Understanding Basic Electronics

by Walter Banzhaf

Experiment with Electronic Circuits! Whether you’re new to amateur radio and electronics, or already experimenting and looking for a deeper understanding of basic electronic principles, this book will take you there.  Understanding Basic Electronics  presents principles of electricity and electronics in small modules with real-world examples and clear illustrations. Small projects are included. Set one up on your kitchen table and see your new-found knowledge in action as the experiments bring abstract concepts to life. Featured
Electronics  – Learn terminology and the building blocksof analog and digital circuits.
AC Circuit Concepts  – Discover alternating currents, frequency, transformers, impedance, and resonant circuits.
Techniques and Tips  – Learn how to use a scientific calculator, common schematic symbols, and how to solve circuit problems, with examples to help you learn the basics.
DC Electrical Concepts  – Understand how conductors, insulators, and resistors control electricity. Look for these other popular ARRL
Basic Antennas – Understanding Practical Antennas and Design
Basic Radio – Understanding the Key Building Blocks

Genres: Technology, Nonfiction

387 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2010

Reviews

[William Schram · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Understanding Basic Electronics" is an introductory book on electronics published by the ARRL. When I say introductory, I mean this book assumes you live in a cave. It isn't terrible, but it does take a while to get into useful information.

The book opens by talking about what an electronic device is and how electronics have helped us out. Depending on your level of skill and experience, you could skip some parts of this book. The end of each chapter contains a little exam to test your knowledge. The first few quizzes are jokes or include joke answers.

However, once the book gets through the introduction parts, it becomes useful. It gives tips for using a pocket calculator, how to solve problems using Ohm's Law and the Kirchhoff Laws, and how to read schematics. Eventually, it covers Alternating Current along with Direct Current.

[Marko · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to electronics. It starts with properties of electricity and moves onto how common components interact with electricity. Although it covers things at an atomic level and goes over various formulas, it's not challenging to understand because it stays at a basic level and takes things one step at a time. There are a few hands-on exercises you can try, but most exercises involve analyzing simple circuit diagrams. This is best read by a complete beginner.

[R Pushpa]

best

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. Years ago I took an electrical (analog) circuits class in college. I didn't pay as much attention to it as I could have, since I was more interested in digital logic at the time. Lately, though, I've been wanting to tinker a bit more with circuits, including analog.

This book did a great job of giving me the refreshers I needed. It covers the basics by focusing on components: first resistors, then capacitors and inductors. Direct current is discussed first, with good alternating current explanations following in their own section. The book then continues with diodes, transistors (BJTs and FETs) and a high-level overview of integrated circuits.

From the perspective of someone who has already been exposed to this before, it was nearly perfect as a conceptual refresher. The discussions stay fairly high-level, but provide enough equations to allow for concrete explanations. Primarily, the computations seem focused on helping readers to understand how not to burn out the components in their circuits by selecting appropriate parts.

If this is your first introduction to electronics, it may seem a bit daunting. It will provide a good deal of background for understanding circuits, but doesn't go into any real depth on developing actual circuits. It's focus is more on helping you to understand circuits that someone else made, rather than on helping you create circuits of your own.

For me, though, this was very nearly perfect. It kept me interested and taught me quite a bit. (And, they should get extra points for providing an appendix section in the back discussing vacuum tubes for those of us who are simply curious.)

[H.P]

A thorough introduction to electronic basics, this book is intelligible, readable, and easy to process. Do not be fooled by the packaging: this subject cannot be taught without math, and there is plenty of it. Fortunately, the author has done a good job of minimizing the amount of math required to learn the subject.

This book is an invaluable resource for anyone looking to push to the Amateur Extra license class, but for those who just want a more General understanding of radio theory, the subsequent two books are better suited ("understanding basic radio" and "basic antennas" respectively).

[Simple]

ok

[Cavid Tagiyev]

I want read