favourite technical books - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2023, 04:09:48 pm
content: Simple question: what are your favourite technical books and why?Mine:Crenshaw: Math-toolkit-for-real-time-programming. An interesting book about building integrator and differentiators on small 8bit micro controllers with a sense of humour.(a free version can be downloaded from some website. But I 'don't know if I can post a link here.)Sedra Smith: microelectronic circuits.Well known to must of you for those who still play around with bare transistors. A compact, dense and to the point book. More modern books are boring, heavy and half of the pages could be left out because they contain to much useless illustrations.Jasper J goedbloed: electromagnetic compatibility. A relative unknown but extremely valuable book about EMC. A good mix between theory and practice. I guard my copy like a dog.

author: exe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 03, 2023, 04:58:08 pm
content: Mine is AoE3 (plus X-chapters), but I'm looking for more reading like this. I've read "current sources voltage references", it was also enjoyable reading, though not sure I want to re-read it.

author: jasonRF
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2023, 01:58:34 am
content: "favorite" shifts around depending on what I am interested in at the time. But the books I have probably used the most over the past 25-30 years areProbability, random variables and stochastic processes, 2nd edition, by PapoulisFields and waves in communication electronics, 2nd edition, by Ramo, Whinnery and Van DuzerPerhaps not the world's best books, but they have wide scope so include a ton of topics. Both are falling apart from years of use.jason

author: Infraviolet
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2023, 12:08:11 pm
content: I too can recommend the Art of Electronics (Horowitz and Hill), but I haven't read the x-chapter supplemental book yet.The truth thesedays though is that an awful lot of topics are more quickly looked up online than in books, not so good for overviews of topics as books are, but easier for searching for one narrow thing. Ofcourse browing is easier in a book, especially if you don't know what the search term would be to find some specific thing online.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2023, 01:34:43 pm
content: Tek OSCILLOSCOPE PROBE CIRCUITS120 pages of goodness:https://w140.com/tekwiki/images/6/62/062-1146-00.pdf

author: Stray Electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2023, 07:34:26 pm
content: All of those Tek books are well worth reading.

author: David Hess
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2023, 02:16:47 am
content: The three, or four depending on how you count, Linear Technology Application Handbooks are my favorites. They are followed by the Analog Circuit Design books edited by Jim Williams. And do not forget Troubleshooting Analog Circuits and Analog Circuits (World Class Designs) by Robert Pease.After those, my collection of electronics books gets esoteric with things like sampling.

author: Alex Eisenhut
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2023, 10:34:54 pm
content: GE Transistor Manual, 1960s vintage. And its cousin the GE SCR Manual. I guess the RCA series on transistors is also pretty good.Microelectronics Packaging, Sideris, 1960s.Not so much because any of it is terribly relevant today, but for the history. I just have a thing for the 1960s. The sense of optimism and creating the future, I don't know, I like it.And yeah the Tek series are great, even better if you can get them in print for extra vintage goodness.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2023, 10:50:25 pm
content: Quote from: Alex Eisenhut on February 05, 2023, 10:34:54 pmCrying :'( <----no longer works !I had OSCILLOSCOPE PROBE CIRCUITS in top condition acquired from ePay a decade or more ago but it disappeared without trace which I'm still a little upset about (more :'(). After looking high and low for much longer than its worth it was never found and I only imagine it got placed atop a pile of magazines that got recycled.Shortly after it was found available onlineand someone also uploaded it to Tekwikiwhere we can all have a copy now.

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 12:48:03 am
content: Thanks for the Tek oscilloscope probe circuits book.The GE Transistor Manual is available in Archive:https://archive.org/details/GE_-_Transistor_Manual_1964

author: armandine2
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 12:08:54 pm
content: useful, well laid out, and kept (revered?)

