Learning Hardware as a Software Geek?

digitalvengeance asks: "I'm a long-time software geek with very little experience on the hardware side. I've configured servers and built various desktops for friends and family, but I'd like to move to the next level. I assume I need to purchase a breadboard to begin tinkering, but is there a particular kit I will find more useful than others? What books, sites, or other resources can the hardware geeks recommend for a software geek wanting to learn the basics of electronics and hardware?"

Comments

A Book Recommendation

[seanellis]

If you're going to do anything outside of just digital electronics, then I thoroughly recommend "The Art of Electronics" by Paul Horowitz and Winfield Hill, Second Edition. Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-37095-7.

It starts off with the real basics, and has a very readable style and lots of practical advice.

It's pretty expensive (about $50) but well worth it. If I'd had this at University, I would have done a whole lot better in my practical electronics courses.

Lessons in Electric Circuits

[jpmkm]

Here is a great online book that starts with basic electrical principles and works up to semiconductor and digital circuit stuff. It is wonderful.

Next step

[mnmn]

For one, you should know about passive analog electronics. Build an AM radio or something.

Next step, is to go digital. Buy a couple of PIC or AVR microcontrollers and build some simple stuff. You'll get to write assembly code (or even in C) and upload the code to the chip and run it there. The pic can be interfaced with ethernet, audio chips, flash chips, LCD, camera CCD etc. Think of the possibilities.

If the PIC is tough, just use the simplest PIC16F54A initially, or even just use a BASIC stamp. Make a set of blinking lights to begin with, and download the test code first before writing code.

After the 8-bit level, you can buy the powerpc or ARM kits from olimex.com or ebay, and with enough flash, sram and boot code, try to boot netbsd, linux or something similar.

Read Forrest Mimms books, get a ham radio license

[n1ywb]

Ok first of all, Forrest Mimms rules. He wrote those little "Engineer's Mini Notebooks" you used to be able to get at Radio Shack (maybe you still can, I'm not sure), they're small, easy to understand, chock full of GREAT electronics projects, and best of all cheap. Also his amazing book Getting Started in Electronics is probably the best introduction to electronics ever. You can find his stuff on his web site at http://www.forrestmims.com/

Second of all get your ham radio license! Buy a copy of Now You're Talking! from the ARRL and study up! Amateur radio is approximately 50% applied analog and digital electronics, and don't think all that communications theory stuff doesn't apply to computers because it does, RF knowledge is CRITICAL to engineering high speed digital circuits! Get involved with a local ham radio club and start building ham radio kits and projects. Other than working in an electronics lab, it's the best way to get applied electronics experience quickly.

I'm n1ywb and that's my two cents.