Does anyone have a suggestion for a good book on beginning-to-intermediate electronics? I borrowed Teach Yourself Electricity and Electronics from the library based on some good reviews here and there, but it spends waaaay too much time telling me the numerous ways capacitors are constructed and how electrons leap from one shell to the next, all of which is well and good, but is hardly practical in the real world. It's like explaining number theory to a person in order to explain that 1+1=2.

I need something that tells me that 1+1=2, and maybe up to about x^2+2x+1=(x+1)(x+1).

I've got a copy of "The Art Of Electronics" by Horowitz and Hill and in my opinion it's very good. It's quite expensive if you're not serious about electronics though.

- Trevor

That would be my suggestion. If you can handle some (so I'm told) fairly straightforward maths, it's a very good book. Personally, I avoid the maths and just design the circuits wherever possible

pca

I read the first edition of that book at the age of 12, and bought the second edition a few years later. It's probably taught me more about electronics than the rest of my books put together

I do wish they'd release a 3rd edition though. Some of the digital stuff and component tables are getting a bit dated.

I'll try and check that one out. Unfortunately, my local library system has a total of two copies, one of which is marked as lost and the other of which is due back May 15, 2002. I guess I'll have to steal one. I always think my local library sucks, but, then, the New York public library doesn't even have a copy in their lending section at all.

Definitely worth buying, even if you are only an electronics hobbyist. It has enough of a range that you can go from almost complete novice through to VLSI circuit design using it. Last time I looked it was only £60 or so.

Great question, I've been looking for something similar myself. I've been belatedly learning how to solder, working on serial->parallel converters for LCD/VFD modules. Matrix Orbital sent me a couple of crappers, so I'm learning all I can to see if I can fix them.

I'd definitely like to know how to determine the amount of noise and interference introduced into wiring/soldering. I wonder how much of that would be in this book.

Greg

The Art of Electronics is great, and the book I turn to if I need to do anything involving solder. One thing I particularly like is that it emphasises the feel of particular circuits, rather than relying on calculation to explain their behaviour. It certainly helps one get an intuition of how things work.

Hmm, reminds me - I need to get around to replacing the headlight sense with a little light-metering circuit. The tough bit is making it independent of the supply voltage...

The tough bit is making it independent of the supply voltage...

Easy. Use a solar cell.

pca

FYI, I picked one up from Amazon ... sort of ... I selected buy used, then found a third-party listed through amazon that could get it new from the distributor for about $54, $20 off the cover price.

That third party is a1techbooks.com

They also had the student manual for about $22

greg