Make: Electronics: Learning Through Discovery

**Intro** This is a nice electronics book. It starts out basic enough that I would say an enthusiastic student in 4th grade or higher, with ample support from their parents could probably get into electronics as a hobby by beginning with this book. It is also suitable for much more advanced people if they are willing to skip the first third of so of the book where the basics are. I meet this category, since I'm a Mechanical Engineer (but importantly, not an Electrical Engineer), and I'm happy to have bought this book just the same. **Notable positive features** 1.) This book is substantial. It has glossy pages, color photos, and is 325 pages long. The pictures are bright and sharp. This is the second edition, and the author described the things that have been improved from the first edition. 2.) There's a lot of basic info for accommodating beginners, and a good brush-up course for more advanced people. It tells how to solder, identify resistors, install and use things like IC's and LED's without burning them out, etc. It tells the basic facts about electronic components, like what IC's, LEDs, and capacitors *are*. It recommends tools and where to get tools and equipment from. It encourages you to experiment in order to learn, like it tells you how to actually go burn up an LED just to see how much (or how little) abuse they can take. 3.) It has helpful info to explain the subtle electrical engineering concepts that have always confused me, like the difference between a relay and a transistor, and what the three leads on transistors do. My college electronics textbooks didn't do a good job at this, so that's the sort of thing that I'm getting out of this book. 4.) It has safety information. Soldering safety. Shock hazard safety. What you should and shouldn't be afraid of. 5.) It doesn't jump into wiring diagrams instantly. It uses photos and other types of sketches for people who haven't mastered wiring diagrams yet. 6.) It has little bits of electronics history in it in the form of photos of the scientists and engineers from history, and captions under the photo. This keeps things entertaining without filling the text with unwanted extra info. 7.) There is information toward the end on how to program software for your own contraptions using Arduino, a fun, versatile, and cheap software that is good for programming robots and other things. 8.) There are some neat example projects, including a crystal radio (a radio that doesn't need batteries). **Comparison to Hacking Electronics by Simon Monk** This book is pretty similar to Hacking Electronics by Simon Monk, and those interested in the topic at hand should consider both of these books. Both are well written, cover a similar spectrum of topics, have color photos, and have glossy pages. I would say both are equally good in writing and content *quality.* This book is slightly longer than the Monk book, and thus has more content, so I like it slightly more for that, because I'm a little more advanced, and I tend to want as much info as possible so I can use it as a reference or handbook. Finally, this book seems a little better for hardware tinkering people than the Monk book, since the Arduino part in this book comprises a smaller percentage of the whole book than in the Monk book. **Summary** If you want to get into tinkering with electronics for fun, or want to learn more about electronics via a "learn by doing" approach, this is definitely a good book. It starts out basic enough that you can probably start from the very ground level, with knowing almost nothing. I think this book would also be good if you are teaching grade school or middle school students about electronics. Finally, this book would be a good handbook for the shop of a maker, circuit bender, hobby roboticist, or anyone else that likes to tinker with electronics, and needs an occasional reminder about resister color codes, for example, or how to hook up transistors. I recommend this book with essentially no reservations!

This is the book that taught me electronics and ignited my passion for a new hobby. It is a very easy read and teaches everything through hands-on exercises. I would recommend this book without hesitation both to an adult wanting to learn fundamental electronics as well as for any parents who want their kids to learn electronics. It covers the fundamentals with just the right amount of theory and offers lots of practical advice for a beginner on things like soldering and setting up an electronics workshop. The projects that this book will have you build are a lot of fun and at the end of the book I found myself wishing there were more projects like these I could do (luckily now there are, in Make: More Electronics, by the same author). The kits available from Makershed to go along with this book are also a godsend because trying to order all the electronic components needed by this book from an electronic supplier like Mouser can be very intimidating for a beginner. I had a few nits to pick with the first edition of this book: namely the use of TTL (7400LS) logic chips, which I found very finicky, and regardless are not much used anymore. Fortunately, the author has taken reader feedback seriously and addressed my complaint and those of other readers in the second edition. Another change I agree with is the switch in focus from Basic Stamp and Picaxe to Arduino in the section on microcontrollers. Arduino has revolutionized the hobbyist microcontroller landscape and has taken the maker world by storm to the extent that it is now the de facto standard for anyone getting started with microcontrollers. Finally, I found the fact that the author explicitly mentions the feedback from his readers and integrates the lessons learned from the the first edition into his text very refreshing. The fact that he has acknowledged that making good electronic circuits is a process, even for someone experienced as him, makes this book all the more accessible and educational.

