Digital Computer Electronics

Malvino has a way with words and manages to simplify many aspects of low level digital electronics. I'm about half-way through the book and already cherish it for its very thorough explanations, starting from the simplest aspects (bits) and working towards more sophisticated elements of circuit design (truth tables with Karnaugh Maps). Along the way you'll take in many lessons on Boolean algebra and simplification techniques (don't let this scare you away - it's really not bad at all). While the book is definitely old, it's still very relevant, even with all of the improvements to computers over the last few decades. About the only possible complaint I could have at this point in the book is that some of the chapter review questions seem a bit tedious, particularly since we only have half the answers in the back so it's questionable whether those problems are worth doing since you can't confirm whether you correctly understand the material. That aside, there's lots of questions (with answers) along the way within the actual chapter content, so you still have lots of chances to confirm your understanding. Bottom line, the book is a classic, the writing style is very easy to read, the quality of what it conveys is all-encompassing, and you'd be hard-pressed to find anything better on the subject. A must have for your electronics library.

This book does an extremely good job of clearly communicating and explaining technical concepts. I find this extremely valuable in a world where it seems many engineers and people in technical fields have almost no ability to communicate their ideas at all. If you want to learn how computers work, this is the book for you. I also like this quote from the book's preface. " A man of true science uses but few hard words, and those only when none other will answer his purpose; whereas the smatter in science thinks that by mouthing hard words he understands hard things. -Herman Melville"

And almost 40 years later.... still got it. Malvino's clear writing makes his guiding of the reader through increasingly complex circuits easy to understand. No words are gratuitous even though many were repeated! His repetition to reinforce concepts throughout the book is well timed and appreciated. He also teaches the material from a historical perspective which I really appreciate. I tend to believe this is how web programming should be taught - from a humble static website through to dynamic service oriented architectures. It's honestly refreshing to read a text like this. It reminds me of a Physical Chemistry textbook Professor Garetz used at Polytechnic. So few people write about complicated subjects without drowning it in terminology. It's a quality you see in these "bible" type textbooks which are still in usage 10, 20, 30+ years from their first edition run. As he states, "This doesn't mean this book is easy. It means you never get a complex explanation when a simple one will do. It means the discussion of each topic is no harder than it has to be. It means the book is for your ego trip, not mine; a reader is very smart when an author gets out of the way." How bhuddist. A note on the dating: when you hit the last two chapters you'll start to realize the content there is not very relevant for today (specifically the programming chapter) but by then you'll have learned so so much you won't even care.

The book is truly amazing. You can build a CPU just by reading the book and buying some old 74LSxx ICs. I used this book together with Ben Eaters videos to actual build a working breadboard CPU. Took me about 3 months to finish (mostly I waited for the parts that I either forgot or destroyed). Be careful because this is "Indian" edition. The paper quality is low. Some of the schematics are printed outside the page/shifted/cut in the middle. For my book only about 4 pages where printed with such artefacts, but still we have XXI century, we should not have troubles with printing a book. Anyway I do not care about paper. I bought this for knowledge and I got what I wanted.

Great for the electronics enthusiast. Easy to read, and full of great information. Has complete schematics for SAP-1 and a complete parts list in the back.

This book may be over 35 years old, but much of the material is still valid. If you have any interest in computers or CPUs beyond the "black box", this will help you get inside what is going on. You won't be building massive 64-bit processors with parallel pipelines based on the information here, but many of the basic concepts still remain the same, such as program counters, registers, and select lines. If you are familiar with digital electronics, such as gates and things, some of the book may considered unnecessary. But it is when the author takes those basic gates and starts building control paths and then even microcode, that is when the value of the book becomes apparent.

Just perfect for what I needed it for - making a 1970's (retro) computer. While it starts with a lot of the very basic explanation of digital circuits, it also goes into detail the design of a generic CPU in 3 stages (SAP-1, SAP-2, and SAP-3 where SAP stands for Simple As Possible). Each stage adds more functionality ending up with a very useable 8-bit CPU that can easily be enhanced by the reader. Beautifully written and illustrated.

This book is everything I wanted back when I wanted to gain a better understanding of how a computer works! I wish I would have found it back then, as I pretty much went through what the book elegantly teaches and learned it the hard way. If you are interested in learning how a computer works, and maybe building, as I did, a simple working computer from basic logic chips, then this is the book for you!

This book is a must have and if you are searching for it, then buy it, there are no substitutes...

C'est le livre à posséder si vous voulez comprendre comment fonctionne un microprocesseur ou un microcontrôleur. C'est vrai qu'il commence à dater un peu mais les concepts de base sont toujours les mêmes.

This book was recommended online and is a great asset. Its well planned pacing and exercises are helping me learn electronics and hardware design with a nice, gradual learning curve--it doesn't assume and explains concepts well. Highly recommended.

Kitap eski tamam onda sikinti yok ama sayfalar dagilmak uzere. Yeni olarak satilmasi etik degil diye dusunuyorum.

Non ho ancora approfondito il testo che mi sembra a prima vista molto ben fatto. Tuttavia vorrei ringraziare il venditore per l'ottimo stato di un libro comunque molto datato. Sembrava appena uscito dalla tipografia e credo abbia più di 30 anni!