Course Introduction
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Welcome – I am excited you are here!
This is the beginning of the your Arduino Course – we like to call it the “Arduino Short Course”. These modules are pulled directly from our premium Arduino Course for Absolute Beginners.
To be honest – there is a ton of material here! The last thing I would want is for you to get overwhelmed. In my opinion, the best approach is just to be slow and steady.
If this is your first dip into programming and electronics – you are about to have a ton of fun! If you are already familiar with using Arduino – I think you will still find a lot of useful tutorials.
Before we dive into the course I want to take some time to give you an overview of how the course is composed – that way you know what to expect and how to find what you are looking for.
I have placed a lot of emphasis on structure in the course – this should save you time if you just want to go looking for what you need. Every lesson page will start with a short description of the tutorial followed by a video.
Most lessons are followed by written tutorials that compliment the presentation – written lessons are broken up into the following sections:
WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
This section lists all the components required for the circuit. The Arduino board is not listed, as it is required for every project, along with the USB cable that attaches it to your computer.
For a complete list of hardware that you will require to complete this short course you can check out this page > Required Components.
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS:
This section will guide you verbally through setting up the circuit and loading the code onto your Arduino board. At the end of this section is a picture of how the circuit should look when set up on your Arduino – you may find it easiest just to use this diagram and skip the step by step written instructions for the circuit portion.
DISCUSS THE SKETCH:
Computer code in Arduino jargon is called a “sketch”. This section will describe piece by piece how the sketch (computer code) is written. It is preceded by the full sketch that is used in the section. It will discuss variables declared, functions used and the over all structure and operation of the sketch.
TRY ON YOUR OWN:
This section has a short list of code and /or circuit modifications for you to tinker with. These are the most important parts of the learning process. Take time to try and figure out solutions to the all these challenges. I cannot stress this enough.
FURTHER READING:
This section gives you hyperlinks to reading material online. Many of the links point to the Arduino reference page, where you will find documentation on all of the Arduino functions and syntax. In several circumstances, the URLs point to useful web pages on specific topics.
A Note on Affiliate Links:
I am an affiliate of Jameco and have included affiliate links to their website on the tutorial pages. I receive a commission from Jameco if you decided to purchase parts through them (this commission is not tacked on top of the cost – it would be same cost if you went directly to their website).
Jameco is a solid company with a good standing and I order stuff from them frequently – If I thought they stunk there is no way I would recommend them to you. If you ever need parts and want to help support this course, clicking through my website and buying there stuff would be a great way to contribute (AKA line my pockets with gold!).
The Arduino Community and Infrastructure:
Arduino is a successful platform largely due to its active user community. I say community, because people in a community interact and share and grow together, and that is very much what has happened with Arduino.
You will want to do a couple things as you begin learning to use the Arduino. I would recommend signing up for the Arduino forum. The forum is a great resource for finding answers.
Many of the questions you have will already have been asked on the forum. You can simply search through previous forum threads to find your answer. Other questions may be unique to your current project.
Before posting a question do some homework and see if the answer isn’t already right on the Arduino website. Make sure to leave a precise question, as open ended questions generally fail to get much useful response other than questions trying to find out what you really need to know. Include the code you are working with, the model of your Arduino board and the version of the Arduino IDE you are using.
Don’t be surprised if you encounter some feedback that is negative or useless…it happens. Just shrug it off and be thankful for the majority of folks who will be nice and helpful.
PARTS
You might also be interested in signing up for a Digi-Key or Mouser account. From these companies you can buy just a few or even single components. No need for big orders. I am not recommending to go out and buy an electronics shop full of parts, just saying that when the time comes, knowing where to turn for components makes it easier.
There are also several kit companies that offer Arduino specific accessories that may be helpful in designing your projects. Adafruit Industries, Sparkfun, MAKE:, and Jameco are great stores for these types of products, offer great customer service and also provide bountiful tutorials on using the stuff they sell.
I have accounts will all of the vendors I linked to above and have personally ordered from them. I would not recommend them if I did not like them.
PEOPLE
I would also recommend finding a group of local people whom might share an interest in micro-controllers – many times you can draw from their experience. meetup.com may have something listed near you, or if your town has a maker space/ hacker space this may be a source of interested folks. You could always just throw something out there yourself – you might be surprised who you’ll find.
These are all of course, just recommendations. I find I enjoy working by myself in many cases – I am just such good company! Well, I hope you have fun exploring the world of micro-controllers.
Getting Started
This course is designed around extremely quick and simple-to-set-up circuits using an Arduino board.
The first thing you should do in each lesson is set up the circuit!
Creating the circuit should take you a whole of 1 to 4 minutes depending on the lesson. The steps are listed at the beginning of each lesson in the “Step-by-Step Instructions” section. The written description is accompanied by a breadboard rendition of the circuit. You might find it easier to use the picture to set up the circuit.
Try not to be intimidated by the electronics – as it all may be completely new to you. In each video I go through exactly how to attach components. I guarantee it will not always work right for you the first time – this is all part of the learning process – it might be that a component is backwards or not lined up correctly on the breadboard. I do this all the time, it is just par for the course. In fact, I mess things up so frequently that the first time I set up a circuit I have the expectation for it not working quite right. It makes me so happy when it does work, and I am prepared to troubleshoot when it doesn’t work.
Once the circuit is created, load the code!
The circuit won’t do much until you have the brains of the Arduino programmed to execute the sketch (A sketch is simply the instructions written for the micro-controller). Each program you will use comes pre-installed with the Arduino development software.
These pre-installed sketches cover all the basics and many advanced examples of using your Arduino. In many cases the creators of the Arduino have personally written the programs – in other cases – Arduino users like you have submitted sketches that are on spot and included in the Arduino software.
I will show you exactly how to load the sketches – it is one click of the mouse! (Or a short cut key).
Once the sketch is running, read the code!
In each lesson the code has been included. Try to work your brain through the program before you even read about the new functions being presented. If you are lost, no sweat, then it is time to start reading.
If you think you understand the sketch just from reading the code – then skip the text and start hacking! There is no better way to learn how something ticks than to work with it.
This is how I try to approach a new sketch after I have read it and think I get the gist –
- Make some changes
- Make a prediction about the outcome of my changes
- Validate my predictions by running the sketch and observing the behavior of the circuit.
If it works how I planned – I am a genius! Usually my predictions are off though – but the actual behavior gives me insight into my misunderstanding. Rinse and repeat.
If you are the kind of person who likes to read through the full lesson before you get your hands dirty, that is fine too. I have tried to make the description of each program as user friendly as possible – but the fact remains – it can be slightly technical. Don’t let the fact that you might not understand something 100% stop you from experimenting with the sketch. The more you code, the better you will code – real understanding takes time to sink in.
Each example will focus on a single aspect of the Arduino platform – which makes them a great tool for learning. Many lessons will build on previous examples and circuits – in multiple cases you will use the same circuits but for different sketches.
You might even think some of the examples are too basic. If this is how you start to feel, then it is time for you to make changes to the code and push the envelope of your understanding.
When you get to the end of each lesson, there is a “Try On Your Own” section. This is where you will be presented with a challenge. Take on each challenge and make sure you save them for future use – they might come in handy some day…
Best of luck!
–Michael James[/fusion_text][/two_third][one_sixth last=”yes” spacing=”yes” center_content=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”” animation_speed=”0.1″ class=”yes” id=””][/one_sixth][/fullwidth]