Electronics For Dummies

by Gordon McComb

Electronics is fascinating – want to make something of it? This book shows you how! You can make all sorts of things, once you understand what electronics is and how it works.   This book helps you out with that part, explaining the whole thing in plain English. Learn how electricity functions, how to harness it and put it to work, what tools you need to build circuits, what you can make with them, and how to do it safely. Open the book and

Genres: Science, Reference, Engineering, Nonfiction, Technology, Physics, How To

434 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2005

Reviews

[William Schram · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but it is pretty simplistic. This is understandable and forgivable since it is a book written for laymen or for people that are totally unfamiliar with Electronics. In that vein of thinking, it makes a lot of comparisons between electronic circuits and plumbing or other things of that nature.

I was only interested in the theory portion of the book, so I didn't read all of it, but I got the gist of it. In any case, this book would be great for hobbyists and others that want to build circuits for fun. It might also help to renew some of that old learning with mentions of Kirchoff and Ohm and all those old guys, but don't really count on it. On the one hand, they do explain some of the equations and do provide examples with worked solutions, but on the other hand, they don't really go into any depth with what they talk about. Thus, this book is good, but not really what I was looking for.

[Mohammad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I spent much time looking for the best book to be suitable as an introduction for people who know nothing about electronics, before i found this book.
It is very convenient and practical for beginner inventors and students.
I found much help from this book.

[Nicholas]

explained quite a bit ... pretty sure i've forgotten everything though...

[Luca · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a complete ignorant like me the book was pretty helpful

[Amjad Abdullah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book for beginners. It simplifies things a lot. Although a very beginner won't probably digest all information provided, but one will find many useful info from here and there. I am an electrical engineer and found some useful info in this book. I recommend the book for beginners, intermediates as well as experts (where experts will only need to skim the book for info that they think can be useful just like I did).
This book can be a good companion to Walid Issa series in YouTube: practical electronics course (this is in Arabic though and covers wider topics).

[Ivan Koma · Rating 2 out of 5]

(ПГ) Я хоть и не мастак в электронике, но перепутанные заряды катодов и анодов даже мне бросились в глаза, от этого становится сложно воспринимать дальнейшую информацию, и ведь под опечатку это свести не получается, т.к. здесь есть символы + и -, к сожалению эта ошибка идёт в первой же главе, которую, как известно, полируют тщательнее всего. Я конечно почитал немного дальше, но там возникла уже проблема оборудования как такового, так как книга явно из Северной Америки (используются 120В и 60Гц), все эксперименты, описанные ниже поставлены в неловкое положение...
Если вы в СНГ то лучше поискать русские аналоги

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun to read. I have read about electronics before but, did not remember much about it. I figure its because I don't build electronics everyday. I enjoyed learning about capacitors, diodes, transistors, inductors, I also liked the projects. Though I did not make any of the projects front the book. I cant wait to make them. I wonder what type of electronic device I would design and make. I liked learning about breadboards and multi meters. I also liked the supplier list. So much to like about this book.

[NotHardlyAlice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Da profana posso dire che mi è sembrato un ottimo libro per cominciare a darsi all'hobby dell'elettronica. Abbastanza nozioni per capire la scienza alle spalle (senza esagerare con inutili dettagli) e un buon numero di consigli e spiegazioni pratiche. Può essere tranquillamente letto partendo da qualsiasi parte del libro, è ricco infatti di rimandi a dove trovare approfondimenti agli argomenti desiderati senza costringerti a leggerlo tutto.

[Damjan Pavlica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vanserijski dobra knjiga za početnike koju bih ocenio čistom desetkom! Godinama nisam kapirao osnovne pojmove kao što su struja, napon i slično, ali mi je ova knjiga prilično približila tu tematiku. Svaka čast za autore i hvala!!

[Justin Ritter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was exactly what I was looking for a crowded space of resources.

[Kain · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jakbym trafił na początku studiów, byłbym bardzo zadowolony. Teraz lekkie przypomnienie, ale za lekkie już. Ale generalnie idea spoko i przystępne tłumaczenia.

[Chris Warren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great basic guide for those that want to know more.

[Gabe Kessler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing book. It was worth every dollar I spent on it. The early chapters going part by part was absolutely needed for me to improve as a engineer.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for dipping your toes in the world of Electronics

[William-Henri Turgeon-Dupuis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aucune suggestion de projet, mais améliore la compréhension de l'électronique

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this author to be a good teacher who explained things clearly. The full-color photographs were very helpful. We're told how to set up temporary circuits as a way to demonstrate and better understand how each new concept or part works. The photos clearly show how each circuit should be set up (along with text instructions and a schematic). When a new component is introduced, we're told how it works in easier to understand ways (like water flowing through a pipe which...) and also what everyday things it's used in. This helped me to remember the information. We're given the formulas to calculate the information needed to create our own circuits. The math is demonstrated for each situation so you understand how to do it (if you're not confident with math).

To do all the projects in the book, it'll cost between $100 to $250 total depending on how serious you intend to get. You might already own some of the tools. You initially work with temporary circuits using a solderless breadboard. Near the end, we're told how to solder and create permanent circuit boards, then we're told how to put together several projects that use the information we've learned. However, they aren't encased "finished" projects even if they work.

Overall, I'd recommend this book to those who want to better understand the electronics all around us and to those who want to make it into a hobby.

I received this review copy from the publisher through Amazon Vine.

[Muthu Arumugam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't believe it when I read this second time this 2015 beginning. I realized it only after I went past 2 chapters and several of them came back slowly. I even remember buying a breadboard or a small electronics kit. Looks like I have to fix my memory to keep the fundamentals to stay with my brain.

[Josh Dalzell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book. It is definitely light on theory and detail, but it covers everything well enough to know what is going on, for the most part. I also liked that it included a number of website addresses for reference.

[Grania · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm reading this for work. I suspect it shall stay on my currently-reading list for a long time. I might just cheat and read the final chapter, then pretend I know how to wire a plug.

[Elise · Rating 1 out of 5]

too basic.

[Cloay]

Available in SG NLB 621.381(MP

[Oscar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book for if you need to learn how to weild electronics or anything else

[محمد خير · Rating 5 out of 5]

بالنسبة لهي السلسلة مش غالية . 20$ النسخة

. افضل طريقة لقراءة كتاب دارات برأيي انو يكون عندك نسختين . وحدةالكترونية ووحد ورقية .

[Tomas Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loads of useful information on basics of electronic components!

[Tulio Freitas]

Vale muito a pena tanto para quem não conhece nada como para quem já conhece suas teorias e quer reafirmar seus conhecimentos em eletrônica de um ponto de vista mais práticos.

[Jean Márcio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Um excelente livro para verdadeiros iniciantes inicia o estudo da eletrônica de forma muito suave e bem explicada.

[Suada]

to re-read1!!!

[gabo]

excelente introducción al mundo de los sintetizadores.