Horowitz and Hill 3rd ed

[enl 227]

There was a tremendous thump on my porch. The cat spun out hard, regained traction, and headed for under the couch. I opened the door to see the postman walking away and a large box sitting there. I opened it. A gold colored book. The third. has arrived. The cat reappeared, tail fur puffed out more than I have ever seen, sniffed the book, and promptly began dismemberment of the box.

 

Then began the odyssey: reading the thing

 

I have only done a partial look through at this time. It will take time. There are a LOT of changes. Much more a new book than a new edition, in many ways.

 

Highlights:

 

additional appendices and additions to the old ones. For example, a short intro to Spice. Nice for the students. It is correct, unlike many, many of the online tutorials. A short addition to the o'scope section for digital scopes.

 

A decent (yes, this I read all of) chapter on microcontrollers. Not detail heavy. A good overview of use, architectures, some examples, a brief comparison guide. Pro: this now in the book. Con: not much to it. It is made up for by updates in the other digital electronics chapters. I will vote overall win, as WAY too broad an area, with too many options that change quickly, for much detail in a long-life, comprehensive text.

 

New chapter on PLD's that looks good.

 

Lots of updates to analog chapters.

 

Missing is the section on construction techniques (unless it was blended into the main text somewhere). That was one of the parts I most often directed students to, as there really haven't been significant changes over the years. (protoboard, PC board, wire wrap, etc, though there have been changes in how frequently each is used with the dominance of surface mount components and easier PC board production compared to 20 years ago)

 

 

 

Overall review/summary: it was worth the money to update. I have used 1st and 2nd ed.s since they came out as references for all of those things I don't use often, reference tables for part selection, and as references for students to look through. I would still recommend this to a student, in fact more than the outdated 2nd ed, with the caveat that this is NOT a barebones introduction to electricity. It has the target audience (advertising notwithstanding) of a student that has a basic understanding of DC circuits, math at the level of trig (or intro calculus), and basic physics concepts from an intro E&M  course.

[enl 227]

I have, to this time, done close review through ch2. I have submit two errata (not bad for first print). There are about a dozen alreadty listed on the H&H site

 

I have been quite happy with the changes overall, in particular to ch2 (bipolar transistor). I will update as I continue close reading, and would encourage any other that have the text to add their to this.

 

There is some elaboration vs 2nd ed for switching with transistors, in particular a Schmidt trigger application, as well as a few new things appropriate for low voltage (3v) drive. They open with transistor as a switch, whereas previous editions opened with (linear) current amplifier. A little change in the pure analog side with an emphasis on current source that, to me, fits well with how I have approached things for years. In prior editions, they began with the emitter follower (a good approach when leading to the common emitter amp), but they now break it down into two conceptual pieces explicitly: current source and resistor to convert current to potential.

[vinicius.jlantunes 50]

I am hoping to get this book but the BRL / USD exchange rate is making it rather expensive at the moment. Besides yours I've seen numerous positive reviews about it already so definitely worth getting!

[enl 227]

I have been continuing through the 3rd, and have continued to find that it is growth from the second. The only flaw (ok, confusing thing) is the references to the (forthcoming) ancillary text. The introduction makes it clear that the `x' references are to the ancillary text, but in reading, the frequent references were not as clear... they are nominally in italics, but ONLY the chapter number (for example `3x') is, and the size and form do not stand out. On the first reading, they appeared to be unresolved editorial marks, even though I had read the introduction where the form was described.

 

I have made it through the third chapter, and still recommend it strongly, with the previous caveats (not a zero background intro, etc)