is taken from a small writeup by Brian D'Agostine which documents other uses of it. You can also use the same pin (stub, mini pin, teensy tiny peg) to create fire strands:

Once you're aware of the connection you can find many fun fits for it.


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9398 problem with the front wheels
I've just finished 9398 4x4 Crawler. The rear motor works properly, but the front motor doesn't: The wheels seem to be locked, although they spin freely when I turn them by hand.
What could be the problem?

In my version of the set, there is an extra sheet pointing towards this particular piece. It is not a mistake in the instruction, but they put in an additional picture to clarify how it is done correctly.

Check if Cross Block 90° that is placed in step 53 of instruction book 1 is in the correct orientation with the round hole placed over the motor axle.
Mounting it the other way will prevent rotation of the motor.

YOU DID! Solved! One piece in a wrong position and everything locked. Thanks a lot!

@Cezar Then you should also mark this answer as the correct one to give Joost proper credit!


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8258 Headlight assemblies
Anyone else having a problem with with headlight assemblies on 8258 crane truck?  I can't seem to fit them in due to interference from fog light bar. Thanks

I never noticed any problem with it. Do you have a picture of your model.

From looking at the picture, it appears as if there is a brick (a 1x2 brick, light gray) behind the headlight. The headlight connects to it in a similar fashion as shown in the following image:

Hopefully that helps.


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Help Identifying a LEGO Set from bag 7
I have a sealed bag of LEGO bricks that I am trying to identify. The bag is labelled with a large number 7. The pieces are dark blue, light gray, dark gray. It looks like there is a smaller bag of pieces within the larger bag. I took photos, but can't figure out how to add them to this post. Can anyone help me?

Hi Bethany, you should be able to press the small picture frame icon when you edit your post and upload an image to your post. It's possible that as a new user this option wasn't initially available.

Without pictures it would be extremely hard to tell, especially since both dark and light gray are very common colors. However you might be able to identify some of the dark-blue color pieces to see which set the bag is from. Dark-blue is a much less common color than the grays, so it would be quicker to identify what you have. The fact that it is a #7 bag seems to indicate that it is coming from a larger set.
What I would do is look at the dark-blue pieces and find one that is NOT a common piece (so anything that is NOT a plate, tile or brick). Then go to the BrickLink color-guide for dark-blue pieces, and find the one you have. From there you will see which sets the part comes in. Identify another 3-5 less common pieces, and you should be able to see which set the bag is from. Here is the list to all the elements that come in dark-blue: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogList.asp?catType=P&colorPart=63&v=3


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How to turn the NXT at an angle with NXC
How can I program, with NXC, a Lego NXT to turn a specific angle?
I've tried using wait() but the problem isn't solved.
Can I use RotateMotor()? What parameters should I use? For example if I want it to move in a square, what kind of parameters.

This depends on the exact configuration of your robot, including but not limited to the distance between the wheels (if it's a differential drive robot), the diameters of the wheels, the gearing (if any is used) between the motors and the wheels.
A simple solution would be to experiment with various parameters and making corrections based on the direction and magnitude of the observed error. For example, if you send an order of RotateMotor(100) and see that your robot turns about 30°, you would try again with RotateMotor(300).
Another possible solution is to write a program that displays the values read from the motors' encoders, perform the required maneuvers by pushing the robot by hand, and noting the displayed values. In theory, those values would be the ideal parameters.
Of course, the most sound and correct solution is to whip out your geometry skills and calculate the exact angle the motors need to turn, but this approach tends to fail when reality does not behave perfectly (as in skidding, measurement errors, friction, etc.)
All in all, I'd recommend picking a starting value, trying it on your robot, observing the results, making adjustments based on the observations and starting over the loop.
For reference (if you hadn't already found it): NXC RotateMotor command

Control loops. The builtin RotateMotor commands are very imprecise. Have a look at this file for a nice library that makes skid steer vehicles turn very precisely:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o31qaxx0glx4m3x/Instacode.h?dl=0
You'll need to adjust the constants at the top of the file.


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Difference between "Pick a brick" and "Bricks and pieces"
I am confused by the existence of two distinct and official Lego online services for ordering individual Lego parts, Pick a brick and Bricks and pieces.
Why are there two of them? What are the benefits and drawbacks of them, respectively?

The Pick-a-Brick selection has the more common pieces that aren't specific to sets whereas on Bricks and Pieces you can get set specific pieces that are more uncommon such as minifigure parts from a (non-licensed) theme. Since the Bricks and Pieces parts are more specialized they are usually more expensive than Pick-a-Brick, so don't get basic bricks from Bricks and Pieces.

Besides the previous answer, I would also add that Bricks-and-Pieces was intended to be a replacement service for missing parts, broken parts, etc. from a set you have bought. While Pick-A-Brick is for buying generic loose pieces. Thus the interface and they way to identify the parts you want, as well as the selection, is very different.
At Bricks-and-Pieces you can get free replacement parts for elements that were missing from your set when you got them. However since some people started to use this service to also get extra special elements that are not available at Pick-A-Brick, LEGO got proactive, and updated their Bricks-and-Pieces website to offer more options.
My guess is that at some point the two services (Pick-A-Brick and Bricks-and-Pieces) may get merged, but right now they are two different services with different intentions that simply got closer together based on how LEGO fans use them.