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 06:07:12 pm
content: Soul of a New Machineby Tracy Kidder.

author: Sal Ammoniac
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 06:47:46 pm
content: The CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 08:05:16 pm
content: "An Engineering Approach to Digital Design", William I. Fletcher."Video Demystified!, Keith Jack.Fletcher is a must, unless you only work with analog (rare these days). The second only if you work with video.

author: jonpaul
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 08:30:36 pm
content: Great posts!BRAVO! Many old favs in the thread.Just a few from several bookcases, back to college 19680s..Selected: transformers/Magnetics, analog/sync, EMI/Noise/Happy to have your thoughts!Jon

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 09:27:02 pm
content: @ jonpaulnice. The "power line filter design for switch mode power supplies" is available for only €251. Bummer. I'll give you ten euro's including postage. Only valid today.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 10:03:19 pm
content: Just musing...Are all you guys aware of the value of the books on your shelves?Many are out of print, and many are still available, but they all still cost 50...150$ apiece.And they're of a quality (content-wise) that no web site can match.My message to good engineers: "Put your money where your mouth is" and take care of and extend your library... and leave the "allaboutcircuits" websites to the amateurs.EEVBlog excepted, of course, because here's where the owners, and more importantly: readers) of those books are present.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 10:45:37 pm
content: QuoteThey might be like Ebay items - that's the notional price the vendor wants to sell them for, but is anyone buying them at that price?

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 07, 2023, 11:19:35 pm
content: @ BentaI'm not sure how much I money I spent on technical books. But a lot. The last one I bought was Basso's Linear circuit transfer functions. Expensive but well worth the money.Also, a good time to scan second hand websites for books is around January/February when some students choose to pursue an other career. That's how I obtained a few books on VHDL for almost nothing.

author: jonpaul
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 12:29:40 am
content: Entire librarymore favorite categories.Historic rare booksBSTJ 1948, 1949 with 3 papers by Shannon and a few about the transistor.Claude Shannon 1st ed Mathematical Theory of Communications systems 1949Tektronix Circuits Concerps orig circa 1970s..1980s.Almost complete set....From TEK local rep.Very rare!Enjoy,Jon

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 01:11:41 am
content: Quote from: PlainName on February 07, 2023, 10:45:37 pmYes.

author: David Aurora
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 03:28:53 am
content: Anything by Bob Pease or Jim Williams. They just got straight to the point with the practical knowledge so you could walk to the bench and get things done. The epitome of the concept that a real expert can explain their wisdom to a 5 year old.Kind of the opposite approach of the much hyped AOE thing to me. Every now and then I pick it up to reference something and within 5 minutes I'm just like "Fuck it, there's probably an app note from Williams on this subject somewhere" and I put it down for another year.

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 07:47:24 am
content: Quote from: Benta on February 07, 2023, 10:03:19 pmAgree completely.I was recently trying to find a copy of Helszajn's "YIG Resonators and Filters" (1985) and could not find one for sale anywhere worldwide, at any price. It's one of the "standard" references listed in many books, IEEE articles, etc. on YIG, but it appears to have become commercially unobtainable. (My local university library supposedly has a copy)

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 08:08:49 am
content: Quote from: PlainName on February 07, 2023, 10:45:37 pmEbay (and Amazon) often suggest pricing based on what other people have paid for the same or similar items in the past: it's getting much harder to find "deals" on used books these days because now everyone is an expert on book valuesEven some thrift shops now scan donated books to see which ones are worth more than a few dollars and those then get listed online (at "market" prices) instead of sold in the store with the romance and cowboy novels.And yeah, 50-150 USD for a technical book is not uncommon at all. I do a lot of "research" for my job and if a book could save me significant time trying to find information, it's well worth it. I recently was working on a project where I found some extremely useful information in a book that's been out of print for decades.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 08:53:43 am
content: One I often borrowed in the early days especially when undertaking one's right of passage building your first PSU:National Semiconductor,Voltage Regulator Handbookand IIRC the 1982 versionSome darn useful references for rectifier, smoothing and of course common regulator designs albeit they are ordinary linear designs and by todays standards dated yet still of great guidance for the electronic newbie.ePay search showing a few versions:https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=national+semiconductor+voltage+regulator+handbook+1982&_svsrch=1

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 09:56:46 am
content: Quote from: Benta on February 07, 2023, 10:03:19 pmI should really catalog all the books on the shelves here. That would be an interesting list.I love adding new books to my technical library. Ebay is absolutely amazing for $5-$10 books with WAY more than $5-$10 worth of value. Sometimes I feel like my mailman must think I'm running a used book business or something.

