CHAPTER 2 ■ WHERE TO OBTAIN TOOLS AND PARTS
With the exception of LEGO, the companies in Table 2-1 carry products from many different
manufacturers. As you begin to discover a personal preference for a particular manufacturer’s parts, check
the manufacturer’s web site to see if they have any application notes or even free sample parts.
Discovering Hidden Messages
Besides their obvious sales content, online stores also provide an education. Since every square inch of
page costs money to write and maintain, the companies try to focus on the data that is most relevant for
comparison and purchase. Interestingly, sometimes what’s not there is as important as what is there.
Considering Columns
If you want to know the most significant differences in a family of parts, just check out the tables the online
companies create to compare them.
Hmm, if color, wavelength, dimensions, and brightness are all listed for LEDs, then those must be some
of the most distinguishing characteristics between types of LEDs. Weight isn’t listed, because that isn’t a
common concern for LEDs.
Table 2-1. Online Component and Tool Stores
Company Category Website
Digi-Key electronics http://www.digikey.com
All Electronics electronics, surplus http://www.allelectronics.com
B. G. Micro electronics, surplus http://www.bgmicro.com
Jameco Electronics electronics http://www.jameco.com
Electronix Express electronics http://www.elexp.com
Electronic Goldmine electronics http://www.goldmine-elec.com
Mouser Electronics electronics http://www.mouser.com
Marlin P. Jones electronics, surplus http://www.mpja.com
Micro-Mark tools, materials http://www.micromark.com
McMaster-Carr tools, materials http://www.mcmaster.com
MSC Industrial Supply tools, materials http://www.mscdirect.com
Small Parts tools, materials http://www.smallparts.com
Micro Fasteners fasteners (screws) http://www.microfasteners.com
Solarbotics kits, parts http://www.solarbotics.com
SparkFun kits, parts http://www.sparkfun.com
Adafruit Industries kits, parts http://www.adafruit.com
Tower Hobbies R/C, batteries, motors http://www.towerhobbies.com
LEGO Shop At Home kits, parts shop.lego.com