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Getting Started - Help

Send_Help

Nov 26, 2017
6
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Nov 26, 2017
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So I'm new to everything here and had a few questions for more experienced people

1. How did you get started before learning about anything electronics-related? I'm talking before even knowing what an arduino is or how to use it.

2. What's your go-to site to buy large amounts of individual electronic parts?

3. How/where exactly do you learn about electronic components and how to use them?

4. What resources do you recommend for a beginner who is trying to learn about electronics? Particularly regarding arduinos, servo motors, resistors, breadboards, etc.
 

Bluejets

Oct 5, 2014
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Oct 5, 2014
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1. Crystal set
2. Ebay,Elements14,RSComponents
3. Many places , internet was never around in my younger days, so whatever books I could find.
These days and internet it becomes a learning ability on a factor of perhaps 100.
4. Start at the beginning. Arduino have great tutorials as well as other sources on youtube. Perhaps be a little cautious on places like instructables. Don't skip over basics and theory, it will come back to bite you.
 

dorke

Jun 20, 2015
2,342
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Jun 20, 2015
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2,342
Welcome to EP.

For answering your questions you should tell us what is your goal and background education.
Do you want to be a pro?a hobbyist? build things? in what area etc.

The field of electronics is vast and now days specialization in narrow ares is very common.
Although some of the older geeks around here are well "diversified" ;)

In a nut shell:
Basically the world of electronics is composed of 3 major areas:Analog,Digital,Software(some may argue it is merely computer science,but for building say an Arduino project you would need that as well).

For Analog:
The basic starting point is learning about electrical quantities(charge,current,voltage,power etc.)
followed by learning about passive elements(resistors,capacitors,inductors,transformers etc.)
With learning about DC and AC followed by learning about linear circuits.

For Digital:
Logic Functions,Basic gates,more complex memory-less elements,flip-lops,sequential circuits,
μC,μP systems.

Software,
Programing languages, at the bit level hardware related .


Sources,
Books,courses(internet included),YouTube ,Wiki etc.

"buy large amounts of individual electronic parts"?
Leave that for a much later stage.
 

Send_Help

Nov 26, 2017
6
Joined
Nov 26, 2017
Messages
6
Welcome to EP.

For answering your questions you should tell us what is your goal and background education.
Do you want to be a pro?a hobbyist? build things? in what area etc.

The field of electronics is vast and now days specialization in narrow ares is very common.
Although some of the older geeks around here are well "diversified" ;)

In a nut shell:
Basically the world of electronics is composed of 3 major areas:Analog,Digital,Software(some may argue it is merely computer science,but for building say an Arduino project you would need that as well).

For Analog:
The basic starting point is learning about electrical quantities(charge,current,voltage,power etc.)
followed by learning about passive elements(resistors,capacitors,inductors,transformers etc.)
With learning about DC and AC followed by learning about linear circuits.

For Digital:
Logic Functions,Basic gates,more complex memory-less elements,flip-lops,sequential circuits,
μC,μP systems.

Software,
Programing languages, at the bit level hardware related .


Sources,
Books,courses(internet included),YouTube ,Wiki etc.

"buy large amounts of individual electronic parts"?
Leave that for a much later stage.

I just wanna build things, I've been reading about arduinos/microcontrollers using voice-controlled modules (Geektech) to automate things like turning on lights, computers, etc.

I don't really have any background as a freshman in college majoring in Electrical Engineering, I haven't even taken any engineering-related courses yet besides Calculus.

I'd say Analog sounds like what I'm trying to learn about. Any good books you'd recommend for a beginner that suits me?
 

dorke

Jun 20, 2015
2,342
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Jun 20, 2015
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2,342
If you are studying EE in collage you will be a pro (after you sweat a bit;))
The best books for learning the theory are the text books you have,or may have.

Some Text books on the basics (very old and good,I used them at my time):

"Basic Circuit Theory" by Desoer and Kuh.
Scaum's "Theory and Problems of Electric Circuits" by Edminster. (this one can be found as a free pdf on the web).

There are some classics like:
"The art of electronics" by Horowitz and Hill. (this one can be found as a free pdf on the web).
Considered by many as the "bible",over 1000 pages.
Here is the 2015 new 3rd edition

On Arduino you have many beginners books like this "Make series" one.

You can search Youtube and Wiki for specific issues.
For Collage grade you can take free courses on EDX,Coursera,Kahn etc.

And,you have this humble place as well ;)
 
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