Arduino Projects For Dummies

I've completed the projects described in chapter 4-7 without any problems and have learned a lot. I especially appreciate the author's detailed description of the code. I just completed the project described in chapter 8, and I found some minor errors, which for a newbie like me may result in some head-scratching.The schematic diagram on page 161 has an incorrect resistor value for R2 (220 ohm), or at least it's not consistent with the text which says itshould be 33 kohm.In figure 8-6 on page 163, it is difficult to determine the orientation of the relay and the Max IC. Going by this diagram, you should have the notches in both components facing to the left. In the same diagram, it shows the diode with the stripe on the right side. If you examine the schematic (figure 8-4), it appears the stripe of the diode should be closest to pin 2 of the relay, and in fact it does work that way. Long story short, on figure 8-6, orient the diode so the stripe is on the left side.The circuit diagram has you power the Arduino with 12V from a power supply. My Arduino heated up and was eventually unusable when I did this. I'm not sure if I did something wrong, or whether Arduino can tolerate 12V. Maybe someone else can help me with this? I replaced my Arduino and kept the 12V rail for operating the lock, and powered the ARduino with the USB, and it worked fine.The code for this project is missing #include <SPI.h> so you can use the SPI library. Put it in the first line of the code.Finally, I used the lock specifically mentioned in the instructions, item #5192 from SmartHome.com. It's supposed to be 12V DC, but there's a sticker on it that indicates it's 8-16V AC. So I referred back to the description on the SmartHome website, and it describes it as accepting either AC or DC voltage: "Unlike other electric door strikes, which require either AC or DC voltage at a specific rate, the Mortise-Type Electric Door Strike will accept either AC or DC voltage at variable rates." I ran 12V DC straight from my power supply, and it didn't work. I took a peek at the online user manual for the lock, but it wasn't obvious to me what changes to make to allow it accept DV volts. Again, I'm new to this, so maybe there's an obvious solution that I'm missing?Again, all the other projects leading up to this one have gone without a hitch, and I plan to continue with chapter 9. HTH!

About halfway thru and while a majority of the book is instructive, it's using parts that are 7 years out of date (for example the RTC (Real TIme Clock) module used in one example is outdated and looks almost nothing like the one recently ordered). A typo here and there doesn't help either (at least with the typo I could figure out what was meant).

As a new Arduino user, I really liked this book as it gave me some ideas and instructions for projects using the Arduino. Simple step by step progression from the simple to more advanced projects guide you through the process.Like most "Dummies" books, it is full of tips, gotchas, and of course the usual subject relevant cartoons.I found this book very useful in getting up to speed.

My 4 th Adrunio book. This was written very well, the one project on inputting from multiple temperature an light sensors at Sam time, made it worth my time and money.These projects are eye and mind openers that give me enough of a begging that I can create much more complex projects.I have the kindle version as it is always with me in my iPadMay sound expensive for a book, but this is not entertainment, it is real education!4.5 stars.

Nicely presented information I only miss could bring some more middle level experiments. It covers from the very basic to advanced topics.

No problems with vendor or product.

Well worth the money especially if you are new to arduino world like myself. The breakdowns on each project are easy and detailed.

Book written quite well. A bit on the simple side with parts jumping right into the subject. However, I will recommend to others.Thank you very much.

This, like most of the DUMMIES series is a well put together and presented book. It has some very good projects in but you should be aware that you will of course need to buy some extra shields (add on boards) and components otherwise you'll get no where beyond flashing the odd LED or two.At present I am awaiting the arrival of the GPS shield to construct the GPS datalogger project.None of the projects are overly complex involving mostly the linking up of boards via wires on a breadboard along with a few other fairly basic electronic components.Now , as a techky I tend to build on breadboard to test something and then reconstruct it in a stand alone form but, should you wish you can simply box up the entire project on the breadboard and bung it in a box.Overall a very good and interesting book guaranteed to trigger some great ideas of your own.

Some 'Dummies' books are good and others a bit silly. While this one avoids the silly end it does not reach the good end either. I felt it did not really educate, as some of this series do. It needs to give a basic understanding of what you are doing. For instance I would have expected after reading the book to have been able to answer the question:What programming language is used by Arduino?Buy it if you are a beginner and particularly want do one of the projects in the book, otherwise look elsewhere first.

Typical "Dummies" publication.. but users will need at least a basic grasp of programming to best understand what the book is telling you.

Not sure about this, gave it five stars because it shows you how to get going from the start to the end.For a beginner it's great, if you know something about programming and building electronics circuits you could be going over old ground.

I've got a few books for the raspberry Pi and Arduino. This one is by far the most useful as it has a good range of projects and steps you through theme enough that you can then either adapt them or start to make progress with your own ideas. Buy it with an Arduino Uno kit then get soldering!!!