author: Sal Ammoniac
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 07:46:21 pm
content: I have many books in my collection, such asThe Art of Electronics, in both printed form and eBook form. Mostly for convivence. I use the printed books at home and the eBook versions on the road.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 08, 2023, 11:35:17 pm
content: Bob Pease, "Troubleshooting Analog Circuits" is also on my shelf. Personal present.Great guy, we had him at a company engineer's meeting as speaker. Had dinner with him afterwards, the discussion was very stimulating and often surprising. But a totally "down-to-earth" type, one of the most sane and conscious persons I've ever met. It was a nice evening.

author: Neomys Sapiens
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 09, 2023, 03:16:10 am
content: Slightly over 1000 tomes in print and around 24xx as Ebooks (excluding appnotes, FMs, TMs etc.) and all listed (including the appnotes, FMs, TMs etc.).But several GB and also several stacks of copied paper remain to process.Just some highlights which have helped me much:- the complete, 6-volume set of the Telefunken Laborbuch Series- Handbuch der Elektronik, T. Adamowicz et.al., Franzis 1979 (much on RF topics)- of course, the big Nuehrmann (Werkbuch der Elektronik)- Sylvia Goldsmith, Real-Time Systems Development- On SW topics also Knuths 'Basic Algorithms' and the masive 'Software Engineers' Reference Book'- Tool Engineers Handbook,McGraw-Hill 1959- Mechanisms and mechanical devices sourcebook, Sclater/Chironis- Schaltungsaufgaben in der fernschreib- und Signaltechnik, Siemens (magnetic counters, logic and dividers!)- the excellect Thiemig series on nuclear instrumentation- and much much more on pulse power techniques, EMI/EMC/EW, SRMQ, Aerospace electronics, electromechanicsFor RF and EW topics, always look out for the stuff from Artech House (UK). And several of the IET-published works are also indespensable.I already saw that several of you keep the Electronics' engineers handbook (Fink/Christiansen) on their shelves - this was one of the first expensive books which I got (I was around 16). It is excellent - an no pirated scan or OCR seems to exist! Several company-published technical pocketbooks are also real pearls.Like the 'Teldix Taschenbuch der Navigation' or the 'SEL pocketbook'. Always be on the lookout for such!Maybe I can sometime later give another few examples of outstanding works.

author: gbaddeley
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 09, 2023, 11:20:39 am
content: For pre-transistor general & practical electronics tech, it is hard to go past Radiotron Designers Handbook, 4th Ed. I also have Ed. 1, 2, 3 for curiosity sake. The RCA tube handbooks are also very good.

author: TomKatt
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 09, 2023, 11:55:48 am
content: I miss the days you could get IC data books for free from the manufacturers... I hadvolumesof TI and National Semi books - and built countless circuits from the example schematics.And while I may not refer to them much any longer, I wouldn't have got to where I am without Forrest Mims and those pocket engineer booksBut I would second 'The Art of Electronics' - the master reference.

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 09, 2023, 10:00:13 pm
content: Quote from: TomKatt on February 09, 2023, 11:55:48 amThose books are some of the best introductory electronics texts I've ever seen.I took advantage of the employee discount at Radio Shack to complete my collection

author: armandine2
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 14, 2023, 01:22:27 pm
content: another vote for Ladybird book of?

author: IdahoMan
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 18, 2023, 07:28:30 am
content: My grandfather's old Basic Electricity NAVPERS book.Ex:Straight-forward, step-by-step, and NO flip'n SI-units.

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 18, 2023, 08:15:47 pm
content: How many of you have already bought at least one book after someone mentioned it in this thread?

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 18, 2023, 10:01:31 pm
content: Quote from: IdahoMan on February 18, 2023, 07:28:30 amThe source of many a novice's complaint about "negative" current flow direction.Volts and AmperesareSI units--many physics textbooks use "Gaussian" cgs units instead, with "statvolts" and "statamperes".Otherwise, good practical series of texts.

author: exe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 18, 2023, 10:08:14 pm
content: Quote from: Smokey on February 18, 2023, 08:15:47 pmNot yet, but looking closely. Esp. if there is something cheap, or there is an e-book. Why are you askin'?)

author: IdahoMan
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 19, 2023, 08:58:25 am
content: Quote from: Smokey on February 18, 2023, 08:15:47 pmClose.I'm thinking of getting an ARRL Handbook of a good year.

