Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by fisherwithac 907 days ago
Just picked up a copy of this, and have had the hands-on course book on my shelf for a little while now.

Really started to start digging into the former! Any tips for getting through such a massive tome, or is it really something you can just run through front to back?

And for the hands-on lab course book, are the parts lists provided still the best way to get the components, or have there been better ways since its publication? Some of the prices of the tools are pretty daunting.
2 comments
atribecalledqst 907 days ago
Non-EE here, but I went through a bit of the lab course as a hobbyist.

Unfortunately a lot of the parts on the lab course's list are end of life now, and it's not always clear what you can substitute them with. There aren't always replacement parts with the exact same specs on digikey. I did source a couple parts through eBay.

Additionally, there are parts that aren't in the BOM that are used in the lab course. An early one has you doing a test against a black box with something inside it, and the book only tells you later what was supposed to be inside it. I think there's a basic control theory chapter at some point, and there are parts in that chapter that weren't in the BOM.

Ultimately, I got frustrated with the book continuing to ask me to use stuff I didn't know I was supposed to have, and gave up. It got annoying having to get partially through a chapter, order something, wait for it to arrive, then continue. Maybe I would have stuck with it if I'd checked up-front what I was expected to have for all the chapters, and got EVERYTHING in advance. (but again I think it's going to get harder and harder to actually buy what's in the BOM as time goes on)

link
ramenbytes 907 days ago
If you can find a ham radio fest or swap meet near you, it's possible to find a lot of different components and equipment cheap, though sometimes in less than ideal condition. Look for surplus departments at local colleges, labs, companies, etc. too. Find out where e-waste goes, and whether you can salvage from it before it gets hauled away. Lots of stuff likely gets thrown out that either still works, can be fixed, or can be used for parts. Downside is you have to plan projects around what you found instead of just buying parts after picking a project.
link