Good books for getting started on Comp Engineering

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>Hey,</p>

<p>I was wondering what would be some good books to get started on CE. Up until a month ago, I always thought that I was going to be a doctor, so I'm REALLY REALLY behind everyone who have probably been experimenting with this stuff already. I really need to catch up, so can anyone give me some ideas for good books? I'm not necessarily a stupid kid (I'm no MIT admit, but I'm not a stoner either), and I'm getting really worried that I will die in college just because I haven't been playing with circuits since I was 3 or something, so yeah.</p>

<p>Oh, and how easy would it be to double major in CE and CS? I understand that doing EE and CS is simple, so wouldn't CE and CS be even easier?</p>

2

<p>I am in almost the exact same position as you (except I am leaning towards EE). </p>

<p>If you are completely new to computer engineering, I suggest that you read "A+ Guide To Managing and Maintaining Your PC" (A+ certification is usually the first certification that people can get if they want to work hands-on with computers). They issued me that book in tenth grade when I took this semester-long A+ certification course, so it is as elementary as you can get. However, its over 1,000 pages.</p>

<p>And yes, majoring in CE and CS shouldn't be too much of a burden (at least at my school).</p>

3

<p>CSE is one of the hardest majors in any college. </p>

<p>Usually #1 is EE and #2 is CS and CSE is #1.5 I guess.</p>

<p>As for catching up, you really cant catch up, what you need to do is just do things at your own pace, you wont be able to Catch up with guys who have been doing stuff for 8-15 years. Its just not possible.</p>

<p>While yes you should know about computers, CSE has nothing to do with being able to repair computers. CSE is the design and development of computers, this is the hardware and software that makes then work. ON the EE side you will be designing circuits and such, and on the CS side you will be writing code for the hardware. The High majority of CSE grads have absolutely no idea on how to take apart and fix a pc, but they can be amazing at circuits and programming.</p>

<p>I have a large number of certifications, including the A+ and Ive had it since I was 12. Now as a soon to be graduate of a CSE curriculum, you don't need a A+ and it wont help you that much, though it cant hurt. If you want to learn things like that, Dont take classes, classes are for fools. Like I said I got my A+ when I was 12, and I never took a class, I knew it all from experience. Thats the way to learn.</p>

<p>Most schools if not all, accept new CSE students with the idea that they don't have any experience, your first CS1 course will treat you as a complete beginner. so you don't really need to prepare because some others in the class will be in your situation. so just go with it.</p>

<p>If I am not clear, Im sorry. </p>

<p>If you want to get a CSE degree to work IT, you have a very long way to go and will need alot of work. the chances are you wont be able to compete with guys who have 10+ years of experience on there belts. </p>

<p>If you want to study CSE to be a engineer and write programs and deign circuits, you are ok where you are and don't need much improvement though any amount of improvement cant hurt.</p>

<p>You are connected to the internet, you don't need any books. you have worlds of info in front of you.</p>

4

<p>well I was thinking about doing IT consulting, but like you said, I don't know how well I'll be able to overtake those guys that are born geniuses at that stuff. So what I've been thinking about doing now is to do Comp E and CS (btw, does CSE stand for basically the double major of CE and CS just as EECS is the abbreviation for EE and CS double major?), work in the industry, get a part-time MBA, and then start working my way into management, so will I still be "screwed" as compared to others?</p>

5

<p>I don't see why you are worried. The majority of prospective compE majors don't have any experience with real computer engineering. You will not be alone.</p>

6

<p>if you just plan to do IT, then just get a CS degree, it will teach you how to solve problems on computers. which could be beatificall to IT work. But even though it could be beneficiall the stuff you learn in college will be useless for a IT job. you may be able to do some scripting and such, but thats stuff that one doesn't need a college degree to know</p>

<p>while GatorENG says you shouldn't be worried, he is talking about CSE students who are going into engineering, not IT. There is a big difference as I said before the stuff you learn in CS doesn't teach you anything about IT.</p>

<p>If you want to do IT you have a long way to go, I recommend you start reading a lot online and while going for your CS degree get the following certs if possible.</p>

<p>A+
Network+
MCSE
MCSA
CCNA
Citrix
Redhat</p>

<p>I have all of those plus around 11 others above those. But I feel those have been the most beneficial to me.</p>

<p>When and if you get those certs and you don't need them all, make sure you really know the material and can apply it. Because all of them can all be had, just like any engineering degree, just by reading a book( called a brain dump). Anybody could pass any of those certs just by reading a book and that doesn't mean you know the info. It means you can repeat it, but it doesn't mean you can put it to use. This is something many on this forum seem to miss. getting a high grade means you can read a book better than the next guy, it doesn't mean you can do the job better.</p>

<p>I recommend you join a forum like ocforums.com and start to read, this way you can get a really good feel for how computer hardware works and then move onto servers and such and you should be ok. Just work hard, if ya have any questions PM me.</p>

<p>The truth is if you want to do IT you don't need a college degree, and the only reason IT guys get degrees is to show off to the non computer savvy management.</p>

7

<p>hey thanks for your help i586 and others, but I have another quick question:</p>

<p>So I checked out a couple of books on circuit design (textbooks), and I'm having SOOO much trouble understanding what's going on! Is there any trick to teaching one's self about circuits, or is it just because I'm self-teaching myself that its complicated? Also, is CE JUST about circuits, because if I don't enjoy circuit work, would CS then be the better way to go? I've always liked theoretical stuff, but I'm afraid that by majoring in CS, I will have less business opportunities (i.e. management), and I don't think software engineers (mostly people with CS degrees) get paid as much as the hardware folks, so is CE just circuit design or what else can I do?</p>

8

<p>Computer engineering is a mix between EE which entails (circuits, signals, etc) and CS ( algorithms, data structures, operating systems, Digital logic).</p>

<p>Its a good mix between the two.</p>

<p>You may have problems with circuits especially if you are learning on an EE level because at least when I took it, you needed Differential equations and such.</p>

<p>But you really don't and one could lean about them. If you don't have a book already, I would just use online recourses or rent a book for a electronics technician.</p>

<p>Also getting a electronics lab from Radioshack is going to be alot more beneficial to learning rather than reading a book. I learned Circuits in HS when I took a series of classes to become a licensed electrician. </p>

<p><a href="http://www.radioshack.com/sm-electronics-learning-lab--pi-2102913.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.radioshack.com/sm-electronics-learning-lab--pi-2102913.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>