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 19, 2023, 09:00:16 pm
content: Quote from: exe on February 18, 2023, 10:08:14 pmThere have been a fair number of times I've seen someone here talking about how much they like some piece of test equipment, or how much good information is in some book, and I've gone straight to ebay and seen that thing selling for way less money than the actual value it has to me. I love that we live in a world where that's possible on a normal person's budget. Books are the perfect example of this. Often times so cheap vs their potential value. Just curious who else does that.

author: exe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 19, 2023, 10:04:30 pm
content: Quote from: Smokey on February 19, 2023, 09:00:16 pmThe books I'm looking for are expensive, and usually not on sale in the country I live.Though there is one exception to this: ARRL. There were tons of them on the ham radio flea market. I bought the one from the 1954 (21st edition). I paid 5euros for it, though originally it cost $3 (that's written right on the front cover). So, kinda overaid, but I wasn't in the mood to argue over 5euros). Sadly, I don't read it, it just collects dust on the shelf.

author: alm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 19, 2023, 11:36:40 pm
content: Quote from: Smokey on February 18, 2023, 08:15:47 pmI ordered some National Semiconductor and Linear Technology application handbooks, as mentioned by tautech and David Hess, that were available cheaply. I like to have this information printed. National has the bad habit of removing app notes of devices that are no longer available from their website, even though it may contain concepts that are still relevant. Likea few app notes written by Jim Williamswhen he worked for National. I'm guessing they won't break into my house to tear out pages from printed books. I also bought "Soul of a New Machine" mentioned by PlainName, since it looked like a fun read.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 19, 2023, 11:51:18 pm
content: Quote from: exe on February 19, 2023, 10:04:30 pmAccording to your flag, you live in one of the richest and most privileged countries in the world.Hopefully your post is meant as a joke...

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 12:14:22 am
content: QuoteDo let us know what you think of it.

author: CatalinaWOW
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 12:19:42 am
content: Book prices are crazy today. I bought my copy of Ramo, Whinnery and Van Duzer as an undergrad. The price stamped in the fronts piece is $12.50 (USD). Then a decade later in grad school one of the courses required the same book. Went to the bookstore and found that it wasn't t a new edition so I didn't need to purchase another. Good thing since the price was up near $80. It is more now. But strangely enough old editions of the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics and Machinery's Handbook are quite reasonable. And quite useful as the have data and recipes not found in more recent editions. Base diagrams for vacuum tubes for example..

author: rdl
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 12:34:21 am
content: I got this years ago for just $5 including FedEx shipping. It actually came from Digi-Key. I don't know if they still sell a hard copy version, but you can download a pdf for free if you have a TI account (or do a internet search). It's full of useful info related to electronics in general not just for analog.

author: armandine2
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 11:17:13 am
content: Quote from: Smokey on February 18, 2023, 08:15:47 pmI got a second edition of Ramo et al and the GE Transistor Manual

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 02:49:35 pm
content: Quote from: IdahoMan on February 19, 2023, 08:58:25 amI usually buy the latest copy every few years, but mostly just as a way to support the leagueThe content does change from year to year and I do think they are getting better over time, but I think any edition from the previous 10 years doesn't differ much from the current edition in terms of basic content.In my opinion, the ARRL handbook, and many of their other publications, are some of the best resources for electronics hobbyists. The RSGB books are also nice, but I think they tend to be more focused on the builder / experimenter (i.e. people who already have some experience in electronics)

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 02:56:05 pm
content: Quote from: CatalinaWOW on February 20, 2023, 12:19:42 amCollege textbooks and "professional" books (like Artech House) have never been cheap. What's crazy now is that the used book market is drying up: I used to be able to pick up older (current edition -1 or -2) electronics books for just a few dollars, and now they are often priced almost the same as a new book! (This is true, in my experience, for non-technical books as well).Quote from: CatalinaWOW on February 20, 2023, 12:19:42 amWhen I was in high-school, CRC used to sell new copies of the previous year's handbook at a steep discount (like, 80-90% off) to students. Still have my copy

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2023, 04:37:02 pm
content: Back when the publisher was still called "The Chemical Rubber Co.", we nicknamed their Handbook "The Rubber Bible".

