Electronics For Kids For Dummies - Shamieh Cathleen

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icon alerts you to important ideas or facts that you should keep in mind while building your electronics projects.

      When you build electronic circuits, you’re bound to run into situations that call for extreme caution. The warning icon reminds you to take extra precautions to avoid personal injury or prevent damage to your components or circuits.

      This icon marks text that tells you technical details about the project you’re building. If you choose to skip this information, that’s okay – you can still follow along and build the project just fine.

Beyond the Book

      In addition to the content in this book, you’ll find some extra content available at the www.dummies.com website:

      ✓ The Cheat Sheet for this book at www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/electronicsfk.

      ✓ Online materials covering additional topics are at www.dummies.com/extras/electronicsfk.

      ✓ Updates to this book, if any, at www.dummies.com/extras/electronicsfk.

Where to Go from Here

      As a project-based book, Electronics For Kids For Dummies is designed to allow you to choose what you want to work on when you want to work on it. You can build each project in order or skip ahead to a project that especially interests you. If specific information about, say, how to attach wires to a speaker appears in an earlier project, you’ll find a reference to that earlier information in all later projects that use a speaker.

      Even if you choose to jump into a later project first, you’d be wise to read Project 1 before you get started. Buying electronic components isn’t like buying a laptop or a TV: You can’t just walk into your neighborhood electronics store and pick up a few transistors and other parts. Project 1 lists everything you need to build the projects in the book and guides you through the shopping process to ensure that it’s as easy, quick, and inexpensive as possible.

      If you’re new to electronics or have never built a circuit on a solderless breadboard, I recommend you read through Projects 2 and 3 before tackling the other projects. However, because each project walks you through the building steps in great detail, you don’t have to master your breadboard to successfully build any of the projects in this book.

      I hope you’re as excited about electronics as I am. Have fun building the projects in this book!

      Part I

      Discover Basic Circuits

      In this part, you’ll build

      Your stash of electronics parts and tools

      An LED flashlight

      Series and parallel circuits on a solderless breadboard

      For Dummies can get you started with lots of subjects. Visit www.dummies.com to learn more.

Project 1

      Go Shopping

      To build the projects in this book, you need to buy a bunch of electronic components (including resistors, capacitors, diodes, LEDs, transistors, and integrated circuits), accessories (such as alligator clips and wires), tools (such as wire strippers), and other supplies.

Plan Your Shopping Spree

      I wish I could name a store in a shopping mall close to your house where you could just walk in, pick out all the parts you need, plunk down about $100, and go home and start building projects. Unfortunately, there is no such store (even RadioShack stores no longer carry a wide variety of electronic components).

      So, you will need to order many of your supplies online, which means you have to plan to allow time for shipping. The good news is that you can save a lot of money by shopping online, and you can get most of the components you need in just one online trip (with an adult’s assistance or, at least, an adult’s credit card). You may still need to go to a couple of local stores to pick up some tools and other supplies.

      Here are some recommended suppliers:

      ✓ Tayda Electronics: With warehouses in Colorado (US) and Bangkok (Thailand), Tayda ships worldwide. Allow 1–4 weeks for delivery, depending on where you live. The website, www.taydaelectronics.com, is easy to use. One visit to Tayda and you can order every electronic component and some of the accessories you need at reasonable prices (many for just pennies). I’ve provided Tayda part numbers for many of the components you need in the next section.

      ✓ Fry’s Electronics: Between its stores (in several US states) and website (www.frys.com), Fry’s stocks many of the electronic components and accessories you need. Fry’s ships worldwide.

      ✓ Farnell element14: Start at www.farnell.com and select your country for the Farnell element14 company in your region. (The US company is branded Newark.) You’ll find all the electronic components and many accessories you need. The website is geared toward industrial customers, so be prepared for highly technical product descriptions.

      ✓ RadioShack: RadioShack’s online (www.radioshack.com) and in-store stock of electronic components seems to be dwindling, but if you really need a certain component right away, and your local store (US only) has it, it’s worth the trip. Expect to pay significantly more at RadioShack than at other online suppliers.

      You can also find most (or all) of the components, accessories, tools, and supplies you need on www.amazon.com or www.ebay.com. However, the product information is often spotty, so be sure you know exactly what you’re ordering and be aware of shipping prices and delivery time frames.

Budget

      If you’re a smart shopper and order online, you can purchase all the electronic components and accessories you need for roughly $70 plus tax and shipping. (Of that $70, $20 is for two parts you need for Project 14, one of which is optional.) You may spend about another $30 (plus tax) on tools at local stores, if your family doesn’t already have what you need. If you buy a lot of your components and supplies in a RadioShack store, budget another $25 or so.

Electronic Components and Accessories

This section provides a comprehensive list of the electronic components and related parts you need to complete the projects in this book. In the list that follows, I sometimes specify a product code (identified by #) and price (as of this writing, in January 2016) to give you an idea of what to look for and roughly how much you should expect to pay. Here’s your shopping list of electronic parts, most of which are shown in Figure 1-1:

      ✓ Batteries and accessories:

      • One (minimum) fresh 9-volt disposable (not rechargeable) alkaline battery ($2.50–$5.00).

      • One 9-volt battery clip (sometimes called a snap connector). Tayda Electronics

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