Electronics For Dummies [Paperback]

Gordon McComb (Author), Earl Boysen (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0764576607 | ISBN-13: 978-0764576607 | Publication Date: February 4, 2005 | Edition: 1

Want to hook up your home theater system?

Want to fix it so your garage band rocks the neighborhood?

Want to solder the faulty wire on your old phonograph so you can play those 60s albums you’ve kept all this time?

Whether you’re a do-it-yourselfer , hobbyist, or student , this book will turn you on to real-world electronics. It quickly covers the essentials, and then focuses on the how-to instead of theory. It covers:

• Fundamental concepts such as circuits, schematics, voltage, safety, and more
• Tools of the trade, including multimeters, oscilloscopes, logic probes, and more
• Common electronic components (e.g. resistors, capacitors, transistors)
• Making circuits using breadboards and printed circuit boards
• Microcontrollers (implementation and programming)

Author Gordon McComb has more than a million copies of his books in print, including his bestselling Robot Builder’s Bonanza and VCRs and Camcorders For Dummies. He really connects with readers! With lots of photos and step-by-step explanations, this book will have you connecting electronic components in no time! In fact, it includes fun ideas for great projects you can build in 30 minutes or less. You’ll be amazed! Then you can tackle cool robot projects that will amaze your friends! (The book gives you lots to choose from.)

Students will find this a great reference and supplement to the typical dry, dull textbook. So whether you just want to bone up on electronics or want to get things hooked up, souped up, or fixed up,…whether you’re interested in fixing old electronic equipment, understanding guitar fuzz amps, or tinkering with robots, Electronics For Dummies is your quick connection to the stuff you need to know.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Begin having fun with electronics projects right away

Explore the basic concepts of electronics, build your electronics workbench, and create cool projects

Wish you could fix that faulty doorbell, hook up a motion detector, or maybe build your very own robot? This book will really get you charged up! It won't make you an electrician, but it covers the basics, choosing and using tools, and how to build more than a dozen really cool, inexpensive gizmos. You'll be shocked at how easy it is!

Discover how to

• Master electricity basics
• Fill up your electronics parts bin
• Read circuit schematics
• Test circuits with multimeters
• Design your own printed circuit boards
• Build robots and program their actions

About the Author

Gordon McComb has penned 60 books and over a thousand magazine articles. More than a million copies of his books are in print, in over a dozen languages. For 13 years, Gordon wrote a weekly syndicated newspaper column on personal computers. When not writing about hobby electronics and other fun topics, he serves as a consultant on digital cinema to several notable Hollywood clients.

Earl Boysen is an engineer who, after 20 years in the computer-chip industry, decided to slow down and move to a quiet town in Washington. Earl lives in a house he built with a wonderful lady and finds that he is as busy as ever with teaching, writing, house building, and acting.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 1 edition (February 4, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764576607
• ISBN-13: 978-0764576607
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #319,974 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Been looking for a book like this 10 years!, March 28, 2005

By 

josephb983 (Minnesota, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Electronics For Dummies (Paperback)

Ok, so I've been looking for an electronics book that explains electronics in a way that I can understand. Not in technical terms, but in real understandable terms. Even simple concepts like a resister can become confusing for the beginner, with the way most electronics books are written... let alone tackling a concept like a transistor -- forget it. This book is unlike any other I have looked at or read. It speaks about everything in a way that seems so simple, you wonder "how could this have been complex to me?" I have to say, this author has done an astounding job of taking abstract concepts and making them real, to the point you are confident you have a solid and complete understanding. This book makes no claim to take you to the depths that a comprehensive textbook will (such as The Art of Electronics -- which this book recommends -- read bottom of page 154). However, this book does provide a solid footing, so when you pick up an advanced book, you feel in control. Things make sense. Even the things you thought you understood take on a more solid feel as you reread the sections. For the Electronics Engineering student (me), this book can make appearingly complicated and challenging subjects suddenly simple. For the complete rookie of electronics, this book will get you on your feet in no time.

If you really want to be convinced, I recommend you take full advantage of the "Search inside this book" feature here on Amazon, and search any topic that is daunting to you. This book will make feel at ease. It's so easy to read it is like a novel. I read about two hours straight the first time I picked it up and didn't even notice how long I had been at it. If you are turned off by the Dummies style, and think this book will be silly, think again. The author has written many other books (not in the Dummies series) including a robotics book that is considered a "must-have" for all robotics enthusiasts since the books first publish in 1987. This author has a lot of practical experience, which he shares as he goes along. He is by no means an inexperienced beginner, nor a nerdy scientist, and writes with a style that is appealing to both the technically inclined and the rank first-timer. This style is refreshing, no bs, and provides for pleasant easy reading.

Also worth a note, this Electronics book is brand new and in it's first edition. It is copyrighted 2005 inside the cover. Everything is very very current and up to date. This is no small tome, at 432 pages it includes coverage of practical subjects including how to etch your own boards, microcontroller programming, and many sample projects. And for this price, you can't miss!! This is a great book to accompany a more advanced book, such as The Art of Electronics. This book introduces you to the subject of electronics as a whole -- without making it intimidating. It is unlike any other I have found, and I have looked and looked.

I hope this review helps in your buying decision.

125 of 139 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for hobbyists only, November 22, 2005

By 

calvinnme - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Electronics For Dummies (Paperback)

It is hard for me to totally pan this book, since I believe its main failing is that its title is misleading. It would better target its audience if it was named "Hobbyist Electronics for Dummies" or maybe "Electronic Construction for Dummies". If you are an engineering student, however, you could no more find what you need from this book than a student of computational robotics could find what they need in "10 Cool LEGO Mindstorms Robotics Invention System 2 Projects". If you are a hobbyist or a technician who just needs to know basic electronics safety and circuit construction techniques without needing to know what exactly it is that you are building, this is a very good book for that target audience. The book is well written, well organized and clear. If you are an engineer or an engineering student and you are looking for a reference book on the theory and practice of electronics, instead might I recommend "The Art of Electronics" by Horowitz. It contains tutorials on everything from basic circuit analysis to microprocessors to high-speed and high-frequency techniques. If you are a hobbyist or technician, you might want to check out the excellent "Teach Yourself Electricity and Electronics" by Gibilisco. It will give you an idea of what exactly it is that those components you are soldering together actually do in a very accessible and readable style with no background in advanced mathematics being necessary.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical & Understandable, August 2, 2005

By 

TechToo (White Plains, NY) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Electronics For Dummies (Paperback)

This is the perfect book for gaining an understanding of the basics and the buzz words of today's electronic world. It covers everything from the how and why of electronic components (parts) and circuits (parts connected together to perform a desired result) to symbols, schematic reading, meter and oscilloscope use, tools, and more. Did you know that a choke, coil, and inductor are all the same physical component and why it's referred to with 3 different names? "Electronics for Dummies" is a book less on theory and more on practical. It includes breadboarding, creating projects and printed circuit boards--from 30-minute projects to a basic microcontrolled robot--all clearly explained and easily understood. After finishing this book, you won't be a rocket scientist, but you certainly will have a basic understanding of electronics--enough to gain a confidence for further study or enough to be an informed component in today's world of circuits.