author: CatalinaWOW
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 21, 2023, 04:49:33 am
content: Quote from: pdenisowski on February 20, 2023, 02:56:05 pmYeah, they were doing that in my day also, and I still have my copy. A bit shop worn, but still useful and sometimes quicker than Google. The two books to the right of the Chemical Bible are worth discussing. I have found the Handbook of Mathematical Functions extremely useful. Tables of values allow checking accuracy of functions in libraries I am using and also anything I am generating. And rational approximations allow quick computations when appropriate. The Handbook of Physics on the other hand has been a complete bust for me. Don't know if the book is fundamentally flawed, or if my brain is too aligned to the engineering side of things but I have gotten little value out of it. Too bad, since I paid full price for that one.The next picture shows a group of old handbooks I have acquired, some in the last year. They, along with a 30th addition CRC have all cost just a few dollars.The next pictures show some of the harder hitting parts of my bookshelves. Almost all of the books in the pictures are used regularly. A few are worth special mention. In the first picture, Numerical Methods is a fine book to understand numerical differentiation and integration, how they are applied in simulation and how quantization error can be propagated and how it can be minimized. In the second picture, Discrete Techniques in Parameter Estimation by Jerry Mendel has proved far more useful than I ever dreamed when I took the course. The world is seldom so kind as to provide you with noise and error free data, or with simple linear behavior. Having tools to deal with it is widely useful.

author: TomKatt
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 21, 2023, 11:27:02 am
content: While not reference materials per se, I learned quite a bit about digital circuits from Steve Ciarcia's 'Circuit Cellar' articles in BYTE Magazine... I eventually bought the book compilation and built my first Persistence of Vision project in the late 80's. His projects were a great foundation for the microcontroller boom that came years later with the PIC and AVR.In the same vain, Don Lancaster's TTL Cookbook (+ CMOS Cookbook) were great resources for learning digital circuits. Still have those buried somewhere.

author: EddieLane
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 22, 2023, 02:09:25 pm
content: Quote from: Neomys Sapiens on February 09, 2023, 03:16:10 amAnd which of this book you'd recommend to read first of all?

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 22, 2023, 11:03:52 pm
content: Quote from: EddieLane on February 22, 2023, 02:09:25 pmBetter learn german!I have "Mechanisms and mechanical devices sourcebook". I like this one for it's "fun" value. Its like a picture book for mechanically curious adults. Often times a brain twister as you try to figure out how a mechanism works from a single line drawing.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 22, 2023, 11:54:17 pm
content: Quote from: Smokey on February 22, 2023, 11:03:52 pmYes, there's a wealth of books in German (I'm in the fortunate position of being able to read both English and German), but certainly also in Spanish, Italian, French, Russian etc. where I lack the linguistic skills.The book you mention sounds a bit like "Rube Goldberg", I hope it isn't.But we all love real books. Great!

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 23, 2023, 04:38:24 am
content: Amazon has a preview.https://www.amazon.com/Mechanisms-Mechanical-Devices-Sourcebook-5th/dp/0071704426

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 23, 2023, 11:43:21 am
content: Quote from: Benta on February 22, 2023, 11:54:17 pmWhen I was an undergraduate, a "serious" STEM major (although they didn't call it "STEM" back then) would typically take a "xxxx" for reading knowledge" course, where "xxxx" was either German or Russian. There was a lot of good stuff being published in those languages, and in the pre-computer/pre-internet age you would be missing out on many advancements in your field unless you could read at least one of those languages.

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 29, 2023, 09:25:25 am
content: Someone recently mentioned "High Speed Digital Design: A Handbook of Black Magic". I picked up an ebay copy. Good stuff. Would recommend to a friend.

author: RJSV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 24, 2023, 03:26:54 am
content: 'Practical Clock Escapements'. By Laurie PenmanIt's another 20 years older now, but that book for me represents a bit of return to mechanical devices and engineered futuristic 'nanotechnology' devices. (Even though that book kept the topic on regular clocks.)That book was a sort of symbol, there in the office room, surrounded by mechanical prototypes of computer subsystems. Besides, it provided a needed practical grounding, reality check, as I (struggled) to understand the details in the book. Had a pleasant and interesting talk with the book's author, Mr. Penman himself, who I recall was a mechanical engineer.