Adding a few extra observations:

Purchases from "Pick a brick" are eligible for VIP points, whereas purchases from "Bricks and pieces" are not. VIP points can be redeemed on both Pick A Brick and Bricks & Pieces orders.
Shipping fees are higher for "Pick a brick" than "Bricks and pieces". Make large purchases from the "Pick a brick" store to bring the shipping cost per brick down to a reasonable level (or make "Pick a brick" orders in conjunction with other Lego Shop purchases).
You can at most select 100 unique elements from "Bricks and pieces". There seems to be no such limit for "Pick a brick".

Also, delivery time for Bricks and Pieces is faster than for Pick a Brick, at least in USA. One thing to note, though, Bricks and Pieces closes for the Holidays and resumes in February,


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How to Return a Motor to a specific value
I've created an arm robot using Mindstrom NXT that can find an object pick it up and move it to an new and random location. My problem is that I would like for the motor to, at the end of the program, return to the position it started at. The random movement of the arm and how to program it to move back to the starting position is the cause of my confusion. Can anyone give some suggestions or a solution as to what I should do?

This is fundamentally a variant of How to remember initial position of a robot and return to it and Return a robot to it's start position...


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Connect 39k3 powerpack to 417j3 motor
I'm new to lego.  Trying to connect the powerpack 39k3 from 42009 Crane to a 417j3 motor.  Is a 8528 Converter Cables for Mindstorms NXT the right cable?
Is there a way to hack a phone connector onto a power cable?  Where would I find the wiring diagram?
Many thanks,
Joe

Hi Joetest - I assume the powerpack you're referring to is 4506078: Batterybox 4X11X7 - but I'm not sure which motor you mean - where did you get the part numbers from? In which case, it's probably a duplicate of How to use Power Functions with Mindstorms EV3?

You can accomplish this with these two parts:

http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Converter-Cables-for-LEGO-MINDSTORMS-NXT-8528
http://powerfunctions.lego.com/en-us/Products/Default.aspx#8886


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Programming the LEGO Mindstorms T-Rex
I followed the instructions up to the MoveAbsolute My Block for the T-rex but I'm not able to link the last connection (Brake at End). Can anyone advise what I might need to change?

Are you referring to the EV3 T-Rex from The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Laboratory or a different robot?

I'm referring to the EV3 T-Rex from Lego Mindstorms EV3 Laboratory from Daniele Benedettelli.


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Where can I find LDraw files to download for basic figures?
I would like to have a collection of simple examples for my youngsters.
Only for basic LEGO bricks. Not Technics or complex and complete space stations, just some
step-by-step instructions for the basic bricks. Based on the starters edition from LEGO.
I was thinking of: houses, small animals, simple aeroplane, simple car, tree, ...
All based on the basic instructions.
This would help the children a lot in playing.
See the pictures. I would love to find step-by-step instructions in LDraw.

This answer will by definition have a lot of links, but here we go. Since you're looking for instructions there are a few sites that you should consider visiting.
The first is Cubiculus, which specializes in creating LDraw versions of custom and official instructions. The creator of the site adds plenty of his own (basic) instructions.
The second is Rebrickable. It contains many creations by various builders, and some provide LDraw files for you to download. The instructions are usually quite advanced, however.
Lastly, you could put together your own LDraw files from LEGOs basic sets. The biggest consolidated collection of instructions is available on Swooshable. (Full disclosure - it's my own scraper that consolidates set instructions from the five biggest sources on the web. I built it to not have to check different sites for a particular instruction.)
Hopefully that'll get you on the right track.

Another option is the LEGO Club Magazine - available online and through the post in some countries too - they have three editions:

Green Brick - Junior builders, probably what you're looking for at this stage
Yellow Brick - Mostly Friends/Elves focused, but with some City/other
Red Brick - Mostly City/Chima/Bionicle, but with some others as well

All of these contain stories, activities and one or two building instructions for something that can usually be built with basic bricks.

In 2017, it was rebranded as LEGO Life Magazine. Recent issues (PDF) can be found here: https://www.lego.com/en-gb/life/magazine/archive


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Can I download ldraw instructions from Lego Digital Designer?
Can I download ldraw instructions from Lego Digital Designer?
Is there a collection of simple examples for my youngsters.
I was thinking of: houses, small animals, simple airplane, simple car, tree, ...
Designs with only basic lego bricks.
Can I download them from Digital Designer to create step-by-step instructions with LDraw?
This would help the children a lot in playing

Note that LEGO Digital Designer can also show you building steps, but the results have been known to be a little odd.
I'm not entirely sure what you're asking here:
Can I export models from LEGO Digital Designer as LDraw files?
Yes, although you will probably need to update the LDraw.xml file that LDD uses to export the parts. Once you've completed your model, chose File | Export and set the "Save as type" to (LDraw-Files (*.ldr)" you should then be able to open the file in MLCad, LEGO Instruction Creator or similar and generate your steps.
Where can I download simple LDD models from?
There is LEGO's own LEGO Digital Designer Gallery (currently being upgraded, so this is an archived instance) - each model has a "Download" link under it to download the .lxf. Other locations are probably available as well.


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1998 World Cup limited edition soccer figure
I bought a limited edition World Cup soccer figure in Paris during the games in 1998, #3005.  It does not have the shell logo on the package -but does say limited edition on the right lower corner. The package also says collect both teams.  Does anyone know anything about this lego figure?

