The Art of Electronics by Paul Horowitz, Winfield Hill Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Art of Electronics
Book Review: Good as a reference, abyssmal as a textbook
Summary: 2 Stars
I pity the students who have to actually learn elecronics from this textbook. The text "assumes you have no prior knowledge of electronics" while "trying to keep the math to a minimum". Although the theory behind this is to create an intuitive understanding of circuit behavior, in practice it fails abyssmally if you are a beginner with little to no understanding of electronics. Here is an overview of the first chapter:
-Omh's law is introduced in the second section, but the first example is not until the third section (voltage dividors). At this point the author expects you to be able to find the voltage and current in any part of any circuit, however complicated, consisting of batteries and resistors. Many readers at this point will not even understand that voltage is measured "across" two points whereas current is measured "through" two points.
-The next section (section 4 if you are keeping track) explains voltage and current sources. Although the author does not give any examples of current sources, he is gracious enough to mention that a battery is a voltage source (most readers can figure this out on their own since batteries are classified by their voltages).
-Section five (this is still the first chapter) is on Thevenin's theorem. A short list of formulas is followed by an example which is not worked out along with its resultant diagram. If you can understand Thevenin's theorem from this section then you really don't belong in an introductory electronics course. If you are like most students, your professor would likely have assigned problems of their own creation that you have no clue how to complete (did I mention that this textbook has almost no exercises to work?).
-The rest of the chapter deals with topics such as Zener diodes, signal waveforms, differentiator circuits, and rectifiers. This is far too advanced for the student who barely understands Kirchoff's Laws (which are given a few paragraphs on page 3).
The problem with this book is that the author cannot bring himself down to a level where neophytes can grasp what he is trying to explain. The lack of examples and exercises reminds the reader of a professor who simply likes to hear himself talk and doesn't care that his students are lost and confused. (This reminds me of another book, "Introduction to Electrodynamics" by Griffiths, which I despise for the same reason).
My electronics professor took one look at this book (which was required for my course) and has never picked it up again. He highly recommended "Circuits, Devices, and Systems" by Smith and Dorf.
I give this book two stars because, as a reference book for an experienced electrical engineer, it is filled with very good information, diagrams, and charts. As a textbook I could not dislike it more.
Book Review: Book Purchase
Summary: 5 Stars
Item price and delivery were excellent.Book Review: Generally Impressive and Useful; Highly Recommend
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an impressive and detailed book 1100 pages of electronics circuits, diagram, and tips. If you started at the beginning and worked your way through chapter by chapter it would be similar to taking a complete course on electronics. It has 15 chapters plus a large appendix.
For example the early chapters are basic introductions that quickly graduate to transistors and circuits progressing through to switches and linear circuits. By chapter 5 they proceed to filters then on to power supplies and regulators, and special amplifiers and shielding. Then they make a transition to digital circuits midway through the book, then again using that as a basis to make the next step to microcomputers by chapter 10. That continues to chapter 13 where the subject turns to RF and microwaves. The book ends with examples of measurement. So all in all it is a step by step review from simple voltage sources through computers to RF with many examples. It is all easy to read and quite clear. The book is not designed for a novice but probably better someone in the field and needs a refresher or one excellent reference source.
Having graduated EE more than a few years ago I need a quick reference in the office where I can refresh my memory or design something new, or see what if any new developments are available.
To make a long story short, as a user I do use the book but as a reference. When you first get the book do a quick read to get a general understanding and then go back to the book as required. The book is an excellent addition to any technical reference library. It is worth the cost, no brainer.
Four or five stars.
Industrial user.
Book Review: Art of Electronics - the bible
Summary: 5 Stars
This is THE BIBLE for electronics
If you only buy one textbook, this is the one.
It has taken me years to buy it (I kept borrowing other peoples) but finaly got my own copy.
Note to no US readers: many of the circuits assume 60Hz mains and use it for timing etc. but all the math is there to support.
Book Review: Book of many uses
Summary: 5 Stars
I have used this book in the book stores while pursuing my BSEE. Now I am finishing my Junior year and finally decided to purchase the set. So far this semester, I have used this book as a reference for Digitals, Linear circuits, RF, signals and systems and much more. It is truly amazing how much this book covers. I am a TA in an electronics lab and am using this as the reference for test equipment procedures since my school doesn't have one. As a retired signal and radar technician from the Army I am happy to have found a resource that says it all.