how about when Arduino dies, a bad cap or some SMT device cracked, would the user know anything about how to fix it? likely not.
the component stores were components, etc. that's why they were great.
programmers didnt really go to a components store, because for most of those stores, things like Arduino were not available.

and its not just about ckt board components, a good selection of switches, relays, fuses were great for automotive folks, etc. even that has gone for the most part.

 

Hi,

We had a Radio Shack in our town close up recently.
One in a mall about 7 miles east of here closed up recently too.

We have one in another mall about 5 miles south of here, and i went there some months ago and got a meter and some test leads, but have not been there since so i dont know if it is still open. While i was there i talked to the manager and he told me they still sell to Rutgers for learning projects they do over there, which is not very far from the RS (maybe about another 5 miles). He also said they sell batteries to hotels for there remote controls for their TV sets. So they still have significant sales. Dont know how long it will last though.
I dont go over that way much so i probably wont be able to check if they are still open too soon from now, unless i have a day when i can take a ride over there.

 

how about when Arduino dies, a bad cap or some SMT device cracked, would the user know anything about how to fix it? likely not.

You throw it away and buy a new one because you have no way of testing to see if something else failed.

I think I know enough to be able to repair a TV, but if I had one fail, I'd be more inclined to buy a new one and save myself the effort and frustration of trying to find schematics and parts.

 

You throw it away and buy a new one because you have no way of testing to see if something else failed.

I think I know enough to be able to repair a TV, but if I had one fail, I'd be more inclined to buy a new one and save myself the effort and frustration of trying to find schematics and parts.

which does not lend to learning how the things work, which is why we are on such a decline in the knowledge of components. IC's are what they are, but to know how they are made from a high level is still a component thing. its good to learn using discrete components and a breadboard, heck, i still have a ckt sitting on my breadboard waiting for me to make a PC board out of it.

back in the day, i had to make a ckt on breadboad for class, had to get all the components to make it, RadioShack was my goto store, it was a few $$ for the parts. cant really do that any more, kids in schools should be doing this in junior high.

also, programmers are limited to what a device like Arduino can do, making ckts is somewhat unlimited.

 

I might be missing something here but every arduino project I've done has some external circuitry. I agree that we have long time ago reached the era of plug and play. But programming an arduino and not having to bother with at least some external circuit...

 

I used to have four Radio Shack stores within a five mile drive from my house, now the nearest one is maybe 20 miles away, making web orders far more desirable ever for some immediate need.

We do have a Microcenter that does sell components, though from the haphazard stocking this may soon end.

RadioShack, as we knew it, will be gone forever.

I have a electronics store near me, but its mostly surplus stuff, but still fairly good. I recall Active electronics on LI NY, and others. For some stuff my local store is ok, but I find myself ordering from online places, including Digikey, Mouser, Newark, Allied, Jameco, etc.

I really like local electronics stores. An era has come & gone.

It really shows how the lack of sciences/electronics in our educational systems is impacting society.

For thos not in US, what electronics stores do you have? Are they diminishing?

Are you still on Lon Guyland? I am, what is this surplus store?

 

its interesting about Arduino comment. the Arduino is only a item where you can park some programming code.

the days of how to engineer and make the Arduino are dwindling, i dont think many schools have electronics classes that teach the fundamentals of electronic components. Arduino users have no clue how caps or inductors or diodes work, BJT vs fet, or the properties of the ground plane on a circuit board.

On the other hand, Arduino projects can be a gateway to learning more about discrete electronics.

My first Arduino project (also my first electronics project ever, and my first programming attempt after a roughly 20 year break) had a 4x20 LCD display, two thermocouple inputs, 6 buttons, a few relays, and an SD card slot for data logging. If it weren't for the accessibility of the Arduino ecosystem, I never in a million years would've attempted it. As it is, having a comparatively easy MCU to build on, along with libraries of code to kick start my coding got me moving. I still had to learn about debouncing switches, fly back diodes, differential amplifiers, and all sorts of other stuff to complete the project, so I learned a LOT about building circuits along the way, and it gave me the confidence to try more projects, digging deeper each time. If not for Arduino, I might not have ever started working with electronics.

So, while it's true that you can get a lot more done with a lot less knowledge in the Arduino world, I think it's also true that it can be a great teaching tool. I mean, you've gotta start somewhere, right?

 

I have found the Arduinos a great teaching aid in the electronics course I run.
As ebeowulf17 says above, they are a great platform to build on to make a real application and that takes learning about electronics as well as programming. I don't understand why so many people put Arduinos down as they are a wonderful component of a system that would have been impossible for most people to build not that long ago.
When I first started my electronics life, about 50 years ago (wow, it has been a long time!) there was nothing like this even imagined and transistors were very new and rare. Now we still have the option of building stuff like back then but also a huge amount more. One of my students is just starting in electronics and he is building a fish "powered" hydroponics system based around an Arduino or two. To do this he is learning basic electronics and one of his first projects in a variable power supply. Just today another of my students has finished a 3Amp 1V to 14V reg in a tiny di-cast box and with a digital volt meter in front. It all runs on a laptop 19V plugpack. The total cost, not including the plug pack will be under $20 as parts are so cheap now.

My first attempt at a power supply was using an 80 tube and gave 300VDC for a valve amp. Then my first transistor one used an AC216 ?? and 2N301 transistor. I think these numbers are correct, but it was a long time ago. The power supply was a linear reg from about 6V to 15V with no protection, and I used that for many years until the magic smoke escaped! It was great fun back then but it still is! The scope of what one can build is almost endless now.

 

Are you still on Lon Guyland? I am, what is this surplus store?

nope, moved west (not CA) ~10yrs ago. i have a surplus store near me, but its very expensive.

 

I might be missing something here but every arduino project I've done has some external circuitry. I agree that we have long time ago reached the era of plug and play. But programming an arduino and not having to bother with at least some external circuit...

so dont you reiterate the need for components, and that arduino is just a programming tool?

can you make a 20kHz tank ckt with arduino alone?

 

so dont you reiterate the need for components, and that arduino is just a programming tool?

can you make a 20kHz tank ckt with arduino alone?

Sorry rereading my comment I can see how it can be taken in more than one way What I meant is that even though we have microcontrollers today the need for understanding components and the fundamentals haven't gone away. I mean an Arduino doesn't do much on it's own.

It has however made many noobs in this day and age think that electronics are more of plug and play than it is though...

 

It has however made many noobs in this day and age think that electronics are more of plug and play than it is though...

They stand on the shoulders of giants and don't even know it.

 

They stand on the shoulders of giants and don't even know it.

Deep down in the subconscious I think they know it but sadly forget.

 

Heathkit is the biggest loss of all. I even have an Solid Oak Roll Top Desk Kit they sold at the end.
Waited daily for there Flyer to pick out a new Kit to build. And Now

 

The first Personal computer I used was a Heathkit/Zenith with Z-DOS operating system which was actually superior at the time to the IBM version.
Lot's a fun.
Max.

 

The first Personal computer I used was a Heathkit/Zenith with Z-DOS operating system which was actually superior at the time to the IBM version.
Lot's a fun.
Max.

Mine was a Timex Sinclair ZX81 with an external cassette tape recorder and an 2KB expansion module ...

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