Do you have a picture by any chance?

I believe you are referring to a set numbered 3305, not 3005.

Is this the figure in question?

He's the limited edition English or Scottish team player. The other limited edition figure was a Dutch (Netherlands) player. Lego released an entire soccer theme in 1998 in conjunction with the World Cup, which you can see here on Brickset.

Yes it is thank you so much. I could only find the shell branded wrapper with searching.


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What's the most effective way to align 1x1 tiles?
There are a number of sets (e.g., the Farnsworth House and the Parisian Restaurant) that use a field of 1x1 tiles to represent a tiled floor. I have found aligning these pieces such that they are all square to each other to be a challenge. What techniques can I try to achieve a nicely aligned grid of tiles?
For example:

I've used credit cards or library cards for this kind of thing,  but you need enough room for it. Protip: credit cards can also help straighten bent CPU pins.

I will sometimes take another piece, i.e. a 1x4, next to the row I'm about to place so it helps align it. Then use the brick separator's flat end to adjust the 1x1 as needed. But I'm a little ocd about the tiles being lined up...

For a number of sets that I've had these in (the Minecraft Mirco-worlds and the Scientists Ideas set) they've also come with one of the new orange Brick tools.
You can use the edge of the tool to run along between the sides of the tiles and the next row of studs - I find this works better than using another plate or brick because the tool has more play over the studs so can actually get up against the edges of the tiles nicely.

My method is to use a 2x8 (or longer) plate like a pry bar. Put the 2-stud end on the studs next to the tiles and pry up a little and they line up like a charm.

Placement is key - line up before pushing all the way down onto stud. (Though this is easier for 1x1 bricks... Less so for tiles)
Also the curved end of brick separator works nicely to make fine adjustments. Need to push and rock middle of edge of tile.. if you try the edge you always over shoot and end up pushing the other way too much.

If you have tweezers you can use them to grab the tile put it in place with them then push down.


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Can I use EV3 with a TETRIX motor?
What program can I use to control a TETRIX motor through the LEGO EV3? I've heard that RobotC currently cannot be used for this.
Has NI released a Labview version which I can use to control TETRIX through EV3?

Do you mean the HiTechnic Motor Controller or something else?

I do mean the HiTechnic Motor Controller. Thanks :)


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Connection between two NXT bricks
Is it possible send information from BrickNXT_A to BrickNXTB_B?
For example I have a touch sensor connected to IN_1 of Brick_A and I want send the result of the sensor status (1 or 0) to Brick_B. If the touch sensor status on IN_1 of brick_A is 1, then the motor connected with OUT_A in brick_B, turn for 1 rotation.
How to do this with NXC? My difficult is the connection and sending information between the Bricks.

A long time ago in an university club we once managed to hack an RCX cable into an RCX compatible LED, built a frame to mount it into a LEGO structure, wrapped a clear flexible plastic "wire" in tinfoil and duct tape (to minimise light loss) and built another LEGO structure for the other end that held an NXT light sensor. After a bit of programming we could send information from the RCX to the NXT via the optical cable. the only downside was the speed: we could only manage about 1 bit per second. Maybe someone could improve on this concept?

Yes, it is possible. Have a look at the "Comm module functions" section of the NXT help file. For example, since the touch sensor status is a boolean value, you could use the SendRemoteBool and ReceiveRemoteBool functions. You can communicate wirelessly using the Bluetooth functions (BT*) or you can have a wired connection using RS485 by connecting input port 4 on each brick to each other.


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Is there a way to set a flat plane at an angle to horizontal of less than 22.5 degrees, but more than 0?
I am building an airplane with a wing dihedral (the wings angle upwards from the fuselage), but I am using parts 44302 and 44301 interlocked as designed:

Unfortunately, one click up is about 22.5 degrees, and horizontal is, of course, 0 degrees. Ideally, I need something almost exactly in the middle of the two degrees.
Are there any pieces or techniques that would let me do this?

Using a cut-pipe into a clip-with-tube will let you build a secure and precise angle.

If you have a solid brick behind the headlight bricks you can fix the angle by cutting the pipe at the right length.

I'll look into this, though I'm worried it might be far too thick to use.

I'm not sure how sturdy your design needs to be, but using bar and clip parts could do what you want. There aren't any fixed angles when using those, so you have complete freedom, but a less rigid connection.

If strength is an issue, you could try using multiple clips or the double wide variety:

I don't think this'll work - the wings are going to be about 7 inches long. But maybe I could stabilize it with some other pieces hidden

You could put a sturdy (Technic?) structure inside the fuselage that provides the wing connectors with the required angles.

But are there any technic pieces that are at this angle?

I don't know of any pieces that achieve exactly such an angle, but you can build a frame that provides one. For example, you could alter this structure to result in a slightly different angle from 90°: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=94689
I've also found this simpler, but less sturdy solution: http://www.dagsbricks.com/2013/11/lego-techniques-on-angles.html

The issue here is that the wing digital is not attached to the fuselage, but to a flat stub of a wing. So any such frame would be too thick.


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What is the biggest LEGO-compatible one piece wheel?
I am wondering what the biggest LEGO one piece wheel is? (the inside part and the rubber part counts as one piece in my world)

See also the related question: What are the largest Technic-compatible tires on the market? - although that is specifically asking for tires.

