Customer Reviews

Teach Yourself Electricity and Electronics, Fourth Edition

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Just to make this clear, I'm writing this as somebody who does NOT have a degree in Electrical Engineering. I've been trying to get into electronics for years and have tried many different books.

I'll break this review into three sections as I think this book needs three different ratings.

1. 5 stars for teaching basic electronics theory and concepts. The majority of the theory is in the first two sections of the book. After wrestling with "The Art of Electronics" and the 1st edition of "Practical Electronics for Inventors" for years this was the book that finally made sense. The chapters are well paced and the tests are a good way to help think about what you've learned.

2. 3 stars for Section 3. This is an issue because section 3 is where the book starts with diodes, transistors, and electronics circuits. As far as helping us understand electronics, this section is not even near the level of the first two sections of the book. More importantly, the author does not adequately explain the circuits presented.

3. 1 or 2 stars for teaching "Practical" skills. After moving through almost 3 sections of this book, I understand a lot of theory but can't understand what is going in a basic circuit when I look at one. This book is completely lacking in the practical aspect. I assumed all this would be explained in the third section but it isn't.

I think this would be a great first book. You will, however, need other books to learn some practical skills, which is why you wanted to get into electronics in the first place.

This is a great introduction to electronics. If you're just starting out in electronics this book would make a great companion to your texts.

Clear simple explainations actually make it a fun read. You can easily read this one cover to cover.

My background is in electrical/computer engineering (graduated from Purdue Cal in 1996).

I bought this text to help me bone up on electronics as part of my HAM Radio advocation. I did not expect such a complete work. As I said in the title you will use this as a reference for years to come. I feel like I got more than my monies worth!

This book is fairly comprehensive in terms of describing various electronic phenomena and the formulas which govern them. However, it is lacking in explanations of why things are the way they are. For a teach yourself guide there is not enough information to build up a good mental model of how electronic components really work. For example, this book teaches you that in a capacitor current leads the voltage by a 90 degree, but it gives absolutely no reason why this is so. If you want to learn the mathematic side of electronics this book would be a great resource, but if you want to understand how electricity and electronic components work in detail, you will be disappointed.

Thanks very much for giving such a clear vision of how circuits work. I was really lost in my electronic's class. Your explanations of how voltage, resistance, and current interplay was a big help to me.

This one is really good. It starts off assuming you know absolutely nothing about electricity other than you shouldn't stick knives in electrical sockets and ramps you up. Lots of simple, easy to understand diagrams and a layman's explanation make this a book you don't have to be a technogeek to understand. Unlike most college textbook authors, this person WANTS you to understand what they are saying. I really liked the quizzes at the end of each chapter, and the schematic symbol appendix.

There is a bit of a downside (or upside depending on what you are looking for). While the author presents the basic formulas and theory very clearly, with lots of examples, there is not an awful lot of "extra" math or theory. He of course drills on stuff like capacitors in parallel/series, phase diagrams, and power formulas but (for example) in discussing magnetism the author does not tell you about the (force current) hand rules, or which side is north on a coil of wire. This is great if you want to understand magnetism, but not so good if you want to do calculations.

If you want to learn how to wire a house, design a computer, build a motor, or get into short wave radio, this probably isn't the book for you. If you want to thoroughly understand basic concepts, electrical components, and some motor concepts, this is worth looking at. As for me, within 4 hours of getting this book it was my favorite among the 2 dozen electrical books I have.

This book presents difficult topics in an easy-to-understand fashion. Its sparing use of math equations (for instance, the differential equation for inductance is not covered, but its effects are) may be a boon or hindrance, depending on your needs and math skills. Still, I whole heatedly recommend this book to anyone new to electronics, or anyone brushing up on their skills.

I've been very impressed that I have found no spelling or grammatical errors in this book. This author knows the difference between "its", "it's", "you're" and "your" (which if you're a grammar policeman like myself, is a breath of fresh air)

I have read many electrical books,over the years.And this one was a pleasure to work through.The only problem that one might have with the book is that there are no explainations for your answers.So,i would recommend referencing this with other electrical trouble-shooting books.Rea's electronic problem solvers book is a great addendum to explore and inquire over.If your guesstimate assumption is incorrect,it's always comforting to understand why your proposed hypothesis is wrong.Rather than meeting theoretical dead-ends and getting nowhere.I have yet to find the ideal electronics book.This one is still pretty darn good for the sleuthing novice researching advanced electrical uses.

This provides a comprehensive understanding of electronic theory at the high-school or introductory college level. It focuses more on theory then application and reads like a text-book. For this purpose it is good. It is a bit lighter on the practical side, but reading this first will provide a solid background before setting out to try your hand at home projects.

I would highly recommend this for a student considering or seeking a future in electronics or related high-tech fields as it gives a good base of understanding and also a good flavor for what future studies in electronic engineering or design will be like.

I purchased the Kindle version, in an attempt to get into some small electronics projects.

Edit: As Robert mentions in a following comment, this issue with the table of contents has been fixed. It is now a "table", which takes a few clicks to navigate into, but provides usable links to the sections within the book.

This book covers the relevant topics of DC / AC electronics, the major physical components, and the mathematics involved in a straightforward fashion.

That said, this book falls under the issues that almost every other EE book falls into: There are many examples, and explanations of how to do the basic math, but little practical application. Like every other learning electronics books I've seen, it's difficult to make heads or tails of how the things you are learning apply in the real world.