02. Overview of Catkin Workspaces and Packages

Catkin packages

ROS software is organized and distributed into packages, which are directories that might contain source code for ROS nodes, libraries, datasets, and more. Each package also contains a file with build instructions - the CMakeLists.txt file - and a package.xml file with information about the package. Packages enable ROS users to organize useful functionality in a convenient and reusable format.

Catkin workspaces

A catkin workspace is a top-level directory where you build, install, and modify catkin packages. The workspace contains all of the packages for your project, along with several other directories for the catkin system to use when building executables and other targets from your source code.