Am I the only one that noticed they never specified Lego wheel?  I think some absurd answers are in order. ;)

I noticed. I also noticed your answer. ;)

@Zhaph-BenDuguid, Thank you for removing my post from this thread. I agree it was not on topic. I am new here and will not do it again. Also I apologize for using a comment to respond but I cannot figure out how to send a message to another user. I am really new.

Well, got a few laughs out of it before the edit.  Harmless fun, apologizes for any feathers ruffled.

@Dan1138 JohnnyB no problem either of you - while a bit of fun is always appreciated, if it can be in the context of an on-topic answer that would be great. Otherwise we'll just end up with joke answers everywhere ;)

Pretty sure it's Hailfire Droid Wheel.

Confirmed, though it is missing a center hub and is thus difficult to use. The next in size that does have one is 59521 http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=59521


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Alternative flowers
I'm compiling a list of elements that are compatible with the Plant Flower Stem. In addition to the Plant Flower Small, I'm aware of at least two alternatives —

Friends Accessories Star with Stud Holder
Plate, Round 1 x 1 with Flower Edge (4 Knobs)

Are there any others?

The LEGO Scala flowers and butterflies also fit. You can see them on this page: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogList.asp?catType=P&catString=102
Also the LEGO Belville, flower, butterfly (same as Scala) and ladybug. You can see those here: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogList.asp?catType=P&catString=48
And from LEGO Friends all the other flowers with hole in the middle fit as well: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogList.asp?catType=P&catString=771


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Programming The Lego Mindstorms T-Rex from EV3 Laboratory
I bought the book The Lego Mindstorms EV3 Laboratory fron Daniele Benedettelli. I buid the T-Rex chapter 15 and when I tried to programming the T-Rex (chapter 16) I have a problem. I'm not able to make the last connection when I build the MoveAbsolute block.
I send a picture. Do you know why?

According the book the last input of the MyBlock is a Logic input, instead of a Number (default setting).
Make sure you changed it to Logic and try it again.


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What is the best system for lifting things without pistons?
I am building a big walker thing. It has a mining laser at the bottom that can be lifted on one half, and the other is attached to the vehicle.
However, I can't seem to find a way, because the hooks attached to the strings come off to easily. The studs are also facing down and I am not using Mindstorms.
I'm looking for a purely LEGO solution.

Screwjacks!
Key components would be Technic, Gear Rack 1 x 4 and Technic, Gear Worm Screw
Application of said parts are left as an exercise for the reader, though since OP says they're not using Technic, this might be a moot answer.

i'm going to change my question to include just lego parts

You can make screwjacks out of LEGO...

How do you make screw jacks out of legos?

Well the key components are in this Worm Gear Pack. I'm sure the individual pieces can be had cheaper than the one set of these for sale on BrickLink.

but the process of making it though...

Come on, that's the fun part, figuring it out!

for technic I meant the remote controllers and such the electronic stuff


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Quick way to inventory parts
I have a rather large collection of LEGO elements that are not sorted in any way, and I'd like to keep track of them. There are a few other posts about ways to keep track of elements, and I've looked at them. I've downloaded about three different programs that are for LEGO inventory keeping, but I'm kind of picky.
I'd want something that I can input bricks into rather quickly, and though these programs are cool, I don't need to look up current prices or keep track of sets or whatever, as I have loads of loose pieces. Does anyone know anything that would meet those conditions? Even some sort of scanner build would be great.

Why do you need to inventory the parts?  Is it for custom building purposes?  I'm also curious what programs you've downloaded, and what specifically you found undesirable in each one.

May be duplicate of Is there any application to keep an inventory of owned sets and pieces?

you could write a Lego® database...

As you have probably guessed by now, there is no easy solution to your question.  It all comes down to computer vision.
In this solution, Akiyuki built a massive machine out of LEGO bricks, a camera, a scale, 2 Mindstorm NXT and, which he fails to mention in is parts list, a computer and some electronics.

Computer vision is complex, and making a working prototype is still an impressive task. Even though the software component of this project is most probably the reuse of an existing solution like OpenCV, there are many other problems to overcome. For example; Mechanically bringing the parts to the camera one by one in a controlled fashion. Also if the part is not laying down from a recognisable angle, you would probably have to flip it or take pictures with multiple cameras in order to get a good look at it.
Still, being a software developer myself, this is not the part that worries me.  Even if you manage to build the whole machine, you still need to compare the pictures with a library of all the known LEGO bricks. Even more, they need to be imaged from all possible sides (when laying down).  Building this knowledge base is a big endeavour on its own.

Here is a video of the working machine.

If you can reduce the complexity of parts to sort it can really help. Akiyuki has also made sorters for Technic beams and axles (both of which work on the same very simple principles).
If you do decide to build a brick sorter you probably would be better off designing one for the parts you use the most/have the most of and hand sorting the rest.

Thanks! I happen to follow Akiyuki on YouTube, but I had completely forgotten about this video of his. I'll look into making it...sometime...

Hmm - if you're willing to take the time though surely this is a prime candidate for machine learning as well: you train it with some known bricks first and let it build its understanding of different bricks from there ;)

@Zhaph-BenDuguid that would be my first choice too.  I would also cross that with a web brick database like BrickLink to automate linking new found shapes with existing brick names.

