Getting started in Logic fundamentals - recommendations for books, sites, tools? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 04:37:05 am
content: Looking for feedback regarding recommended books or Logic 101 websites. My research thus far has uncovered a lot of text books and specific concept web sites - as expected college project related. I have a USBee LA that has been mostly focused on on decoding efforts until now.My focus thus far in my electronics hobby has been micro-controllers (Propeller, some PIC). I am interested in venturing into Logic fundamentals. Recently discovered the Logisim simulatorhttp://ozark.hendrix.edu/~burch/logisim/and purchased a hand of 7400 series discrete chips to experiment with also.I did a quick EEVBlog search on logic and found mostly questions on specific concepts. If I missed a good source, please redirect me - thanks in advance!

author: sanjin
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 09:06:17 am
content: I like this website:http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/It's not just limited to digital and It's great for beginners.

author: magnus0re
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 10:01:09 am
content: http://ozark.hendrix.edu/~burch/logisim/YES. it is awesome."digital design with cpld applications and vhdl" by Dueck starts on the very basics, and gives a good fundamental understanding.Try to simulate the circuits from the books in logisim. When I had this book on my syllabus, and used logisim, I really learned a lot.Also, after a while, learn all the boolean theoremsmy suggestion on how to learn basic low-level digital:1. learn what a truth table and an AND gate is2. learn OR NAND XOR NOT, and their respective truth tables3. simulate a lot, simulate a traffic light. ( with only low-level gates)4. learn to convert between nand/and/nor ( this is what you use the boolean theorems for)5. learn to use flipflops (D, JK, etc)6. learn howto build a multiplexer7. learn how to build a counter from flipflops and gatesthat is my recommendation for learning logic fundamentals. It is very similar to my 1st course in digital electronics.Good luck learning-Magnus

author: Valueduser
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 12:40:15 pm
content: http://www.nand2tetris.org/They offer a bunch of free materials including a simulator that uses a generic HDL. The course starts off by teaching basic logic and goes up through creating a whole system complete with a custom OS and programming language.Another suggestion I always make is to find out what books your local university teaches out of and then go to the used textbook store. The old editions can usually be had for under $20.

author: amyk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 12:44:30 pm
content: http://visual6502.org/Something you might find fun to play with.

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 04:19:58 pm
content: Quote from: magnus0re on October 08, 2013, 10:01:09 amThanks for the great feedback! For item 2 in your list, I will be creating some flash cards. Also real world simulations makes a lot of sense, I like the idea of the traffic light scenario. I checked out the book, will need to find a good *used* copy, definitely text book priced new.At present I have a limited understanding of assembler, am stuck I think in part because I lack the fundamental logic foundation.I am surprised that I am interested in this as I considered myself to be microcontroller driven only. I recently picked up an old copy of Elecktor from a swap meet - it was Dec 2012 with a cover all about FPGAs. This plus my limited following of Parallax's development of the Propeller 2 have sparked an unexpected interest!

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 04:24:46 pm
content: Quote from: amyk on October 08, 2013, 12:44:30 pmInteresting, saw the picture of the Steves at the bottom. I recently finished the book iWoz and am interested in understanding more regarding how Steve W worked on the 'chips' game of console game development with logic only. In his book Steve referenced logic and his passion for logic many times.

author: olsenn
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2013, 04:32:53 pm
content: LBE (Learn By Example) Books has some great books on digital logic, but half the content is implementing functionality using HDL languages.1. Learn how to wite/read truth tables2. Learn all the basic gates (AND/NAND/OR/NOR/XOR/INVERSE) and their corresponding truth tables3. Learn Karnaugh Maps4. Practice simplification and conditioning (DeMorgan's Theorem etc)5. Learn RS-Latches, and T/D/JK Flip-Flops6. Implement and verify the functionality of various gates, latches, and flip-flops on a breadboard. Understand "CLK", "ENABLE", "PRESET", "RESET", "Q_bar" etc7. Learn how to create and use various forms of memory (RAM/ROM/EPROM/EEPROM/SRAM).8. Understand concepts such as shift registers, Bus, serial-to-parallel, parallel-to-serial...8. Learn the operation and array logic (CPLD/FPGA/Gate-Arrays)9. Build some shit!!!!!!!!!!!!

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2013, 04:18:21 am
content: 3. Learn Karnaugh MapsNew concept for me. I watched found a couple YouTube clips but I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn last night. So I need to spend some more time remembering all the math I forgot. I would need to repeat math classes every couple years to keep from losing it. I don't use it enough.Number 9 is always good advice. That's why I didn't stick to engineering. I want to do and not struggle through theory. Making up for that years later though.

author: magnus0re
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2013, 11:28:08 am
content: Quote from: olsenn on October 08, 2013, 04:32:53 pmYES. I totally forgot. Karnaugh Maps are instrumental in analyzing truth tables.

author: HamiltonHipster
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2013, 12:50:30 pm
content: I find books are often what i go to first when i want to learn, or check up on somethingEasier to read than staring at a screenGood books:Digital Systems, Principles and Applications- Ronald J. Tocci / Neal S. WidmerA fundamental concepts sort of book. Starts with number systems and goes onwards...Has; Introductory concepts, Logic gates and Boolean Algebra, Combinational Logic, Flip-flops, Digital Arithmatics, Counters and Registers, Integrated-Circuit Logic families, MSI logic, DACs and ADCs, Memory devices.The Art of Digital Design- Franklin P. Prosser / David E. WinkelAn introduction to Top-Down design. Good for once you've got the basicsGood luck

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 03:53:01 pm
content: Quote from: HamiltonHipster on October 09, 2013, 12:50:30 pmThanks for the tip! Found both books USED on Amazon for cheap! They are on the way. Other folks recommended good books also, but didn't find used ones right away. I will keep looking though.I like to collect books, but I rarely make it cover-to-cover. If I could only read 1/2 of all the books I have purchased, I would be a genius by now...

author: olsenn
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 04:04:34 pm
content: QuoteIf you have no intent on reading the books you just bought, you are wasting money.

author: TerminalJack505
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 04:08:38 pm
content: Here's a great videolecture serieson the subject.

