Electronics people here?

[jimmy101]

I took apart toys, and learned simple audio/lighting/motor circuits

This is the best way in my eyes.
Take apsrt things you've always wondered how they work. Look at the actions and figure out the functions of each individual piece of the puzzle.
Just make sure you have good practice putting them back together again!

That works great for mechanical devices. It won't teach you anything about electronics, except the most rudamentary things like battery to switch to light bulb. Doesn't matter how much you dissasemble the flash unit from a disposable camera you won't get any understanding of how the electronics work. To learn electronics you really need to build stuff, explode a transistor or LED or two, zap yourself a couple times, ...

[VH_man]

id say, first:

figure out what all the basic components do

(resistors, transistors (NPN and PNP), Capacitors, Diodes, transformers)

EVERYTHING in electronics is constructed out of those basic components

then figure out how to make basic circuits:

(comparator, Occilator(sp) (all wave types), Amplifier, Inverter)

after that combine them all. this is how i learned.

[jimmy101]

id say, first:

figure out what all the basic components do

(resistors, transistors (NPN and PNP), Capacitors, Diodes, transformers)

EVERYTHING in electronics is constructed out of those basic components

But with those five basic components you can't actually build anything that does something.

You need at least one EMF source.

[mark.f]

If you're in school, what grade are you in?

I learned most of everything I knew about electronics in Physics my Senior year. I don't know too much about it, but I at least now have a rudimentary understanding of electrical current. For instance, I believe it was sometime earlier last year I posted a "circuit diagram" for wiring a LED up to a chamber fan, with everything in series. Physics will teach you a lot.

[scianiac]

These two have everything I found in a big book I bought about electronics http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/vol_1/index.html
http://openbookproject.net//electricCircuits/index.htm
This one has lots of diagrams for circuits http://www.uoguelph.ca/~antoon/circ/circuits.htm

[VH_man]

@ jimmy...

i dont even know what an EMF source is........ unless its Electromagnetic Frequency Source, wich is something i never completely grasped the concept of.......

[TurboSuper]

I think Jimmy's implying that you'd need EMF to induce a voltage in the circuit, RFID style. He's being cheeky because a source wasn't on the list of "basic" components.

My take, anyways.

[sandman]

EMF source could be a light, as none of the components emit light (LED doesnt count as a normal diode in this case)

[joestue]

"You need at least one EMF source."
Electromotive Force

A battery, transformer and 4 diodes, a solar cell, alternator, etc.

[TurboSuper]

Ah, good point. Well, I was partially right at least 8)

[jimmy101]

Some foks figured it out...

EMF=Electromotive force, "something that makes the current flow", basically a battery, wall outlet (which is connected to a big-ass generator somwhere) ...

All circuits require an EMF.