One could use parts files from the common brick CAD systems as models to fit to the camera images - that could help learn the brick shapes and make the task of creating the parts database easier.


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Are BanBao bricks compatible with Lego?
Does anyone has experience with BanBao bricks?
BanBao World
Are they compatible with Lego bricks? They have basic sets and plates which are at a good price.

Their new banbao bricks are much better than wayback and much better quality. The banbao bricks are compatible with lego and much cheaper !

Recently, I just bought a BanBao brick Snoopy range. The quality is not bad. Great for kids to build for hours. The price are great value for money.

Do you have a picture of the vintage pre-court case figures? I’m trying to work out if it’s what I have a bulk lot of. Certainly the plates are higher like BanBao… but I have about 16 figures too that I can’t identify the brand of…

I have 2 Banbao set from before the lawsuit with Lego (minifig style minifigs) and they are more and less compatible with lego, the pitch between the studs is the same. But there is some remark I noticed within comparing both brands for a few minutes.

Studs are higher, a Lego plate on a Banbao brick will leave a small gap between both bricks
Plates are thicker. Lego ~3.2 mm and Banbao 3.6 mm. Bricks -> 11.4mm instead of ~9.6mm
Fit between Banbao bricks can be loose.

I have a small pull-back car that contains jumper plates that are placed vertical, parts mounted to them will fall off.
Bushes just slide over cross axles as there is no friction between both parts
Hinges are loose.
Usage of large parts, like 24x10 molded piece as a base for a vehicle.

I don't know if the quality of the bricks is better nowadays or they changed the dimension of the bricks. I would say just go to the store and by the cheapest set you can find and look for yourself.

The bricks are higher!? This is a problem if you want to mix basic sets. Very good feedback!

I just visited to my local toy store in the Netherlands and found a couple of the small sets for only 0.49 euro, so I bought one. Quality of the bricks is improved in respect to my other 2 sets, bricks stay together. The hinge now stays in position. The size of the bricks didn't change. They are still higher than lego bricks.

I bought BanBao a few weeks ago in Germany, Kaufland. I bought a green city bus. I was impressed by the quality. The studs connect very well. I also tried on some LEGO bricks. It was no problem to combine the bricks together with the LEGO bricks. Some parts are different but a child will never notice[?]

Are the standard BanBao bricks higher? Suppose you build a house and and mix lego and banbao bricks, will it be possible to build walls?

The question is rather old, but I have one thing to add to the other answers.
There is also a Banbao line for younger children (Banbao Young Ones, 3+). There's a review here. It's in Russian but Google translate worked well :)
I have one set. It turned out that it is really compatible with DUPLO, and quality is very good.

The quality of Banbao was really amazing. For some reason one of the minifigures can only sit, other one only stand (for comparison - LEGO minifigs can both sit and stand by default), but both have movable hands (as LEGO minifigures), details and colors are great.
Very good value for less money and really much better than other Chinese products. LEGO and Banbao bricks have slightly different height, Banbao are taller, but are otherwise compatible.

I don't know, why "jncraton" edited my answer, but that is not more the same answer, as I've stated. That's not ok! I've never statet that both are compatible.


text:
What is the quickest way to weed out compatible bricks from loose LEGO?
When I buy LEGO in bulk, I often find that there are at least a few clone brand bricks mixed in with them. What is the quickest way to weed out these non-LEGO parts?

My puny brain can only come up with one method: One Piece At A Time.
Check for the LEGO logo somewhere. Sometimes it's hard to find. On the Brick, Round 1 x 1 with Fins it's on the bottom of one of the fins.
Seems that most of the time there are minor, yet obvious, mold differences. Some brands, like Kre-O have an indent on one or more studs.
I have recently sorted some headlight bricks and 1x1 bricks with one stud on the side and found that there are many variations on those, including whether or not the stud has a through hole, or whether or not the 'back' of the brick is solid or open.
Often enough, the plastic will simply feel wrong.


text:
PC To NXT Brick via Bluetooth
We have a fully working java program that can connect to another computer and can send messages from this (both sides run java and we used SPP Server and Client).
However, when trying to connect to the NXT Brick and send a message via Bluetooth, we are able to pair with the brick and send a message but we have no idea if the NXT receives it.
When we tried to use Java SPPClient on the computer(we provide the ServerURL of NXT to java program) to send the message to NXT Brick running the RobotC, it doesn't work. On the java side, this error is given:

Failed to connect; [10064] A socket operation failed because the destination host was down.

Using RobotC the brick is waiting for a message to be sent and it is awaiting 3 integers to help the robot move.

that sounds like a firewall problem. Is the java program trying to access the internet?

@tuskiomi The socket connection error is for the bluetooth connection, not the internet. The firewall should not interfere in local bluetooth connections.

Have you updated the firmware? That may be a problem but it also may be that there is an error connecting using Bluetooth. “Destination host was down” means that the coding platform could not connect to the NXT.

I have a strong suspicion that your COM3 is connected to BlueTooth so your Python program can't connect.
I would go through the information in the NXT Bluetooth Developer Kit (available from the LEGO MINDSTORMS download page) to troubleshoot the process.
Beyond that, this sounds like a potential general BlueTooth issue, and not directly related to the NXT brick.
In the worst case, there might be a hardware issue with the brick itself. Lending another NXT brick and checking if it gives a different result should answer that question.


