Customer Reviews

Bebop to the Boolean Boogie

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Maxfield's book is unique, both in format and in content. And I'm not just talking about the gumbo recipe at the end.

The first section, almost 150 pages, is "logic lite." It starts with transistors, both MOS and bipolar. From there it works its way up to simple latches and such, and scratches the surface of state machines, with side trips to boolean arithmetic and such. The breezy, informal style will work for people put off by more academic treatments, but the logic design content stops way short of what any other basic logic text would present.

The second, longer section covers material sorely missing from all other logic texts I know. It starts with the simpler parts of silicon fab process, then goes through all kinds of printed circuits and hybrid packages giving a fair tour of the basic printed curcuit (PC) processes that were current when the book was written (1995). It even goes into gutsy stuff like the copper patterns in PC processes that have to do with heat flow during soldering. All those real-world facts earned this book an extra star. The "far out technology" chapter at the end is an interesting read, too, with its discussions of nano, optical, and molecular computing.

The book's weaknesses are significant, though. It would work well with any of several companion texts that would cover what this misses. That includes more advanced logic techniques, like alternatives to gate-level implementation and all the fussy bits of state machines. A standard logic text (e.g. Katz) would fill in those blanks. Going in a different direction, it does only a little towards talking about how PC layout interacts with logic design. More about ground planes, guard rings, power decoupling, RF emissions, etc. would fit well with the detail presented here, espcially when you see how much time and effort it already spends on "vias" vs. "holes." The little bit of analog discussion from the front would help here - why inductive effects matter at high frequencies, why distributed capacitance is different from lumped, why you'd have a high-value and low-value capacitor in parallel, and why that ceramic cap near the power input has a saw cut in the edge. A third possible direction would be the way Wirth's book on circuit design for CS students went: into the higher levels of design, letting tools attend to the lower levels. The biggest flaw is in treating FPGAs as exotic, out-there technology - by 1995, they were well into the main stream, and have very nearly killed off discrete logic and ASICs in many areas.

If you just want a light-weight intro to logic design and to the physical circuits that carry it, this is OK. It could have been better in all directions and, at this 2005 writing, you should check it's sell-by date. I gave it the fourth star for addressing PCs and mounting at all, not for addressing them well.

//wiredweird

I have a MSEE, but I found this book to be far more enlightening and useful than any textbook I ever read in college. It teaches you the real basics of electronics without going into complex mathematical equations and theories. It teaches you in a way that is fun with emphasis on the key points that really matter. If you work in the electronic industry, but are non technical or even if you are technical this is a great book that is easy reading. They should write more books like this.

Maxfield audaciously attempts to cover the fundamentals ofelectronic theory and components from atoms to large scale integrationand beyond. He manages to pull it off brilliantly.

This is a book that anyone interested in the subject can read for pleasure, it is no stuffy textbook, and yet you find that you have received a comprehensive grounding in the subject, almost without realising it.

The authors off-beat style and liberal sprinkling of quirky facts keeps your interest while difficult concepts are presented in a way that makes them easy to understand yet manages to cover them in more than sufficient detail

There is also a pretty good Seafood Gumbo recipe.

The author has a website at http://ro.com/~bebopbb

See also Maxfields new book - Bebop Bytes Back (an unconventional guide to computers) at http://ro.com/~bebopbb/bbytesb.htm

One of the friendliest "textbooks" I've ever encountered, this is a superb introduction to digital logic followed by a description of how that logic is captured in silicon. The many historical sidenotes are fascinating.

The very liberal dosage of diagrams has a hand-drawn feel (no doubt due to the casual font) that makes you feel the author is looking over your shoulder explaining them to you.

A must for anybody curious about digital electronics who hasn't had any training in the area. I'll bet quite a few who know the subject well will also enjoy the book. And if you like this one, the author has followed it by the even better "Bebop Bytes Back" for those who want to understand (really) how computers work.

Some people are content to use their computer and other electronic devices in the same way they use a VCR: simply put in a tape and press "Play," then turn it off and walk away when they're finished. But the more adventurous among us are interested in learning how these machines really work! Bebop to the Boolean Boogie is a fantastic way to discover everything you ever wanted to know about digital electronics, integrated circuits, boolean algebra, and so forth. It is filled with tons of clearly drawn illustrations which are described in detail, in a language that a beginner to electronics can appreciate.

I recently had to take the cover off my VCR to release a video cassette, and there were resistors, capacitors, ICs, and so forth. I wouldn't have been able to identify anything in the open VCR if it hadn't been for Bebop to the Boolean Boogie! I have some electronics books on my reference shelf that I've picked up in the past, like: "Troubleshooting & Repairing PC Drives & Memory Systems" by Bigelow, 1994. But books like that already expect me to know electronics -- Bebop to the Boolean Boogie gives me the foundation needed to read and understand Bigelow's book!

Many authors take a lot for granted as far as what the reader already knows. Bebop books, on the other hand, walk the reader step-by-step through some pretty sophisticated concepts, with just the right amount of humor added, so the subject matter isn't too dry. Yet, they also treat each concept thoroughly. Another thing that other books have a tendancy to do is either talk over my head or insult my intelligence. Bebop to the Boolean Boogie has successfully found the middle ground. Complex concepts are explained clearly, without going over my head, or treating me like a dummy.

The concepts presented in this book are quite sophisticated, so it is surprising to find explanations which are understandable! Get this book if you are not content to merely "play" your computer or other electronic devices. This book is for the curious among us who want to learn how these machines really work!

If only all "techies" could write like this! Clear, comprehensive, funny and genuinely both informative and entertaining. There's even a recipe for Seafood Gumbo! The most fun I've had with anything "electronic" since my Dad and I built a crystal radio together back in 1970. I can highly recommend this book for any literate person wanting to know more about such things as Boolean algebra, numbering systems, Karnaugh Maps, multiplexers etc. "Max" Maxfield's other books - Bebop Bytes Back, and Designus Maximus, are great also.

Clive Maxfield is brilliant and has a great sense of humor. If you don't believe me, ask his mother (he tells us so in the book). As a person who has opted out of math and science since the age of 15, I felt I needed more background to continue on in computer programming. This book has not disappointed me, although for my level, I've used the Web site How Stuff Works.com to explain things as well, and the two complement each other perfectly. But this book is so much more than that. It got me excited about math in a way I wish my school teachers had years ago. It showed me I could understand all of this garbage, if only my teachers had 1/2 the true enjoyment he has! Maybe Mr. Maxfield should help rewrite kids' textbooks and then they'd actually enjoy doing their homework.

Considering this book deals with what I consider to be rocket science at best and black magic at worst I think it does a really good job of explaining things. I'm still working through it and it still makes my head hurt but I recommend this for anyone like me who wants to understand this stuff and has zero background to do so.

This is a great book ranging from the absolute basics of number systems to circuit design, ceramics to alternative and future technologies. It is presented in an entertaining and easy-to-read format that just about anybody can enjoy reading.

This book was exactly what I needed; a review of basic logic circuits and simple explanations on manufacturing processes.