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From: Martin Brown <'''newspam'''@nonad.co.uk>
Newsgroups: sci.electronics.design
Subject: Re: hobby electronics
Date: Wed, 3 Jul 2024 10:30:39 +0100
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On 02/07/2024 17:28, john larkin wrote:
> 
> It's my opinion that there are few hobbyists that really work with
> parts and make circuits, and most EE grads are EE/CE dual majors that
> code more than they solder, and don't have instincts for electricity.

There are still a few, but it has become a very minority interest today. 
Partly because everything is so heavily integrated and surface mount.

When I grew up you could get dead ICL 1900 boards full of TTL chips for 
and bags dross coated transistors at start of line for pennies. Today 
there is no equivalent source of cheap easily reused parts.

Back then there were also electronic kits for build your own computer etc.

A lot of it today is plugging new mass produced modules together. 
Raspberry Pi has done a lot for that and to encourage electronics 
hobbyists though so it isn't all bad news.
> 
> Here's a youtube on the subject:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLnolhyT5SI
> 
> Some of these guys blame surface mount, which seems wrong to me. There
> are lots of thru-hole parts and parts kits around.

Surface mount has rendered modern kit all but impossible for the home 
user to repair. I cut my teeth mending transistor car radios back when 
chassis earth was chosen randomly by each car manufacturer to be either 
positive or negative and people blew up their brand new car radios.

The other big earner was mending teenage wannabe rock stars amplifiers 
that had their output transistors fried or a pint of beer in them.

> I'd like to hire a few kids who love component-level electronics, but
> they are hard to find.

Go looking at maker-spaces or whatever they are called in the US. Most 
of them will be trying to make electric guitars but they will be showing 
at least some skills with small pickup coils and low noise amplifiers.

Back in my day a lot of our physics practicals were essentially 
electronics based - characteristics of a FET, various oscillators and a 
substantial digital electronics and logic course with a finishing test 
of making a digital dice (it may still be the same course even now).

I'm pretty sure the previous generation did the same experiments on 
thermionic valves and relays but that was discontinued on H&S grounds.

-- 
Martin Brown