I know that starting out in Electronics can be intimidating. There is a lot that you have to understand in order to really get a grasp of electronics. Sure, you can find some schematics, and put them together, but without understanding what resistor to put with a LED, and why you pick that resistor for that LED, then you can’t really do much except for just copy other people’s designs. I decided to find a few links for everyone to go to that will help them understand circuits, and circuit design.
The first site that I go to a lot is allaboutcircuits.com. This is an invaluable resource. This site does a very good job of walking you through all of the steps from the beginning of understanding basic voltage theory to using advanced ICs.
The next site that I found helpful is electronics-tutorials.com. This is a good basics tutorial that defines a lot of the terms used in electronics, such as resistance, and capacitance, and voltage. He starts out with electron theory, and moves from there. I highly suggest anyone starting out in electronics to read this. It is very important to understand these terms.
It is also important to know basic circuit analysis. I have written a very basic post on this. If you know V=IR, then you can do most simple things. When picking a resistor for an LED, it is important to know your voltage source, and the voltage and current requirements for the LED. You then re-arrange this equation for R, which is R=V/I, (Resistance=voltage/current). This is the value of resistor that you would use.
It is also important to know how to read a schematic. All of those symbols can be overwhelming. There is help though. www.kpsec.freeuk.com/symbol.htm is a site that gives a good list of circuit symbols for anyone looking for help. It doesn’t have a resistor symbol, which I found strange, so here is another site with more common components.
Anyway, I hope this is something simple to get most people started. One of the best resources in DIY electronics is the chance to ask others questions. It is much easier to learn from others than by yourself. Come to DIY Live Forums, and feel free to ask any questions you have.
11 Responses to “Electronics Tutorial”
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[...] 4th February 2006 at 12:18 pm DIY Live » DIY Archive » Electronics Tutorial Greg links to a few good sites for anyone interested in learning about electronics. This is great timing since I just had a question yesterday on another post about step by step directions. I know that starting out in Electronics can be intimidating. There is a lot that you have to understand in order to really get a grasp of electronics. Sure, you can find some schematics, and put them together, but without understanding what resistor to put with a LED, and why you pick that resistor for that LED, then you can’t really do much except for just copy other people’s designs. I decided to find a few links for everyone to go to that will help them understand circuits, and circuit design. [...]
IMHO a better version of “Lessions in Electric Circuits” can be found here:
http://www.ibiblio.org/obp/electricCircuits/
It lacks the weird page break choice and formatting, and weird Table of Contents found in the URL posted above - AND! can be found in a number of different formats.
I also found this article about the tools very useful -(although it is focused more around audio) when starting out.
Bah - failed to paste the 2nd link:
http://www.tangentsoft.net/audio/new-diyer.html
FYI. the link to the schematic symbols is bad… Try instead
[...] I know that starting out in Electronics can be intimidating. There is a lot that you have to understand in order to really get a grasp of electronics. Sure, you can find some schematics, and put them together, but…. Link: http://www.diylive.net/index.php/2006/02/04/electronics-tutorial/ [...]
[...] DIY Electronics Tutorial [...]
I have a website: http://www.electriciansparadise.com. It is a site dedicated to the spread of
knowledge and expertise for electricians, with emphasis on electronic technology. If you would
like to trade links, please let me know and I will put your URL on my links page.
Thanks for sharing
I’d prefer reading in my native language, because my knowledge of your languange is no so well. But it was interesting! Look for some my links:
Computer Headset And Microphone: For All Your PC Gaming Needs
Computer games are so realistic that it’s almost as if you are actually in the game. Graphics have truly hit a technological high with every detail intricately revealed.
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