Rating: 
Summary: A Stinker!
Review: A stinkerThe major frustration students mention when derogating
this text is the fact that solutions are not provided. While this is a legitimate complaint against the book there are much larger systemic problems with the text. Even though I had access to all the solutions I found this book to be fairly pathetic. First the book conceptually sloppy. Aesthetically its nicely laid out and I suspect the average rushed professor pursuing through it when searching for an appropriate text for their class will look at its superficial qualities (pretty pictures, major topics are appropriate ordered and highlighted) and think the book is suitable for their class. I assure you it's not suitable for most students. Secondly the book, which somehow and tragically got a foothold in universities, has enough critical mass and momentum to perpetuate its obsolete and sad existence despite many better contenders. This is a major problem in academia which is so sessile and scared of change that it takes a miracle to usurp an established text, no matter how poor that text actually is. I suppose this is because they are freightened that they will be looked down upon if they dont follow the same established pracitces as other universities they wish to measure up to. Probably the same reason they will hire bad professors from Harvard or Yale over better teachers from less famous schools. A self-perpatuating, group think cowardice that fails to serve their students.
Now the book is sloppy in the sense that concepts aren't developed or explained well, or at all, explanations are cloudy or lead back onto themselves. Worst of all The drill exercises and problems don't correlate well with the text. Most exercises seem to expect you to go one to two levels of creative and intuitive abstractions beyond what's stated in the text. This is not acceptable in a putatively introductory text. Despite the authors stated belief in the foreword, this is no way to teach beginning students who want to learn the basics and learn them clearly. This is totally inexcusable, naïve, and fundamentally wrongheaded. As an example exercise 1.10 cannot be answered with the scant and unhelpful information provided. Exercise 2.11 is truly a circuit divider problem but circuit dividers aren't introduced into later in the book. It seems the author expects you to figure out a circuit divider on your own -ya right. This is just a preliminary taste of the sloppiness and wrong-headedness present in this tome. I have reviewed several of my textbooks all positively except for this mess.
This work is embarrassing for the authors and I would think with so many poor reviews they would work to correct some of these issues. But alas the last three editions of this book are next to identical with no changes between the editions except for rearranging the problems order in the back of the chapters and an obvious intent to generate new monies from poor students by reissuing the same tired material - classy move there. Now I'm concerned the authors will blow off these poor ratings and just attribute them to bitter, underachieving students, but how can so many complaints be ignored? The author previous editions are almost identical to his latest mess so why doesn't he correct at least some of the issues repeatedly stated by students. One can only guess he doesn't care, is too lazy, or is in a state of denial. Jim and Susan need to reconsider their errant ways. So many students cant all be wrong, you produced a stinker here that's sloppy and ill conceived. Please put substance in front of pretty layout and address the needs of so many frustrated students. Please!
Rating: 
Summary: Very good & understandable First course in Electric Circuits
Review: After trying to read other electric circuits texts, such as by authors Dorf and Svoboda, this text is not easy but very understanable. For example Nilsson covers parallel and series RLC circutis that lead straight to 2nd Order differential equations; but he manages to find common ground so the math appears similar for both types of RLC circuits. Nilsson uses symbols and math notation normally found in popular Differential Equations textbooks. This is great since some electric circuits authors generally like to develop their own notation set -- which for students makes learning much longer and harder. Technical authors need to standardize math notation used in technical courses as a way to eliminate much of the inherent confusion that now exists in many technical textbooks. Authors quickly rushed to developing their own notation in order to later avoid publication problems dealing with plagiarism issues that some could later raise. Also, Nilsson coverage of Laplace is also clear. Problems at the end of chapter are typically way above the coverage of the chapter's material, but maybe someday all authors will stop doing this nonsense. Someday textbooks may even come packaged and sold with a partial solution manual to help students overcome difficult problems. Gerard J. Sagliocca, P.E.
Albany, N Y (USA)
Rating: 
Summary: Inadequate
Review: Although many of the negative reviews of this book are based upon not having answers to all of the problems, there really is no problem here because the free Cadence PSpice software can be used to simulate any of the circuits and find the answers for any of the problems. The PSpice software also allows the student to vary the problems in an almost infinite variety of ways to try out ideas about what is going on in the circuit. My own gripe about this book is its (almost) complete neglect of algebraic solutions. For example, reactances in most problems are given in Ohms (just numbers), and frequency doesn't even show up. This avoidance of frequency and of symbolic values for R,L,C makes the frequency and component dependencies of the circuit obscure, and doesn't prepare the student to use algebraic expressions to understand the qualitative behavior of the circuit. Sinusoidal steady-state analysis (which largely suffers from the above complaint) doesn't show up until p. 441!! Real frequency dependence doesn't show up until Bode Diagrams on p. 736!! The combination of real thought using algebraic analysis with numerical simulation using PSpice is hardly even a concept in this book. Bottom line: Go elsewhere
Rating:
Summary: Example problems are inadequate for homework.
