All these things are just different worlds. I'm the same when it comes to medicine or tree surgery or a multitude of different things. I have no idea how a security guard even works!
On this subject though, I did EE in the past and now software and it's roughly as complicated as throwing some code together after a few years of practice. Except that the design rules, physics and CAD software are perhaps ironically somewhat better defined than what the software industry has managed! Many an EE has looked in awe at the software that we write too.
It's not even that hard, I managed to design a simple PCB after only a few months of tinkering with hardware. It's really not bad, and very fun. I recommend it to everyone.
I enjoy PCB design too - through it results in me spending an inordinate amount of time tweaking trace placement and ground planes for mostly aesthetic purposes :)
For one-offs you can entirely forgo the PCB design if you so desire as well and just use the PCB stock and rats nest it.
One of my creations: http://imgur.com/mcS79lU - fugly but very robust, functional, free of nasty parasitics and from paper to powered up and working is around 20 minutes work.
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All these things are just different worlds. I'm the same when it comes to medicine or tree surgery or a multitude of different things. I have no idea how a security guard even works!
On this subject though, I did EE in the past and now software and it's roughly as complicated as throwing some code together after a few years of practice. Except that the design rules, physics and CAD software are perhaps ironically somewhat better defined than what the software industry has managed! Many an EE has looked in awe at the software that we write too.
It's not even that hard, I managed to design a simple PCB after only a few months of tinkering with hardware. It's really not bad, and very fun. I recommend it to everyone.
I enjoy PCB design too - through it results in me spending an inordinate amount of time tweaking trace placement and ground planes for mostly aesthetic purposes :)
That is 90% of the fun :P
Recommended too.
For one-offs you can entirely forgo the PCB design if you so desire as well and just use the PCB stock and rats nest it.
One of my creations: http://imgur.com/mcS79lU - fugly but very robust, functional, free of nasty parasitics and from paper to powered up and working is around 20 minutes work.
Hm. Can someone shed some light on this?