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Mindstorm EV3 no longer recognises SD card
I followed the instructions to install leJOS on an SD card, to get Java support for the Mindstorms EV3 brio. The brick detected the leJOS files and processed the whole installation procedure successfully. However, at the end of the installation process the brick rebooted. Since then the SD card is no longer recognised by the brick.
I tried to format the SD card again to repeat the installation procedure, but the brick boots into the standard menu without recognising the SD card.
Any idea to get the SD card working again?

I would suggest posting this question on the leJOS forum - I've seen many similar issues coming by there and you will get a better and faster response there - leJOS is not official LEGO software and is hence not fully within scope of this forum. The leJOS forum is here: http://www.lejos.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=17

Maybe just use USB because there is USB slot.

From the leJOS forum posts, I think your best bet is to try another SD card and use the officially recommended SD card creator tools to format and populate your new card.


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Where did "LL 928" and "LL 929" come from?
Just finished putting Benny's Spaceship set together, and the Number printed on the side is "LL 929" which appears to be an increment from a much older set the Galaxy Explorer, which had "LL 928".
My question is whether there is any known source for this ID? Is it just something random that someone came up with or does it actually refer to something (real or made-up)?

928 was the original set number of the Galaxy Explorer - so the numbering of that one is following the LEGO tradition of using  the set number.
As Joubarc points out, at that time the sets were branded LegoLand, which is where the LL comes from (in recent years LEGO often uses the Designer's initials).
I'd say that as Benny is a rather well used Classic Spaceman and his Spaceship is clearly a throw back to that style, his ship is numbered in homage to the Galaxy Explorer.

I don't think the habit of using designer initials was already there then; I'd rather wager the LL stands for Legoland as that's how boxes where themed at that time.

Good point Joubarc, I've updated accordingly :-)


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Is it possible to make inverted slopes with solid studs
Many(all?) of the inverted slope pieces have solid studs and hollow studs( e.g. 3665) and a void around the stud. This(void & hollow) looks very inelegant, is it really that difficult to make solid studs with finished surfaces on these pieces? What's the material/cost/grip/aesthetic trade-off?
If lego decided to fill the stud and void of 3665 (i.e solid piece except for anti-stud), what would be the downside (apart from plastic, which is trivial)

Because of the way ABS plastic injection molding works, it is important that parts have a uniform thickness throughout, and don't just have a large section completely filled with solid plastic. This page explains a little about that:

As the plastic solidifies in the mold, it freezes from the outside (near the mold surface) toward the inside. In thick sections, this results in inward pulling stresses (due to contraction) that can cause sink marks in the outer surfaces of the part. In addition, because thinner sections will freeze faster than thicker sections, there is also the possibility of stresses building up between thick and thin sections, resulting in part warpage.

The reason that the stud is open is because that area of the part couldn't be reached from the bottom as usual due to the closed slope underneath. The constraint of uniform thickness forces either the top or bottom of a stud to be open. This is the same basic reason that the studs on Technic beams are open as well.

Cost of the brick would raise by 10-20% of the extra material needed, I don't expect the mould to be more expensive.
But I think the main reason is the production proces itself. ABS is processed at around 200C (don't know temp used at LEGO). After filling the mould the whole brick must cool down again. To keep the brick shape stable, this process must happen at the same rate through the brick. If parts of the brick are thicker than others this takes more time to cool, which can cause the brick to deform during production, so it doesn't meet its tight tolerance spec.
I can't really come up with a Lego brick shape that is locally much thicker than the rest of the part.


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Old sets, new bricks
Are there sellers out there that compile old discontinued Lego sets with new bricks? In other words they source new bricks and instructions to put together old discontinued sets. Thanks

I am not aware of any sellers that do this, but if you like to assemble discontinued sets, bricklink
has a feature that allows you to do this using bricklink seller inventories. Just look up the set on bricklink, add the Inventory to your wishlist and review which sellers have the pieces you need, then order them.
Go to the "Wanted" tab on Bricklink: http://www.bricklink.com/wantedAdd.asp
Then select the "Part Set" tab and fill out the item number of the set you are looking for (you might need to do a Catalog search to find out this number). Pick the options you want, check the "Set Minimum Qty" option, and "Submit for Edit". You will now have a broken down list of parts that you can edit (for example, replace original parts with proposed substitutions, this is useful when your set is really old and the original part is difficult to get, but a more current part exists that likely has better availability). Add this to your Wanted List and you're ready to go.
Alternatively, many old, discontinued sets can be bought, in box, on ebay and bricklink, but depending on the rarity and popularity of the set you might be paying a significant premium.


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Lego Escher structures
How are these done? Is it trick photography? With some kind of giveaway background it should be obvious, but I notice they are not us telling that.

The first photo on this page shows the model Andrew Lipson made.
The photo is taken under a such angle in respect that the different parts line up in the photo, to get the desired effect.
"Waterfall" used a combination of specifically angled photographs, coupled with some post processing to remove the overlapping elements:

OK, let's come clean. We actually resorted to photographic manipulation for this one. [...] The final image was constructed by very carefully overlaying portions of the left image with the corresponding portions from the right. Yes, it's dirty. We couldn't see how else to do it. Sorry.

At the first one you can clearly see the difference in stud size caused by the different distance at the corner in the top.


