A while ago I got an angry email from a relatively known electronics person.

I had written a piece about learning electronics and that you can learn electronics pretty fast - at least the basics you need to get started and have fun (nobody ever learns everything in electronics).

This person sent me an angry email. How could I say that learning electronics could be simple and fast?! After all, he had spent 40 years learning and only knew 5%, he claimed.

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On one side, I understand where he's coming from.

I've also felt what he's feeling. Learning electronics *can* be hard. Back when I started out, it felt really hard.

But what I also realized when I finally understood a new concept was that it wasn't actually that hard. It was the explanations that I got that were hard, not the actual thing I had to learn.

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For example, when I tried to figure out what a capacitor was, the books told me it was a "two-terminal passive device used to store electric charge, consisting of two or more conductors separated by an insulator".

Huh?

Even now that I know what a capacitor is, I need to re-read that sentence a few times to understand what they're saying.

For some reason, many people who teach electronics have decided that it should be taught from a physics perspective, not a practical perspective.

Imagine doing this to introduce other things, like soccer ("a ball is a device of medium softness consisting of an insulating rubber-layer that can be inflated or deflated..."). It doesn't make any sense.

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Yes, becoming an expert in electronics will take time, just like becoming an expert soccer player will take time.

But electronics can also be easy, just like soccer can be easy. Remember: learning the basics to have fun and enjoy it does not have to be hard.
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Keep On Soldering!
Oyvind @ build-electronic-circuits.com

PS! Want to learn the fundamentals of electronics so that you can start enjoying and having fun with circuits as a hobby? Here are two ways I can help:

1. At Ohmify we teach electronics the simple way, and you get access to all our courses, from the very basics to more intermediate topics: Click for more info about becoming a member.​
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2. ​Getting Started With Electronics is the first eBook I wrote to help people get started. It’s a step-by-step guide with simple instructions to get started building electronics. Perfect for complete beginners.