Reading ARRL book and need some help.

[u/_OMGYES_]

Edit/update: Thank you all for your answers. I will follow the suggestions and treat the handbook as reference material and switch up my study guides. Much appreciated!!

I do not have any science or electrical background but have been interested in ham's and morse for quite a few years. I recently started watching some videos and purchased ARRL handbook as I want to pursue this hobby and get a license.

I went through the first into chapter and the second chapter is about electrical fundamentals. It looks like a daunting task and I am wondering if I have to go through every single thing in the book from each chapter or are there specific topics I should focus on and not get scared away from the hobby?

[u/rocdoc54]

The handbook is not a study guide for getting a license. It is a reference handbook for hams that already know the basics. It is really intermediate level material in many chapters. If you live in the USA start at the ARRL website.

[u/Old-Engineer854]

Best advice is find a radio club near you, and participate in one of their licensing classes, rather than just watching videos to try learning on your own. Visit www.arrl.org/clubs for a seachable directory.

[u/jasondega]

For the technician exam you don’t have to go too deep. It’s helpful to know a few basic formulas and a little about Ohms law and any good book or course will cover those.

Then you can use HamStudy.org to take practice tests and make sure you understand the specific questions on the exam and you should be fine.

[u/qbg]

Assuming you're in the US, look at https://hambook.org/ (book) and https://hamstudy.org/ (flashcards) instead.

[u/jephthai]

Think of the Handbook as a reference -- you'll be thinking about some project, or wondering how something works, and go look up the relevant section as needed. You might do better to pick up a license prep manual or watch through one of the YouTube series devoted to that topic. You'll probably like one of either Dave Casler or Ham Radio Crash Course; both have good intro video series you can work through in a short time.

[u/gable454]

Just study to the test to get your license and then you will learn on-the-job. The question pool for each license class is published and you can just use it as a study aid. Go to www.hamstudy.org and set up a free account. Study for the test and your learning will kick into high gear. Good luck

[u/extra2002]

Another book suggestion: Ham Radio For Dummies, by Ward Silver. The "For Dummies" series is generally a good solid introduction to a topic, so don't be insulted by the title.

[u/kf6gpe]

A book like "ARRL Ham Radio License Manual 5th Edition – Complete Study Guide with Question Pool to Pass the Technician Class Amateur Radio Exam" (available from arrl.org or amazon.com) is where you want to start.

The Handbook is an invaluable reference. But sitting it down and reading it from end to end is going to make your eyes hurt and your brain swim.

As others have said, you can do a lot less work and pass the test. A lot of the questions boil down to things like basic courtesy o the air, some specifics of the laws here in the US, and a tiny bit of circuit theory.

You can do this!!

[u/NoSingularities0]

TLDR; Electrical fundamentals only covers a small-"ish" portion of the test. There's also operation, what's allowed and not allowed, types of antenna's, very important things like safety, etc.

It also depends on what you're trying to accomplish. If you just want to pass the test, it may be easier to use something like KB6NU's no-nonsense guide for the exam. That's what I used for Technician and you get some very basic reasons for why the answer to a specific question is the correct answer. But using it, I aced the Tech exam. General and Extra are progressively more challenging. For General I have been using the Fast Track Kindle book. It has more details than the no-nonsense guides and also gives hints on how to remember the correct answer. Using the Fast Track Kindle book for General, my lowest score on hamexam.org and hamstudy.org practice tests for General is 33/35. I'm taking the General exam in a couple weeks. I'm guessing the ARRL book is a lot more detailed than either one which will ultimately help you pass the harder tests (General and Extra), but if you're just wanting the basics, it may be overkill. Nothing wrong with overkill though and having some of that knowledge is invaluable, even if not related to amatuer radio.

[u/wackyvorlon]

Check out the book Practical Electronics for Inventors. I think you’ll find it helpful.

[u/NominalThought]

Many people just memorize the answers.

[u/nbrpgnet → u/NominalThought]

Many people live on the sidewalk in front of Kroger.

[u/NominalThought → u/nbrpgnet]

Most hams are loaded wth cash. Never saw one living on the street with an HT! LOL!

[u/OliverDawgy]

You just need to know what's on the test is this the book you're studying from?: - ARRL Ham Radio Licence Manual: https://home.arrl.org/action/Store/Product-Details/productId/2003373064

Also, ARRL has a free video series "Amateur Radio License Course: Technician", with Dave Cassler KE0OG: - https://learn.arrl.org/courses/35902

[u/robtwitte]

For good beginner info aimed at getting your Tech license, take a look here:
HamRadioSchool.com
There is lots of free content, a free trial, and an excellent for-pay online course.

[u/jesus-is-not-god]

These courses helped me https://fasttrackham.com/ Plus, each licence level reading books like this from ARRL https://www.arrl.org/studying-for-a-technician-license/

Used these all the way to earning AE.

[u/SeaworthyNavigator]

The ARRL Handbook is way more than is needed for the Technician license. I'd suggest you pick up a copy of the current edition of the ARRL Technicial License Manual.