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Is there a guide that has the number and kinds of pieces per set?
Is there a guide that has the number and kinds of pieces per set - for example 8 pieces of this and 14 pieces of that?  I am trying to sort out a large container of multiple sets.  I have thousands of pieces, and would like to put them back into sets.

As mentioned by @gev, Bricklink is a great place to go. It is, however, not the most intuitive site to use. Here is how you can easily get the item counts:

Start with the Search box at the top of the page. Before typing in the name of the set, make sure the selector is set to search the Catalog.
Enter a term from the name of the set (e.g. "Millenium" or "Falcon").
The Catalog results will pop up. You might find sets or individual pieces listed, or even several (regional) variations on the set.
Go to the entry that best describes the set you (think you) have. The entry will start with a number (e.g. 10179-1 for the Millenium Falcon UCS) and after the number, in parenthesis, you will find a link to the inventory (labeled "(Inv)"). Clicking on this link gets you to a detailed inventory with item counts for the particular set.

Rinse and repeat for other sets you have ... good luck!
Alternatively if the set is from 2002 or later, you can go to http://service.lego.com/en-us/buildinginstructions to download the building instructions, which contain a detailed inventory at the end. Unfortunately, the resolution and color palette of these instructions is not the greatest (at least on the ones I've tried) so it might require some sleuthing to decipher the different pieces (studs are not showing very well, and it is difficult to tell the different color shades apart, like light grey, dark grey and black).

Best one out there: BrickLink!
Brickset is OK, too, but Bricklink has tons of people willing to sell you nearly any missing part you may need. :)


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EV3 controlled by 8879 speed control through IR sensor
Is it possible to send commands to an EV3 brick from the Power Functions Speed Control remote?
Would I have to interpret the raw sensor values to do this? Are there any references that would help?

It is possible, but not with the LEGO EV3 IR Sensor.
The LEGO 45509 EV3 Infrared Sensor does not respond to the 8879 remote. There is actually a "hidden" mode that is not accessible from the standard LEGO software called IR-REM-A that is essentially this "raw" mode that you have conjectured. However even in this mode, it does not respond to the 8879 remote (unless you press both brake buttons at the same time, which is not very useful).
Instead, you could use the HiTechnic IR Receiver sensor which does work with the 8879 remote. There is not an EV3 block for it, so you will need to use a 3rd party development platform that supports it, such as ev3dev.
Or, you could also use LIRC. There are lots of options for IR Receivers included homebrew (if you are a hardware hacker). Although not exactly what you need, here is an example of someone who make an IR Transmitter for the EV3 to control Power Functions motors (using ev3dev).

Thanks for the answer. However, I want to point out that the HiTechnic IR Receiver seems to have EV3 blocks already: www.hitechnic.com/downloadnew.php?category=38

@MichaelVerschaeve - I'm not sure that there is - the HiTechnic IR Receiver doesn't yet have an EV3 block, but their other two IR sensors (the seeker, which looks for IR sources, and the IRLink, which sends commands to other IR receivers) do.


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Is it possible to use Bluetooth to connect two EV3 bricks using RobotC?
For example to send a numeric value from one to the other?

According to the online documentation, Bluetooth commands are supported for NXT but not for EV3.
On the other hand RobotC is supporting Bluetooth upload/debugging.  This means that it is accessible.  My first instinct would be to look at how RobotC did it (if the code is available).  My second instinct would be to find if somebody already hacked the EV3 brick using C code.

No, Robotc does not yet support Bluetooth for the EV3 - I even tried doing it with the labview software and it gave me an error message when I ran it on the EV3 brick


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How to fix a broken LEGO Star Wars Corellian Defender set
I was playing with my Corellian Defender which took me up to 4 days to build. It broke unfortunately and I am very sad since I love it very much.
I need some tips to rebuild it back.

How to fix it depends on how broken it is - if you've got a few large sections that need to go back in it might be easier than if they have been broken down to the individual elements.
The first step is to ensure you still have the instructions - if not, they should be available on LEGO's site: Building Instructions and search for "75025" (there are two books so make sure you get both 1/2 and 2/2).
With the instructions to hand, you should then be able to work out what you need to remove to re-attach the parts that have come off - I find that taking a few additional elements off is often enough to add back the parts and I can then rebuild the additional elements.
In the worse case scenario you need to establish which step in the instructions best represents the bulk of the remaining model and then disassemble everything else back to that point.
Alternatively, invent a new ship with the pieces ;)


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Buy an specific set of bricks
I have a specific list of bricks for building a LEGO set that I found online, with approximately 300 pieces and around 70 different blocks.
I have seen that one of the best ways for buying LEGOs seems to be Bricklink web page.
However, there are hundreds if not thousands of sellers, and the webpage does not seem to be designed to add a list and search for sellers or something like that.
Has anyone been in my situation? How would you buy an specific set of bricks without going comparing one by one all the shops to see wich one has the mos amount of bricks etc?
If you have curiosity, I want to build the mini LHC

Also take a looke at: "How can I minimize the number of merchants for given set of requested bricks?"

Please see my response to this post. Using the Wanted List feature you can upload your own list of bricks and then see which vendors have these items - you would still need to fill a shopping cart at each vendor to see their price, but that is not so difficult by using the "add Minimum quantity" link at the top of the individual shop page.

