This is part one of a series of me describing my new experiences with electronics.

Introduction ¶

I’ve never really been interested in electronics (i.e. circuits, microcontrollers etc). Sure, I understand, on a basic level, how most of the gadgets and computers that I own work, but I wouldn’t be able to build anything myself or explain what e.g. a diode is used for.

The closest I ever got to working with electronics was owning a kit for children, consisting of a couple transistors, resistors, capacitors and LEDs. My interest didn’t last long though, especially because I cooked one of the transistors early on, rendering me unable to build most of the circuits from the manual.

Being a geek, however, I am always interested in acquiring new skills that somehow relate to computers and electronics are just a logical extension (or rather simplification) of computers. Furthermore I found the following reasons to learn more about electronics:

• Parts of it might be considered common knowledge among my circles
• It might be a nice skillset for my CV, especially the microcontroller aspect
• My studies at university will require me to work with microcontrollers, anyway
• I heard it is supposed to be a fun experience!

So what am I going to do now? I’ll look for an affordable microcontroller and components needed for basic circuits and go from there. More on that in my next articles.