Arduino?

[Kappes Buur]

..... Is there any truth to the rumor that Heathkit is coming back?

A simple Google search revealed this:

http://www.reddit.com/r/tabled/comments/1tdf45/table_iama_member_of_the_heath_company_heathkit/

[casinada]

Just get the Arduino Uno Rev3 and some shields from seed studio. You can wait until they have sales as the certificate doesn't have expiration date. A Panavise or third hand with magnifying glass can come in handy. Also the jumpers from Schmartboard that are nice Get also some protoboards if you don't already have some and also some printed circuit boards for prototyping boxes.

[zapta]

OP, sell the card to a friend for 100$,  get 5 arduinos from ebay ($4 each) and you will have $80 to invest in your retirement fund.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5-Pcs-Atmega328-ATMEGA328P-Pro-Mini-Board-Module-5V-16MHz-For-Arduino-/321273175351?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4acd5f9d37

Store specific gift cards are inconsiderate and evil. General Visa gift card require a small one time fee but are more recipient friendly.

[rafalpilat0077]

For me it is very easy since i know c++. It is acctualy very easy to learn. Realy,its  a must buy.

[tony3d]

Just picked up the UNO board for $29.95 at Radio Shack. I have several breadboards, tons of jumpers, so what else should I get that is totally necessary?

[Stonent]

Just picked up the UNO board for $29.95 at Radio Shack. I have several breadboards, tons of jumpers, so what else should I get that is totally necessary?

Leds, resistors, capacitors, maybe some transistors or mosfets that can handle higher current than the arduino can feed.
You can probably have some fun with some 74HC595 chips for controlling several LEDS. A servo or two might be fun to play with since there's example code in the arduino IDE for playing with them.  Watch Jeremy Blum's videos on youtube for an idea of starter projects.

A 16x2 LCD is worthwhile as well. You can build something with a readable output.

I've been slowly building up my stash from Tayda since they are so cheap and they ship really quick. If you're on Facebook, they post discount codes randomly each month for 15% off. Which essentially covers shipping.

The plastic project boxes at Radio Shack are not too badly priced, if you plan on making anything and keeping them, they might be a good idea.

[noisebox]

This series of videos is a good intro to the Arduino for beginners:
http://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL162738B96C8291EB&desktop_uri=%2Fplaylist%3Flist%3DPL162738B96C8291EB

I would second that, I bought an arduino on the strength of these videos and got my head round it very quick as these are really good clear videos which you can just rewatch a couple of times to get the hang of things, even the coding is made very easy to understand (although some familiarisation with basic programming fundamentals such as variables, arrays and especially loops may make this a lot easier?) I had my kid building basic traffic light circuits and writing the code for it (once pushed!) in no time so it definitely is very beginner friendly, can't recommend arduino enough if it's your entry into microcontrollers! I just wish I'd got into this a lot sooner as I have built a few circuits now which I have been struggling to do with CMOS chips for a long time, it may help if you have some simple project in mind? I never learn from books for this reason because the sample projects are so naff or abstract that they don't interest me....I wouldn't waste any $ on books unless you really exhaust all the online resources for arduino (which is infinite) I've had a look at a few in shops and none have really shown me anything I didn't already pick up with the resources available online.... deff invest in an LCD display for the arduino!

[henson]

Just picked up the UNO board for $29.95 at Radio Shack. I have several breadboards, tons of jumpers, so what else should I get that is totally necessary?

I believe a few people have mentioned it, but I will second the need for a Arduino specific kit when first starting out. When I bought my first Arduino, I also got a 50 dollar kit that allowed me to build around 20 different projects. It was awesome to be able to hit the ground running with lot of project to learn from. One of the first circuits I put together used a small toy motor and the Arduino as the speed controller. Once you are done putting together all the different projects, you will feel very comfortable moving on to more complicated circuits. Good luck and build something already. If you feel like you are past the simple stuff, my vote for a early project is a linear adjustable power supply and Radio Shack carries everything you need for one. Good luck.

[tony3d]

Thanks for all your info guys. Really appreciate it! Going to spend the rest of my money about $120.00 on the odds, and ends. Already have tons of LED's, transistors, jumpers, breadboards, and caps, so I may look at the shields, and other components. Still haven't much time to play , but I did blink my LED! Oh joy! Thanks for the video links. Been watching those. I'll let you know just how I progress. Still not quite sure what project to start working on. Was Kinda thinking about an LED cube. That might be fun.

[Rigby]

Start with what interests you and expand from there.  Hackaday.com will have lots of inspiration if you go through their archives.

