The first of a series of columns for readers who have relatively little knowledge of electronics and would like to know more.

Charles Platt is a contributing editor to Make magazine, which has
published more than 50 of his articles. Several of his books are available
from Make: Books, including:
Make: Electronics, an introductory guide, now available in its third edition.
Make: More Electronics, a sequel that greatly extends the scope of the
first book.
Encyclopedia of Electronic Components, volumes 1, 2, and 3 (the third
written in collaboration with Fredrik Jansson).
Make: Tools, which uses the same teaching techniques as Make:
Electronics to explore and explain the use of workshop tools.
Make: Easy Electronics, a quick, simple, tool-free introduction to electronics.
View more articles by Charles Platt
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