Is Lego mindstorms dead or alive ?? any other robotic system for begginers ?

hi, i am very new to the lego world , and i would like to start playing with the Lego Mindstorms Robotic system . Recently someone gives me the book "Programming Lego Mindstorms with Java" and i would like to buy the Lego Mindstor...
The problem is that i cant find any Lego mindstorm here at spain (nor the web pages)
Are Lego mindstorms DISCONTINUED ???
Are any other cheap robotic system that can be programmable with java ???
thanks.

Mindstorms is very much alive! I don't find them in the stores very often, but you can get them at shop.lego.com for the usual prices. LEGO is more expensive than the "other" clones and so the shops, which only value sales volume, usually only carry the LEGO with big ticket licensing like "Spider Man", "Star Wars", etc. The cooler non-license stuff usually doesn't get the shelf space. A few years ago this would be bad news for LEGO, but these days everyone shops on line anyway, so it doesn't matter.
have fun, DLC
: hi, i am very new to the lego world , and i would like to start : playing with the Lego Mindstorms Robotic system . : Recently someone gives me the book "Programming Lego Mindstorms with : Java" and i would like to buy the Lego Mindstor...
: The problem is that i cant find any Lego mindstorm here at spain (nor : the web pages)
: Are Lego mindstorms DISCONTINUED ???
: Are any other cheap robotic system that can be programmable with java : ???
: thanks.

Hello CoffMan,
If you are going to be using Java, I suggest you take a look at the LegoEducational (formerly Pitsco Educational) site at: http://www.legoeducationstore.com/catalog.cfm . Here you can get the parts and pieces you need. The Robotics kit that comes through Lego includes commercial level software that you might not use anyway. I suggest purchasing P/N: W979786 - ROBO Technology Set with USB Cable. You get the:
The ROBO Technology Set contains 215 elements, including:
1 RCX Programmable Brick 1 Infrared Transmitter with Serial or USB cable 2 Gear motors 2 Touch sensors 1 Light sensor 1 Lamp 1 Storage box for built models Bricks, wires, gears, axles, plates, and much more! Just a thought....
Regards, Dave

Hi Dave,
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with external power supply, which was the reason for me to buy this set (in Germany the Dacta line is available from Technik-LPE). I think that is true for all the Dacta sets, but you might want to check if it is important to you.
I don't think buying Dacta sets is a way to save money, though, it was quite expensive.
Jürgen