Schaum's Outline of Introduction to Digital Systems

Rating:
Summary: Save Your Money!
Review: Don't waste your money on this book. The primary problem being that the authors have gone completely "over the top" in their efforts to introduce logic representations employing what they refer to as "the mixed-logic convention". This has resulted in a key chapter (4) on the design and implementation of combinational logic being completely incomprehensible. And unfortunately much of this confusion is carried throughout the remainder of this book.

In fairness, I will point out that I'm somewhat biased. Being from an older school of though where we were taught binary arithmetic, Boolean algebra, Karnaugh mapping, digital IC hardware types, combinational and synchronous circuit design/analysis and how to establish and maintain a logic/voltage convention in our circuits. We were also taught how to take the family of logic that the boss gave us(usually the NAND gate, NOT inverter and J-K F/F) and design, test and draw a schematic for a circuit. We saw no need to have two or three different drawings for the NAND gate; somehow we just seemed to know how to interrupt the NAND function and no one seemed to agonize over what if the signal is "active high", "active low", "asserted", "unasserted" and etc. We also knew what the schematic meant without any "half arrows", "back slashes" or active high/low indicators other than the bar. God did we have it nice.

I fully understand that an instructor in this field today must incorporate some aspects of this mixed logic convention into their presentations. Many circuit designers have been taught this, to some degree or other, for several years and new students are sure to see different gate representations with different logic conventions being used in the same schematics; however this book is going to do nothing but be confussing in this area. When presenting the simple NAND gate implemented latch circuit (basic F/F), you see a drawing with two gates, eight half arrows, two back slashes and active logic livel indicators on all four I/O's, you have got to know something is seriously wrong. Do not read this book until you have your degree and then only for a laugh. For a Schaum's Outline, check out DIGITAL PRINCIPLES by Tokheim. If you can afford a good hardback reference, chech out DIGITAL SYSTEMS, PRINCIPLES & APPLICATIONS by Tocci & Widmer.

Rating:
Summary: A "MUST BUY" Book
Review: Excellent book for beginners and a great reference for every one! This books covers every thing you need for designing Digital Systems and covers all course fundamentals (Binary System, Logic Design...... upto Design of Simple State Machines and Electronically Programmable Functions) and supplements any class text. An essential book for all levels from High School to College. Schaum's Outline Series are a great help.