Growing up in the UK I was always working on some project or another, and loved the Maplin kits, although I think I only ever finished a few. A lot of the projects in the other mags didn't have kits available, or you had to order the PCBs from overseas, so I didn't do much with them.
Unfortunately I was one of those people who did it for a hobby first and then made it a job - does that make it a Jobbie ? (You might NOT want to put that in Wikipedia)
When I moved to Australia 10 years ago I was blown away by the availability of the kits that appeared in the Electronics Mags over here. Three major electronics firms would make complete versions of designs from the mags. One think I did find disappointing was the availability of things like PICs and specialist parts.
Things are better now with companies like Futurelec and at a pinch (or an arm and a leg) Farnell for all my PIC needs. Dontronics is also a favourite for all the more advanced stuff. As for kits, companies like kitsrus.com in Hong Kong have some good kits, although most are short form with limited instructions.
I still love a good kit, but I also like a good article that explains the how and why the designer has chosen to do things that way. Kits with PICs are great, as long as the author explains what's going on in the code - even in rough form. I think too many people getting into the game today assume all you need is a single IC to do everything.
Just my au$0.02 (0.001p) worth.
Bill.
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