I had studied electronics on my own as a kid, wanted to be a TV repairman in the 60's & 70's, but made a career in software instead. Nearing retirement now, I started from scratch with this book after reading the sample in Kindle. I expected to get incremental gratification from completing each breadboard experiment, but I find I am getting something more valuable than that. I am getting a sort of gut-feel that had eluded me earlier, for the behavior of components that can be counter-intuitive. So the journey turns out to be better than the milestones and destination, which is a concept that has rarely been real for me except in travel and backpacking. My enthusiasm keeps growing. I've spoken with authors of tech books at conferences, and was told book sales rarely pay off except as advertising for the author's speaking and consulting income. Book prices and relatively small sale volumes don't compensate for the expended hours. This book and its successor (Make: More Electronics) embody a stunning amount of detail effort and thought, a testament to the enthusiasm Mr. Platt seems to find in tutoring us in electronics, and in the process of learning through experimentation. After reading his descriptions of voltmeter features, I upgraded from my old one to the NeoTech 4000 and I am pleased so far. I also bought the pre-packaged kit #1 of parts (resistors, capacitors, LEDs etc) from Pro-Tech traders (I think) which gave a good kick-start to my dive into the material. I will price alternatives for the equivalent kits #2 and #3 before deciding whether to buy them in kit form (very convenient, but pricey) or ordering the parts individually (for which the author offers a wealth of useful help).

Great intro to electronics for newbies like myself wanting to dive in and get experience! Book is clear, concise and well written with good explanations and diagrams that do not require a scientist to understand. I am just beginning the reading so will finish up. I do wish that the author had a prepackaged kit version that came with both the book and components required that would be a major plus. Had to order the kits after getting the book.

Awesome book with awesome tutorials!! I've attempted to major in electronics engineering long time ago and found it so overwhelmingly difficult, most of all due to the level of math involved that I just had to switch majors to abandon it altogether. My love for electronics continued over the years though (but not math). Many years after my follies with electronics engineering, I stumbled upon this book and voila! Basic concepts that I had struggled to understand by just mathematics alone now make full sense thanks to this book. The key: the author uses a method where he makes you work backwards, by building a circuit first, making run second, and then explaining the scientific (and mathematical) principles behind it! I can tell you that as a high school teacher, this is the best way to learn: hands-on! The only one downside of this book is that you have to be prepare to spend a lot of dough if you want to complete every single of the experiments that are suggested here (i.e., soldering irons (30 to 40W as well as a 15W), perforated circuit boards, lots of resistors, capacitors, transistors, LEDs, etc. However, the money will be wisely spent if you seriously want to learn electronics. One more recommendation, there a great (free) site that's called "EveryCircuit.com" which lets you put together electronic circuits from schematics and run them to see the effect. This could be an awesome companion to this book for it shows you exactly what happens when you turn on the switch (in an animated graphic) by following how the current flows on your circuit. I've copied the schematics from the experiments on this book and assembled the same circuit on the website after I completed the experiment just to have another view of what actually happens with all the electronic components on a particular circuit.

I have taken at least a half-dozen courses, read many other books on the subject of electronics/electricity over the past 10+ years. This is exactly what I needed to help nail in some theory and fundamentals. The book is laid out in such a way that teaches key concepts as you go and you build on each concept until you basically know it proficiently enough. The author writes in such a way that is inviting, with the reader in mind. He did a fantastic job writing his explanations. You can Charles Platt puts a lot of effort into his writing. For example: he doesn't just explain theory, as many other electronics books do. He shows you something cool and basic to do/build, and then goes into how and why it works. Good stuff, and exactly what I needed. The projects are fun and practical, and after each project (at least in my case) I'm hungry for more, and my brain is already wondering how I can implement what I've learned in my own designs. Two thumbs up on this publication! I went ahead and purchased the second book: Make: More Electronics and can't wait...

The Make: series of books is simple, easy way to actually get some experience with electrical parts without killing yourself or burning down the house. Kudo's to Mr. Platt and the Make: team. They actually tell you how to economically get parts and test equipment. They do not worry about the theory behind the set of exercises. Because you do not need to know. Just treat it like a cook book, and have fun. Actually do some things. That is a wonderful approach to building some stuff. Ok, it is for amateurs. Professional products are obviously not built this way any more. But this is similar to the approach to try out lots of options before spending a few million on the multi-layer board layout. That isn't that much fun anyway. And you can try some simple stuff such as programming the little controllers like an Arduino. (There I was upbeat, positive, and not sarcastic. I think that anybody who tries to be helpful and informative deserves an upbeat review. I won't get into why you would want to learn the theory behind all of this and maybe sit through a few college courses.)

Fantastic book. 5 years college here, no engineering courses. Starting into electronics via the various internet sites has been excruciatingly difficult and slow. Picked this book up and wham, I'm off to the races. This book is for anyone interested in getting into electronics who has a minimum of basic math (addition division etc) and science knowledge. Experiential education (hands on) is the best way for 99 percent of us to learn, and that is what this book is all about. Plan on spending at least another $100 on parts, perhaps more if you want some quality tools. (A decent used Fluke Multimeter can fetch $150-$200, whereas the book suggests a cheap $2. is fine for instance). Currently picking up parts off Chinese sites is cheap as there is no postage for cheap Chinese parts the US taxpayer pays the postage currently, the current administration thinks thats not right and is dead set on changing it. Googling "Make: Electronics Kits" gives you US options that are offered so that as you read each chapter you can build the project. The book would be excellent for any parent desiring to work on simple projects with their child so that both can learn.