Modern electronics is a combination of digital and analog, as well as hardware and software.  The arduino lets you kind of do it all of these at once.  An arduino won't teach you how an RC network works all by itself, but it can help you learn how they work.  An arduino can't teach you how a shift register works, but it can help you learn on your own.

Many purists will straight-up badmouth Radio Shack and Arduino, but in the hands of someone with some enthusiasm (as you clearly have) they are both great tools.  Not the best tool or store for any given problem or part need, but they're both there and they both cover the basics.

You can do some rather amazing things with an Arduino using parts available at Radio Shack.

[Stonent]

Well I learned BASIC as a kid and now I work in IT. Arduino is the BASIC of microcontroller projects. If you've never used C before or wired stuff up, Arduino gets you there.

[tony3d]

Ok, my biggest problem so far with Arduino..... How does one even begin to memorize all the functions, commands, and syntax in the programming language? I do something, then the next day forget what the correct syntax was. How is the best way to tackle that? I really thing the system is very cool, but as with any programming language, I'm finding it very difficult to remember this stuff. Any suggestions?

[Lurch]

Ok, my biggest problem so far with Arduino..... How does one even begin to memorize all the functions, commands, and syntax in the programming language? I do something, then the next day forget what the correct syntax was. How is the best way to tackle that? I really thing the system is very cool, but as with any programming language, I'm finding it very difficult to remember this stuff. Any suggestions?

Don't try to memorise it all, you won't. You need to know what functions you can use and where to find the information on them. I know of very few programmers who can remember every single command and syntax format with perfect recollection.

Look at it like a second language, with your first being English. Now look at the English language, have you memorised every single word and and every single grammatical combination within?

[zapta]

Ok, my biggest problem so far with Arduino..... How does one even begin to memorize all the functions, commands, and syntax in the programming language? I do something, then the next day forget what the correct syntax was. How is the best way to tackle that? I really thing the system is very cool, but as with any programming language, I'm finding it very difficult to remember this stuff. Any suggestions?

No need to memorize. Just copy and paste from your previous programs and search the internet.  You just need to understand what you want to do. For example, you want to set a pin to high level, search google for arduino pin set high level, and you will get what you want in the top result.  A week later you want to something similar again, look at your previous program or search the internet again.

[tony3d]

Ok, my biggest problem so far with Arduino..... How does one even begin to memorize all the functions, commands, and syntax in the programming language? I do something, then the next day forget what the correct syntax was. How is the best way to tackle that? I really thing the system is very cool, but as with any programming language, I'm finding it very difficult to remember this stuff. Any suggestions?

No need to memorize. Just copy and paste from your previous programs and search the internet.  You just need to understand what you want to do. For example, you want to set a pin to high level, search google for arduino pin set high level, and you will get what you want in the top result.  A week later you want to something similar again, look at your previous program or search the internet again.

ok, This makes sense. Thanks.

[MacAttak]

Ok, my biggest problem so far with Arduino..... How does one even begin to memorize all the functions, commands, and syntax in the programming language? I do something, then the next day forget what the correct syntax was. How is the best way to tackle that? I really thing the system is very cool, but as with any programming language, I'm finding it very difficult to remember this stuff. Any suggestions?

Do what all professional programmers do - bookmark the language and library reference website pages as well as google.com (or bing.com if that's your thing)

Language reference for Arduino: http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage
Fundamental examples: http://arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/HomePage

As time goes on you will find that you need to refer to those references less and less frequently.


Also, poke around through some of the playground stuff: http://playground.arduino.cc/

As others have said, don't feel ashamed of copying example code and adapting it for your needs.

[Rick Law]

Tony3D,

You do need an idea what functions are around.  So, do take the time to read them (the other functions) once  - at least the function name and functions it serves.  Leave the details for the future when you actually use it, but acquire the knowledge of the types of functions available so as you design your program, something will spark and you may say to yourself - I've seen something that does... and you can then search for it and learn the details.

If time available, learn them even while you don't need them.  No different than say trying all the functions on your DMM even at the moment you had no need to measure capacitance.  Go idea to learn without the pressure of needing to apply immediately.

Rick

[pickle9000]

Do a google search for:

Arduino cheat sheet pdf

Most of the cheat sheets are targeted towards particular uses (robotics for example) very useful.

I would also suggest reading the function list. Don't try and memorize it just read it and see if anything interests you.

[tony3d]

Thanks everyone. Found a great little iPhone app called Arduino Companion. It's an entire reference on variables, functions, structures, and Libraries! Full of great info, and it's free!

[toxicnos]

Just get the UNO, it is the most popular one by far. It is also the best supported and practicaly all shields are made for it. On the programming siode of things, just use pre-written sketches and you will eventually pick up that's how I did it.