Review: As an EE student, this book is good as a basic overview, yet lacks real examples which provide an understanding needed to do the homework problems. Due to the fact that the solutions are not included, the homework problems are too diffcult for the beginning student to answer.
Rating:
Summary: Problems Are Too Complicated
Review: During my first semester of Circuits, I loved this book, but I came to find out during my second semester that it was not the book but my professor that was teaching me well. Primarily, my problem with the book is that it offers too few examples dealing with the actual homework problems in the back. If you read and work out the (on average) four examples in the chapter and then begin the problems, you will find the content very different and more difficult. Occasionally, after three reads through the chapter and some outside sources, I was able to work some of the problems, but overall, they are not structured on the chapter topics and many of the problems are poorly worded. The solutions in the back are also in an inconsistent order, appearing to offer solutions only to the easiest of the problems. I enjoy the reading, but the problems need to be redone, or the reading needs to incorporate some of the ideas in the problems.
Rating: 
Summary: Not as helpful for undergrad Engineers
Review: Electric Circuits served as an introductory text for my first electronics class. It was helpful throughout the year and it was formatted to help students understand the main concepts. Additionally, this is one of the few engineering books that has more than the regular two tone colors-black and white. Nilsson's book also added blue and there are many diagrams and pictures of actual applications of the circuitry principles. However, the first two chapters on Ohm's Law and Kirchoff's Law did not provide enough examples of different configurations of circuits and I was stuck trying to determine the basic elements of a circuit. Secondly, Nilsson's book does have answers to the end of chapter questions in the back of the text as most other science or engineering books do, though there were two or three examples in the chapter that explained the thought process behind solving certain problems. I might have given two stars because the book started out roughly, but as the semester moved on, the book became more helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Ex Nilsson Student
Review: Having taken a class under Dr. Nilsson and having used the older version of this book, I may be somewhat biased, but I feel that this book is more than adequate for learning circuit analysis. It includes plenty of calculus and enough diff eqs for an engineering book. I hate engineering books that take the sissy approach and do not include calculus and diff eqs (especially when this is the way that nature works). It is not a community college textbook. I am now out in the real world and use this book for a reference when I need to analyze a circuit. It is too bad that no answers are provided, and I urge Dr. Nilsson to add these as they are needed for the beginning student. The numerical approach makes the algebra less tedious, and concentrate on getting the answer. I have worked on both the variable approach and the numerical approach, and alot of time can be spent on manipulating variables rather than simplfying the analysis with numbers. You will get the answer much quicker when using numbers as it does not take a very complicated circuit to make the algebraic manipulation overly tedious. When I took this class at Iowa State, I was writing diff eqs and using Laplace transforms for cicuit analysis in this book and I had not taken diff eqs yet. I did not know what Laplace transforms were yet. I would have given this book five stars, but no answer key. Keep cracking at this book, and it will give you the elementary analysis tools that are needed. I feel that it was well written with future classes in mind such as systems and diff eqs. When I finally took diff eqs and systems I said to myself hummmh. And that is what learning is all about.
Rating:
Summary: electrical engineering undergrad
Review: I agree with one of the other reviews. This is by far the worst electric circuits text that I have had the misfortune of being forced to use. The examples are rudamentary, as are the general explanations, and inadequately prepare one for the homework problems. I have taken electric circuit theory at the community college level and the texts used for those courses were far better. However, since I attended community college some time ago, I fear that the texts I used at the time are currently too outdated for recommendation.
Rating:
Summary: This book is the WORST book I have come across!
Review: I am an Electrical Engineering student and I just want to say, "THIS BOOK IS HORRIBLE!" The book is poorly written. The authors seem to have a hard time expressing any of their ideas on paper. The book is very confusing. The examples suck. The examples have little or nothing to do with the drill excercises or the homework. There are no solutions to any of the problems, so you have no idea if you are doing them correctly.
Rating:
Summary: Prepare yourself for a lot of work
Review: I am using this text right now in a circuit analysis course, and I believe the text is actually making the course harder than it needs to be. I have a number of years experience in electronics and have taken circuit analysis in the past (far past). This book, while doing a fair job on the basic explanation of the principals, uses trivial examples for illustration, then leaves you to figure out the more complex drill and homework problems with absolutely no help whatsoever. In addition, the authors and Prentice apparently think that a student solutions manual would hinder the education experience, so their solution set is illustrated only in the instructor's manual, which is unavailable to students. Consequently, you have no idea whether you have worked the problems correctly unless the instructor corrects them, or provides access to the solution manual somehow. If I'm working problems at 2 am, running to the library or the department office is not an option. The authors should redo this book completely and make it useful to students, rather than relying on the good graces of the teachers who use it. In the meantime, be prepared to do a lot of outside research to help you with the examples. Unless you have to have it for a class, send Prentice a message and buy a different book.
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