PC and Electronics: Connecting Your PC to External Devices (Productivity Series)

PC & Electronics: Connecting Your PC to External Devices shows how to make your own version of the oft-advertised Clapper, a device that turns lights on and off in response to the noise of a handclap. Further, it shows you how to make port testers, a thermometer, an interface that enables you to control a model train, a control for a stepper motor, and several other projects--all designed to plug into a port on an IBM-compatible personal computer and interact with the user via software.

A couple of Zoller's projects are straight out of Mr. Wizard's Pointless Science Projects--no one needs a special electronic device for testing light bulbs when a lamp will do the job admirably. Many of the circuits--those having to do with model railroads, for example--are of practical use only to certain people. But this book is for electronic hobbyists, people who get a kick out of soldering components together to make functional devices. The programs that interact with the hardware appear on the companion CD-ROM, where you'll find the Visual Basic source code, though it's not discussed in the text.

Don't worry if you're new to homemade electronics. Zoller explains basic techniques, including soldering, board making, and component identification, in some detail. --David Wall