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 04:30:11 pm
content: Quote from: olsenn on October 10, 2013, 04:04:34 pmI will read them but not every word on every page. I usually read specific chapters and jump around a lot. Many of the books I collect come in handy when I want to refresh myself. I don't consume tech books like a fiction book. I have tried to read cover to cover in order but the material just doesn't lend itself to that kind of experience.Books are never a waste of money in my opinion.

author: rsjsouza
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 06:57:00 pm
content: Quote from: stempile on October 08, 2013, 04:37:05 amSince you mentioned that, I would also recommend the two books from Texas Instruments where a lot of people learned about discrete logic: TI's TTL Data book (one downloadable link ishere) and the TTL databook for design engineers (I found two linkshere)I warn you these are very old books, therefore some information may be outdated but the basics are there.

author: Quick5pnt0
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 07:03:25 pm
content: Not sure if anyone mentioned it but you can also use a circuit simulator like Falstad to experiment with logic gates.

author: Jope
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 09:44:03 pm
content: A book I can recommend for beginners:Bebop to the Boolean Boogieby Clive Maxfield.It's not a college-level textbook, but it's a great book for beginners. Clive Maxfield is a great teacher.

author: Mandelbrot
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 10:29:24 pm
content: I used Fundamentals of Logic Design (ISBN 0495471690) in my intro to digital logic class. I was able to read it word by word with comprehension for many pages at a time which is not the case for any other EE book I've used. It's one of the ones I've decided to keep as well. It isn't too expensive if you get it used on Amazon. I think there's a new edition now, but the older one was just fine.

author: elgonzo
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 10, 2013, 10:37:53 pm
content: Quote from: stempile on October 08, 2013, 04:19:58 pmWith regard to learning/understanding logic functions: If you have an iPad/iPhone, you might also give "Circut Coder" a try (sorry, i don't know about an equivalent for Androids).While its appeal is that of a game, it is actually a learning tool. You start from the very basic logic functions, like NOR,AND,..., continue to build all sorts of flip flops, adders, (de)multiplexer, registers, and solve more complex problems such as Channel Bounce.For each problem (logic function), you are confronted with a sequence of input signals with their matching output signals, and you will have to build the circuit that connect the inputs with the outputs. The game is rather honing problem-solving skills with focus on digital logic functions, and is not just a memory game.

author: sub
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 12, 2013, 11:22:08 am
content: I have Harris & Harris, "Digital Design and Computer Architecture", though it doesn't talk much about discrete logic itself, mostly more generic digital stuff. It starts off with binary numbers and Karnaugh maps, and ends up showing how to build a MIPS processor, including VHDL and Verilog code for both the processor and testbench.

author: Caca
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 12, 2013, 01:33:37 pm
content: I remember using "Deeds" for this on high school, but don't know if it's the best option to go.

author: djsb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 12, 2013, 02:58:50 pm
content: Digital Electronics-A practical approach with VHDL-9th Edition-Bill KleitzI've bought nearly every edition. Learnt how to do Karnaugh mapping from this book back in the 90's.David.

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 15, 2013, 02:02:59 am
content: Quote from: stempile on October 10, 2013, 03:53:01 pmThe good deal of a book "Digital systems" arrived today. Turns out it was a good deal be uses it was just a work book, not the text book. Fail. Went back to amazon to double check it wasn't my mistake. Turns out some how the reviews and discription were for the text. Bummer.

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 15, 2013, 02:33:52 am
content: Quote from: elgonzo on October 10, 2013, 10:37:53 pmPicked this up on an iPad. Made it to level 6of 60 after a couple days. I immediately attempted to solve the early puzzles with overly complex solutions. I like the way it allows you to solve the puzzle using different approaches.I am having a hard time thinking in binary. I need to do some exercises in that space to really get practical with this. This was definitely a better couple of App Store spending then other stuff I have picked up. Thanks!!

author: geraldjhg
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 18, 2013, 01:42:08 am
content: learn them all in software pleaseuse a microget some good drivers for outputand some input protection for inputsit is really interesting and very easy to stimulateyour logic and see the results with some leds relays buzzers wateverthe only harware logic to start would be a SPDT and a SR flipflop with 2 nandmafe 2 or 4 of theese and use for interrupt or general inputs

author: stempile
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 18, 2013, 03:13:43 am
content: geraldjhg - My new Rigol scope is fueling part of my desire learn as well! leds relays buzzers will be the scope!

author: HamiltonHipster
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2013, 08:40:26 am
content: I'm sorry to hear about getting the wrong book Stempile. If you're still going to get the Digital Systems one, don't worry about getting the absolute newest edition with these kinds books. Get maybe 1 edition old. Most of the stuff (the essentials) stays the same