If any of the parts are static sensitive, get yourself a grounding strap and an antistatic work surface.Also picked up a bunch of logic chips
This from a Jameco catalog:
You don't have to connect the grounding strap on the mat to anything, but earth ground won't hurt. The important thing is to have the mat, parts, and you at the same potential.
You connect your antistatic strap to the mat strap.
I'd be careful about YouTube. Most of the videosI've seen are crap. There's a reason why they're so long; people are trying to monetize views and, apparently, they need you to watch for a minimum amount of time.I've learnt so much more the past few days not getting anything to work than I would have if it worked the first go.