|
There's actually a REALLY GOOD scanned copy of "Getting Started with Electronics" floating around on the intartubes that is easier to read than the printed paper copy - but if you find it, go buy the real thing from Amazon anyway, so that Forrest Mims gets his  .I also recommend the United States Navy Electricity & Electronics Training Series (NEETS) - its a great tutorial, and free for download (PDFs). Electronics and kits are ADDICTIVE. I never thought I was good enough to use a soldering iron. This is how it went, approximately in order, from June to September 2005: (click for pictures) "Learn to Solder" kit, cheap soldering iron, blinky-LED bits Hacked my own CVS camcorder cable Sound detector, LED flasher "Traffic Light" LED - and my first IC socket! "Running Light" LED kit PONG! Active HF radio antenna kit - with custom power LED Scrolling Programmable LED Display Time to get a new soldering iron (Weller WTCPT, $30 on ebay) Ramsey SR2C Shortwave Radio Ten-Tec 1253 Regenerative Shortwave Radio (TONS of fun) Time to get hardcore - Southern Cross 1 Z80-based computer The masterpiece - Replica-1 Apple I clone (I also picked up a couple of microcontrollers to play with; a BASIC Stamp kit and an Atmel AVR Butterfly) There's nothing quite as fun as powering up a project when its done and hearing Radio Taiwan, or plugging in a keyboard and old monochrome monitor and programming in BASIC on a system that you built yourself from the ground up:  Since late '05, I've also built a couple of CMoy headphone amplifiers and a Linkwitz crossfeed box. I've had to temporarily give up my workbench (it also serves as the dining room table), but when I get it back I've got a P112 Z80 single-board computer kit in a box waiting to be touched in sensitive places with a hot metal stick. Edit: When it comes to solder, there is no god other than Kester, unless it is the false god of lead-free solder (which sucks to work with). In four months, I went from this (having never touched a soldering iron before):  To this (GET YOURSELF A LIGHTED MAGNIFYING DESK LAMP AND DECENT SOLDERING IRON) - I did the two bottom rows and the vertical row on the right, of header pins: 
mrbill fucked around with this message at 05:48 on Jan 15, 2008 |
#
¿
Jan 15, 2008 05:19
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 2, 2024 12:21 |
|
|
Also recommended: Practical Electronics for Inventors. I have a copy, it rocks and has all the info I need for my basic / intermediate projects.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 15, 2008 06:48
|
|
|
Cuw posted:Yeah you kinda need a dmm to calibrate your dmm though... I got a free one that was good enough for basic use, when I ordered the Z80 SBC kit - a lot of electronics supply houses have "free gift for order over $X" deals. Even then, a most basic DMM is no more than $20.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 16, 2008 05:08
|
|
|
I now have a Tek 453 scope on the way. 
|
|
#
¿
Jan 22, 2008 18:17
|
|
|
scholzie posted:Did you get it on ebay? I was looking at one of those auctions and it was ending soonish. Nah. One of the websites I run trades advertising space for equipment from vendors of the market it supports; I found out that one of the vendors also has a test equipment division so they're sending me a 453 instead of another computer this year. 
|
|
#
¿
Jan 23, 2008 05:15
|
|
|
Wisdom posted:I notice Radio Shack sells these. Is this a good kit to use to get into the hobby? I've got one, it's fun to play with but I really recommend starting out with something like the Atmel AVR Butterfly. Smiley Micros sells a great kit with everything you'll need for $99 (same price as the BASIC Stamp kit) including a C Programming for Microcontrollers book. I bought the plain Butterfly from them in 2005; they didn't offer the "everything" kit then. Edit: Yay Macro Photography 
mrbill fucked around with this message at 13:05 on Feb 2, 2008 |
|
#
¿
Feb 2, 2008 13:01
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 2, 2024 12:21 |
|
|
A Tutorial for Starting with ATMEL AVR Microcontrollers This is pretty good.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 21, 2008 13:46
|
|