Good day everyone.
I'm looking to get educated on the subject. My goal is hardware development for Music and Film applications. As I understand this might me a malformed question as circuit design is probably just a part of a bigger picture / subject / course - the question is what is that course called? Electrical Engineering? Computer science? I would like to look into college courses on the subject in my local post secondary education as my current degree is in a completely unrelated field. What did guys like EEVBlog, Great Scott and so on study? They have technical knowledge that seems to come from a post secondary institution rather than self study and trial-and-error like my own experience does. So when looking for college courses on the subject which will teach me the basics concepts, circuit design, micro-controller structure and ability to read data-sheets? What did you, the veterans, study?
On second hand, any time I've tried to incline to this question I'd have folks advising and encouraging me to pursue it as a self study. In which case, books. What books, on-line courses, study material (free or paid) do I read up on to know things like RF interference, do's and don'ts of circuit design, capacitance, decoupling, resistances, the math and formulas for calculating component values instead of guesstimating them and perhaps a heap of things that I have not listed here because I'm completely ignorant of their existence?
I wholeheartedly appreciate everyone's input on this. I'm starving for directions.
the question is what is that course called? Electrical Engineering? Computer science?
Electronic Engineering
Book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Art-Electronics-Paul-Horowitz/dp/0521370957
Great Scott and so on study?
Having seen some of his stuff please avoid what ever he did.
Grumpy_Mike:
Electronic Engineering
Book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Art-Electronics-Paul-Horowitz/dp/0521370957
Having seen some of his stuff please avoid what ever he did.
Thank you Mike. Can I inquire on what sort of taboos you might have spotted, having watched his content? Not anything specific, just generally speaking what put you off as a professional engineer?
Grumpy_Mike:
Book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Art-Electronics-Paul-Horowitz/dp/0521370957
Thanks for this suggestion!
I had a quick look at the book and just purchased the 3rd edition. (updated in 2015)
I can't wait to look at all 1,220 pages!
It even has Limor Fried, founder and engineer of Adafruit, commendation on the back cover.
Hello TobiasRipper,
I am happy to answer your question, but not sure how much it will help.
My dad taught me the basics of electronics from an early age. I built a 'light house' from a large cardboard tube, which a carpet was delivered on, a torch bulb and a battery at age, maybe, 5 or 6 (or maybe my dad built it for me...). Anyway, he was always giving me batteries, wires, switches, lamps, buzzers etc to play with.
Then someone gave me a pile of copies of Practical Electronics, I read those, built some of the projects and got my own subscription.
I left school to do an apprenticeship in electronics and telecommunications. That was a combination of technical college, company training courses and practical experience.
I worked in a repair workshop fixing electronic telephone equipment, that was great for learning how commercial circuit designers made their designs.
All through this electronics has been an interesting hobby. I still learn new stuff and one of my sources of new knowledge is these forums.
I think the main thing is if you are interested in the subject you will find stuff to learn. Electronics is a big subject and I only know a tiny bit of it, there's always something new.
Can I inquire on what sort of taboos you might have spotted, having watched his content?
Not specifically but I have answered a few questions on this forum for people who claim this and that is true because they say they saw it on a Great Scott video. Now this might not be actually his fault, but it is a bit of a communication problem.
When I was first appointed as a Lecturer, I was giving a talk about microprocessors to a group of prospective students. At the end one of them said to me as he left, "I don't want to go on that course, I want to go on the course you went on to learn all that." You should have seen his face when I told him that I didn't go on a course but I worked it all out for myself. In those days (1976-7) you had to because there was virtually nothing available.
Back in 1971 as an undergraduate I did have three lectures on how to program, then you could use the Poly's computer anytime you want. It was all punch cards and you could get a run a day. Imagine learning to program and only being permitted to type "Run" once a day. It certainly taught you how to read code.
Before that I started with a Trans Tronic kit when I was about 9. Then scratch built crystal sets and sold them to my class mates.
Left school at 16, got a job in Electronics for two years taking a night school class, then left work to take a degree, then a PhD and then Lecturing job ( Physics ). Left after 21 years and went to be an electronics engineer designing Set Top Boxes for Digital Terrestrial TV, then changed jobs into access control design and management. Finally back to the set top box people to head up the hardware design on a very complex project a Transmodulator which basically stripped satellite feeds down and reassembled them to send out as a cable signal. Then retired.
P.S. When I went to secondary school I really wanted to be a chemist, but our school had no chemistry lab so I switched to Physics. I often wonder what would have happened to me if they did have one. But it was a secondary modern school, that was a school for people who did not pass the 11+ exam to go to grammar school. I suspect it was because I have dyslexia, but it those days it was called being thick.
I see. Thanks Mike for the wisdom.
If you want to work for a company you'd generally need an electronics engineering degree to "get in the door". I've known one electronics engineer and one programmer who didn't have college degrees. The engineer had a good position in a good company and I assume he was very well paid. But, I'm sure his options were limited if he wanted to change companies. The programmer was a genius but he was working at the same small company as me and he probably could have been making at least double the money at a bigger company where there was room to grow. (I think he had a better position before I knew him.)
I have one programmer friend who had a math degree and another who has a physics degree. The math guy got a programming job right out of college. The physics guy worked in physics/engineering for many years and I think he taught himself programming.
When you choose your major they tell you what courses are required. 
And of course you'll have some electives. If you take electronics you'll also be required to take several programming classes and there will be programing involved with some of your electronics courses.
If you want a "programming degree" that's "computer science". But if you want to program microcontrollers and embedded electronics, that's more on the "electronics engineering" side of things because you have to understand the hardware.
