Getting Started with Arduino (Make: Projects) |  | Author: Massimo Banzi
Publisher: Make
Category: Book
List Price: $12.99
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Seller: BooKnackrh
Rating:  38 reviews
Sales Rank: 9905
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 128
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.6
ISBN: 0596155514
Dewey Decimal Number: 005.133
EAN: 9780596155513
ASIN: 0596155514
Publication Date: October 15, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
Getting Started with Arduino, authored by Arduino co-founder Massimo Banzi, offers a brief, fun, and lucid overview of Arduino that will appeal to lots of people who've been wanting to get into physical computing and want a way in. This handy little guide should be just the ticket. To work with the introductory examples in this book, all you need is a USB Arduino, USB A-B cable, and an LED. The Arduino Platform
Arduino is composed of two major parts: the Arduino board, which is the piece of hardware you work on when you build your objects; and the Arduino IDE, the piece of software you run on your computer. You use the IDE to create a sketch (a little computer program) that you upload to the Arduino board. The sketch tells the board what to do.
Not too long ago, working on hardware meant building circuits from scratch, using hundreds of different components with strange names like resistor, capacitor, inductor, transistor, and so on.
Every circuit was “wired” to do one specific application, and making changes required you to cut wires, solder connections, and more.
With the appearance of digital technologies and microprocessors, these functions, which were once implemented with wires, were replaced by software programs.
Software is easier to modify than hardware. With a few keypresses, you can radically change the logic of a device and try two or three versions in the same amount of time that it would take you to solder a couple of resistors.
The Arduino Hardware
The Arduino board is a small microcontroller board, which is a small circuit (the board) that contains a whole computer on a small chip (the microcontroller). This computer is at least a thousand times less powerful than the MacBook I’m using to write this, but it’s a lot cheaper and very useful to build interesting devices. Look at the Arduino board: you’ll see a black chip with 28 “legs”—that chip is the ATmega168, the heart of your board.
We (the Arduino team) have placed on this board all the components that are required for this microcontroller to work properly and to communicate with your computer. There are many versions of this board; the one we’ll use throughout this book is the Arduino Duemilanove, which is the simplest one to use and the best one for learning on. However, these instructions apply to earlier versions of the board, including the more recent Arduino Diecimila and the older Arduino NG. The figure on the left below shows the Arduino Duemilanove; The figure on the right shows the Arduino NG.
Product Description
This valuable little book offers a thorough introduction to the open-source electronics prototyping platform that's taking the design and hobbyist world by storm. Getting Started with Arduino gives you lots of ideas for Arduino projects and helps you get going on them right away. From getting organized to putting the final touches on your prototype, all the information you need is right in the book.
Inside, you'll learn about:
- Interaction design and physical computing
- The Arduino hardware and software development environment
- Basics of electricity and electronics
- Prototyping on a solderless breadboard
- Drawing a schematic diagram
And more. With inexpensive hardware and open-source software components that you can download free, getting started with Arduino is a snap. To use the introductory examples in this book, all you need is a USB Arduino, USB A-B cable, and an LED.
Join the tens of thousands of hobbyists who have discovered this incredible (and educational) platform. Written by the co-founder of the Arduino project, with illustrations by Elisa Canducci, Getting Started with Arduino gets you in on the fun! This 128-page book is a greatly expanded follow-up to the author's original short PDF that's available on the Arduino website.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 38
 Great, but be ready to buy some more parts! June 24, 2009
Professional Nerd
21 out of 21 found this review helpful
While some reviewers decry the intro "fluff" chapters and the simplicity of some of the projects, by the end of this short book, you will have been exposed to many of the capabilities of the Arduino microcontroller. I found the book's projects to be very informative and fun. One warning to buyers: You will need to buy a few more electronic parts to take full advantage of this book and it's projects. Here's what you should get:
1. 5-10 x 10K-Ohm resistors
2. 1 x Momentary push button switch (4 pin), compatible with a breadboard
3. 5 x LEDs of differing colors (most will work with the 3-5V output of the Arduino).
4. 1 x MOSFET or 1 x 5V actuated relay (this is to turn on/off motors)
5. 1 x solder-less breadboard
6. 1 x jumper wire kit (various lengths and colors of short wires)
7. 1 x LDR (light dependent resistor)
8. 1 x 9V (or similar magnitude) battery case with leads for a breadboard
9. 1 x small motor (5-9V).
It seems like quite a bit, but if you get and use these parts with the projects, you will learn how to use sensors to take in data from the environment, have the Arduino process it, and then drive a response (in the form of lighting LEDs, turning on motors, etc.). Fortunately, the Arduino itself is USB-powered, so the other power sources (i.e. the battery case) will only be needed to run things like the motor.
High Praise For Brief Artistic Introduction to The Arduino November 12, 2008
Ira Laefsky (Philadelphia, PA)
11 out of 12 found this review helpful
I cannot offer high enough praise for this brief, artistic introduction to the Arduino Microcontroller and its enthusiastic user community. In this 118 page handbook, easily stored with your electronics tools, the author a co-designer of the Arduino controller, provides everything needed for the non-technical DIYer to program, test and build simple electronic projects with the Arduino board. In addition to Massimo Banzi's clear and informal writing about experimenting with electronics, software, and even descriptions of how to get answers from the open source community online, this pamphlet contains clear but artistic illustrations of the equipment used and ancillary tools by Elisa Canducci. It is an excellent introduction for the Artist, Teacher, DIYer, Electronics Hobbyists and Software People who are afraid to assemble physical electronics. I only wish there was more content along the lines of this book--but then it wouldn't fit in your toolkit or be available for $12.99.
--Ira Laefsky
Neat little book. January 17, 2009
J. Kearney
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
As mentioned, the material in this book is also available online, but it isn't really geared toward a technical person. The purpose of this book is to spark creativity in creative people who wouldn't think of what to do with a microcontroller. It's aimed at people who don't have a lot of experience with electronics and are considering making their art projects a bit more interactive. It has a few little examples in it. Not exhaustive by any means, but still a good primer. I would read this book and pass it on to those who may be on the fence about microcontrollers.
An easy to use primer January 22, 2009
Nathaniel D. Buckner (Chicago, IL)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
First, this is a primer. As a primer, this is one of the best primers I have ever used. The primer covers the coding and the hardware features of the Arduino platform quite well and the examples and circuit diagrams in the booklet are clear, concise, easy to build, and use. The author even tells you where to get any of the electronic components that you might need for prototyping and experimenting.
If you are buying, using or curious about the Arduino prototyping platform, you should definitely pick this up, it will save you a lot of time.
Best book for getting started with an Arduino! February 9, 2009
Jaypoc (Long Island, NY USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
If you're new to electronic circuits and micro controller programming, this book is a great introduction. It walks you through step by step creating basic circuits and programming the Arduino to activate LED's, accept input from various buttons and sensors, and even interact with data from the computer. It's a must read for any beginner!
Showing reviews 1-5 of 38
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