Hum, I have been triying. Let me try to upload that XML file with IDs, its a very counterintuitive web page

I agree - it takes some getting used to. What I do is I generate my list in a spreadsheet (Excel, OpenOffice) and have a formula that generates the XML tags for each brick. I then paste the XML file into the textbox on the Wanted List page, and from there on it is fairly easy sailing.

Well I am having a problem while creating the XML file. It doesn't find any of the IDs in the catalogue. However, if a manually pick any of them and go to the search bar and search in the catalogue there is never a problem. Is there something I need to take into account while creating the XML? I knwo that IDs like 306223 are 4dig piece 2dig colour, so I can break down that ID into ID and colour for the XML but I have no idea of what to do with 6037390.

Let me open a new more specific quesion.

6037390 is 3007 in black, according to Bricklink: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=3007&ccName=6037390

Yes, but the whole point of the question is so I dont need to manually go putting then one by one, and unfortunately, I dont have the 3007 black info, just the other. Check my other question to see additional problems in the XML

@Ander: Maybe you should try BrickOwl, and specifically their import function (http://www.brickowl.com/wishlist/import). I have not worked with it, but perhaps this works better for the list of IDs you have.

It seems interesting, however that would need me to use some other software where I would need to insert probably mnually or again programing another format and then load theyr formats and then use what Brickowl would give... It seems not the most straigthforward way! however thanks for the tip ;)


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How to upload an XML file to wishlist in bricklink
I am trying to upload an XML file with my brick wishlist to BrickLink.
However, even if I follow the instructions on the webpage, it never seems to find the product in the catalogue. If I manually use the search bar to search it in the catalogue however, it will always find it.
I have no idea what is wrong.
The help says:
<INVENTORY>
    <ITEM>
        <ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
        <ITEMID>3622</ITEMID>
        <COLOR>11</COLOR>
    </ITEM>
</INVENTORY>

If I change that to:
<INVENTORY>
    <ITEM>
        <ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
        <ITEMID>3062</ITEMID>
        <COLOR>23</COLOR>
    </ITEM>
</INVENTORY>

It doesn't work. However it does exist: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=3062b&ccName=306223
and that with the 6 Digit IDs. What about the other ID types, the ones that can not be broken into colour/ID? e.g.: 4211425
How can I upload my list to Bricklink?

I found this question, wanting to know how to upload a CSV file to a BrickLink Wanted List.  Your comment on uploading XML was a valuable lead.  You might want to add the referenced BrickLink page that tells about XML uploads:  www.bricklink.com/help.asp?helpID=207.  I add it here to help others.  For me, I needed to convert my CSV to XML, then it uploaded fine (less the quarks mentioned here).

@Thomas the webpage is massively changed since I asked this question, so I believe the content you link to is new! feel free to add it to the question, or add an answer with the information!

Bricklink is correct - 3062 does not exist. Your link shows 3062b, which DOES exist (Don't ask me why the base number does not exist though :) ). So if you change your XML to
    <INVENTORY>
        <ITEM>
            <ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
            <ITEMID>3062b</ITEMID>
            <COLOR>23</COLOR>
        </ITEM>
    </INVENTORY>

It should load.
I do not know the answer to the second part of your question: 4211425 translates to ITEMID 3460 in color White, and the Catalog knows this, but the wanted list does not :(.

I see, but the catalogue translates 3062 properly when searched manually. Again, I am losing the point if I need to manually search for everything!

Yes - totally annoying. At this point I don't know either how you can go from your ID numbers to the ones used in Bricklink without first looking them up and translating them. And I do not understand why Bricklink allows you to search for a 7-digit ID, but cannot upload it in the Wanted List functionality. Sharing your frustration here, but perhaps someone else on this forum can answer the question for you. A quick google search showed many ways to upload 4/5-digit IDs, but nothing on the long IDs you have.


text:
Can a EV3 program run simultaneously with the Running Robot commander app?
Is it possible to run the Robot Commander app and a program on the EV3 brick at the same time?
If so how would it be accomplished?

No, the Robot Commander app downloads and runs a program on your EV3. If you already have a program running, it will be stopped and the program downloaded by the commander app will run instead.

That's too bad :( It'd be pretty sweet to be able to control it and also run a background program.
You sure that's not possible?

I have been trying for the past couples days to make that work, but I cannot figure it out so I would say no.


text:
Way to build LEGO spaceship with regular bricks
How do I  build a spaceship without buying a spaceship set?
With a limited amount of bricks, like, say 300 2x4, 100 2x2, and about 20 2x1 bricks.
I'm looking for instructions.

Could you be more specific with what you are looking for and what you've tried?

@Ambo100: Really, nothing... But I've been going through stuff in my head.

It depends on the scale and how "rough" you're willing the final product to be - here's a Sailing ship built purely from 2x4s

Yes.

Long answer: Yes. Your imagination is the limit. Wondering however what the intent of your question is .... are you looking for instructions on how to do this?

Yeah, sort of...

What have you tried so far, and what parts of building a spaceship are difficult to do?

Specifically, whats hard is the bottom.

If you overlap your bricks and make the base 1 stud smaller in all dimensions than the layer above it, you should get a really solid sloping bottom for a spaceship when using 2x4 bricks. It will look blocky, but given the appeal of Minecraft that should not be an issue nowadays :)