How old are you?

[Architect_1077]

Alright, so I'm a beginner at electronics currently living in Portugal. Now you're probably asking what the point of this topic is.
Well, first I'll give you some background on myself:

I was going through Dave's eevblog video episodes list and stumbled upon the video where he talks a bit about how he started in electronics. For a moment I felt like I was hearing a story about myself when he mentions how he used to take things apart around the house as a kid! Unbelievable! My parents couldn't give me anything with an electronic circuit in it, it wouldn't last more than 2 days! I just had to see how it worked! In fact, even today I can't resist doing it!
Unlike Dave however, I never really turned it into a serious hobby, let alone get into the field professionally. In fact, I had the bad luck of having parents that never really liked electronics, used to think there was no future in electronics, was too dangerous for a kid to play with, and so on, and so they completely derailed me from it. I actually became an Architect, of all things.

Well, I never really gave up on taking things apart and figuring out how they work, still love doing it and always will. However, as anyone up to speed on Portugal's economic situation will know, getting a job and making a decent living is VERY difficult over here. The fact that I have a higher education has not kept me immune to that fact. So, with the spare time I've had recently I decided it's time to get more serious about electronics, even if just as a hobby.

And, here I am... an electronics beginner at the age of... 31!

So I began to wonder... how many beginners are there at my age? How about it? How old are YOU? Any beginners here at a similar age to mine? Anyone older?

[olsenn]

23

[free_electron]

This year i become the answer to the ultimate question on life, the universe and everything....
Started electronics at the age of 6 burning my finger on a hot transistor in a little radio i took apart. At 8 i had one of those 100-in-one expereimenters boxes from radio shack.( tandy)... Fast forward  13 years and i begin working as a service technician in a waferfab, maintaining plasma etchers and ion implanters. I work my way up to design. Fast forward again almost 20 years and i design the chips that end up in harddisks.

I still consider myself a beginner. If i look at the wide field of electronics i have only barely scratched the surface. There are so many components i have not played with, so many disciplines and subdisciplines i have not touched.

Electronics is a life-long learning experience. The end goal is to have fun with it.

[JohnS_AZ]

I'm 50, and have been in electronics for 40 years.

Thing is, if you want to stay current with new parts, designs, systems, and technologies, you are perpetually a beginner.

[robrenz]

59 and perpetually learning

[Baliszoft]

37

[eevblogfan]

15.10 (two more month and I am 16 !!! )

and I began 3 years ago (age 13) ( thanks to dave I am more advanced into EE )

[HLA-27b]

33

[Sypher]

22, Junior in Computer Engineering at my local Uni.

[nanofrog]

41

[T4P]

I'm 18 but i started 3 years ago, but my lab is still rapidly expanding along with my knowledge.
Never be afraid to learn i guess , i always consider myself a beginner as i need to update myself on what's going to happen next and brand new parts in the market
Plus, i have that "i'm always a beginner, but i will improve" mentality so i won't just skip something possibly very useful in the future.

[Tube_Dude]

Hi Architect_1077, I'm from Portugal too.

My first love with electronics was at about 10 years old, via a Philips Electronic Engineer Box EE20, that have been given to me in Christmas. Since then I believe in St. Claus... 

Then I began to build some circuits, this time already with a soldering iron, and some schematics from a very good Spanish electronics magazine, Radiorama. That will happen at around 1969. 

Then I have gone to the University Of Coimbra to study Electronics Engineering, and as I love music and electronics, I have specialized in Audio, the branch that can share both, so I project my own amps, with tubes, bipolar or MOSFET technology.

And the question was??

Ahh!! I have 58 years old... 

PS. Pic of the PHILIPS EE20 and RADIORAMA magazine.

[wkb]

I learned to program in hand-assembled machine language on a Motorola M6800..  go and do the math 

[nanofrog]

I learned to program in hand-assembled machine language on a Motorola M6800..  go and do the math 

But at what age where you when you did this?   

[wkb]

I learned to program in hand-assembled machine language on a Motorola M6800..  go and do the math 

But at what age where you when you did this?   

Lemme guess, 10 or 12 or so I think.

[nanofrog]

Lemme guess, 10 or 12 or so I think.

Not old at all (I'll not disclose the math though, that's up to you).   

Just wise enough not to do something incredibly stupid, and still able to do what you like and enjoy it (assuming past mistakes haven't left you physically unable).   

[Spikee]

I started taking things apart and destroying them ...
At high school i chose to learn for an industrial electrician and industrial automation ( PLC n stuff) .
In 2010 i finally bought an arduino and the madness started. Making my own pcb -> using Altium D10 .
In September i am going to collage.
Embedded Systems Engineering @ HAN Arnhem .

I'm 18 btw

[Zyvek]

I'm so old you'd have to cut me in half and count the rings to be sure.

[EEVblog]

I still consider myself a beginner. If i look at the wide field of electronics i have only barely scratched the surface. There are so many components i have not played with, so many disciplines and subdisciplines i have not touched.

Indeed!

Dave.

[Architect_1077]

Very interesting replies indeed. In all honesty, I have to agree with the statement of being a perpetual beginner. It does seem very unlikely for one to know everything about a complex field such as this.
Hey, I even got a response from the man himself! Speaking of whom... keep up the good work Dave, love your avid reviews!

[vk6zgo]

All of you are but beardless youths!
I am 68,& only retired in December 2009.
I got ripped off  for "a year & a bit" of retirement-GRR!!

I was going to do so much Electronics Hobbying,but I spend most of my time arguing with you lot,instead!

[krish2487]

25 and perpetually a student..

 

The discipline also changes with embedded systems and Power electronics being a profession.
Woodworking, Metalworking, CNC, material sciences all being hobbies for timepass..
 

[Hypernova]

27 in 4 months, Only a year into my first real job since I got stuck in uni for my BE for 6 years cause I sucked monkey balls at it.

[electronwaster]

I'm 29, so just behind you in age. I took many, many things apart as a kid, but really I didn't understand any of it or manage to fix things.

I've had several careers since then, mostly computer programming, web programming and IT support, since then joinery, furniture making and sign carving. Currently working as a maintenance worker doing varied tasks: steel fabrication, gardening, delivery, etc. You could say my hobby is learning and collecting skills.

I started again with electronics more seriously about 5 months ago, and desperately trying to learn transistor action, opamps, linear supplier, switching supplies etc. I have been building a lab gradually: Fluke 87V, Kikusui 20MHz dual-trace scope, Farnell dual 30V 2A power supply, and a couple of lesser spec'd home made power supplies.

I'm interested in power supplies, chargers, off-grid systems, dual car battery systems. I also have interest in audio amplifiers and guitar effects units. Valve amps are in my future, but I don't really know enough of the basics yet.

Next DIY project is an ESR meter, to help find dead caps.

Next big purchase is an LCR meter (to make coils for home made switcher supplies), a variac would be good too, and also a hakko fx-888 or similar.

Next to learn: so much!!

Cheers,
electronwaster

[Freighternut]

60, Ex IT manager. Very much enjoying getting back to my roots in electronics!