Suggest edit — electronics-workflow

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# electronics workflow

the practical process for building electronics projects, learned at a neurotech startup.

## the build sequence

1. **breadboard** — get the circuit working at all. ugly is fine.
2. **get it to work** — functional prototype, doesn't matter how messy
3. **make wiring nice** — clean up connections, organize
4. **make UX nice** — put it in a box, hot glue, add controls

this mirrors the general principle from [[software-workflow]]: make it work, then make it good. resist the urge to make it pretty before it's functional.

## fundamentals

- power sources: DC, understanding volts
- signals: what's being sent where
- PWM for control: pulse width modulation to manage output
- program microcontroller → flash code

## practical lessons

jumper cables are worthless — use proper breadboard connections. this sounds minor but bad connections cause hours of debugging phantom issues. always ensure robustness (see [[intentionality]]).

## the demo matters

having a pretty cool thing to show off and demo is very powerful. even a rough breadboard prototype gets people excited and provides feedback. see [[critical-path]] — the demo is often on the critical path even when polish isn't.