Code

Another Unicorn found.

Back in the 1980s, when you wanted to learn about computers and electronics as a hobbyist you visited your local Radio Shack to buy the different titles in the Sams/TI Understanding series, such as these two:

There were several books published in the series, and along with the Forrest Mims books you could put together a decent hacking library, and I mean hacking in the traditional MIT/hobbyist sense, not the cybersecurity sense. This book series has long since been discontinued, although you can find them used at nerd/geek swap meets, or buy them online.

I’ve been trying to find modern equivalents to the Understanding series for the past few years. Most tech books are more project oriented, or college level texts. Forrest Mims’ Getting Started In Electronics is still in print, along with his Enginneer’s Mini Notebooks. For aspiring chemists there is Dunn’s Caveman Chemistry.

This morning for Festhanukwanzayulemastivus (truly a day just like any other) my wife gave me this book:

I’ve only just started reading it, but after a quick look through this so far has come closest to a modern version of the old-school Understanding series for learning about computers. Will it teach you how to program? No, but it teaches you how things work which is more important.