Where do broadly-skilled maker-ish hobbyists hang out online?
December 25, 2011 4:27 PM
What are the best forums for asking questions about electronic projects and related things?
I have a few projects in mind which involve electronics, computers and some mechanical components. Most of the forums I've found are either relatively inactive or are focused on a specific technology like Arduino or the MAKE Controller. I'm looking for something with a broader set of topics and readerships, so I can throw out a question and discuss diverse solutions. If I ask how to do something on the Arduino forum, of course they'll tell me how to do it with an Arduino, but there may well be some better way to do it that hasn't even occurred to me.
I would love to find a very active forum full of people who are equally comfortable hacking on an Arduino as soldering their own circuits, writing mobile apps, building parts out of wood and metal, etc. I thought the Make Magazine forum might be like that, but it doesn't seem quite right (and the interface is annoying).
I have a few projects in mind which involve electronics, computers and some mechanical components. Most of the forums I've found are either relatively inactive or are focused on a specific technology like Arduino or the MAKE Controller. I'm looking for something with a broader set of topics and readerships, so I can throw out a question and discuss diverse solutions. If I ask how to do something on the Arduino forum, of course they'll tell me how to do it with an Arduino, but there may well be some better way to do it that hasn't even occurred to me.
I would love to find a very active forum full of people who are equally comfortable hacking on an Arduino as soldering their own circuits, writing mobile apps, building parts out of wood and metal, etc. I thought the Make Magazine forum might be like that, but it doesn't seem quite right (and the interface is annoying).
AllAboutCircuits. Fairly friendly, and very helpful, as long as you're not trying to get somebody else to do your homework for you.
posted by spacewrench at 4:44 PM on December 25, 2011
posted by spacewrench at 4:44 PM on December 25, 2011
There's a Stack Exchange site that might be worth a look.
posted by feloniousmonk at 5:29 PM on December 25, 2011
posted by feloniousmonk at 5:29 PM on December 25, 2011
You said you don't want technology-specific, but AVRFreaks, a community based around Atmel's 8 and 32-bit microcontrollers / SOCs, has a higher-than-average level of electrical engineering skill lurking around their forums and specific subforums for general EE topics, etc. A lot of those folks were in the hobby & industry before the Arduino opened the floodgates to everyone and their uncle, and it shows in the quality of discourse (or at least it did a few years ago; haven't been a heavy poster there since I started grad school).
posted by Alterscape at 9:12 AM on December 26, 2011
posted by Alterscape at 9:12 AM on December 26, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by ZenMasterThis at 4:32 PM on December 25, 2011