I completely agree with how to start reading such books especially the
NEC. Perhaps my saying you must read and memorize every
page was a
bit beyond reality.
I attempted to get
thru the
NEC cover to
cover once, and got board and side tracked around grounding. Just as you describe, I did read and re-read sections on Entertainment Lighting, Cable and other areas I'm often dealing with, as you probably have, but still have not completed reading even the 96' version yet and the clift notes versions just bypass important info to what we do but help some at least. Good
point on such texts.
On the other
hand on shorter texts like The
Wire Rope User's
Manual that's about no larger than a average Dover
book, while also dry is something with some work can be gotten
thru. It's like with a history
book. We all know about WWII, and other chapters are much more interesting. But the details in that missed section are many of the fraiming reasons for the rest of the text. Sometimes there just isn't
foot notes and such as with the
NEC referring to other chapters and there is not another way to skip around and get the whole thing. Even with the
NEC, there is constantly text I'm learning from it in sections that I have not read yet.
In that
Wire Rope user's
manual above, somewhere burried down deep in the text is a unique to this
book only - description of what happens to a
wire rope when it breaks - especially and specifically where it is most likely to
break in relation to any clamping or anchor points causing the stress. Ever wonder why a
XLR cable doesn't usually break right at the
strain relief in a tension failure? The answer is burried in the
Wire Rope User's
Manual text amongst other details. Such things would not be learned by skipping around. They might be caught by skimming the text or half hartidly reading it, but than again might not be. Did I understand everything else I read in it about crains and such things, nope but I did read the sections at least long enough to hear what was presented than perhaps skim the rest.
But you are right, that you do get board with reading
cover to
cover books and I can't say that I do much memorization in any text with one reading or many readings on some subjects. More it's perhaps better to skim or speed read such books that are important but boring and get familiar with what's in them plus read things of interest or that spark your attention. Even at that
level of reading you do
gain details more than not reading, and things that you don't realize at first reading will hold in your memory as something you read about at one time when you do need to know about it. The second reading of that section is much easier to learn from after the innitial reading or speed reading as it were especially after the reason for wanting to read it comes up in real life. Or at least when you need to re-read in depth something, you will know where about it is.
So your reply was very right in many ways and I thank you for setting it straight or at least between the two of us helping to define a better way of getting
thru such texts. But the
point is that you and I are reading and to some degree at least studying from them. At least to the extent that it's of interest at the moment. The more we need from such things the closer we would be to having completely read such things as long as we don't buy them than put them on a shelf without reading into them. I have a Dover copy of "Basic Electricity" which is a re-print of a Navy training
manual primarially on DC circuits. Havn't opened the covers beyond figuring out what was in it. That's the case I would refer to when talking about learning by osmosis. Perhaps "Must read every dry
page" was a
bit more to expect than more accurately saying that you should at least skim each
page and as you imply read into stuff that catches your interest on the first readthru. Subsiquent readings expand your knowledge further.
Every person has their own way to study such things, but the overall
point is that unless you read, you don't learn the details beyond what you are tought on the job. A
book a month even if possible a
book a week on some subject relating to your career goal should be a goal for all starting off in this field if they really want to learn.
Pick up a
book on "The Evolution of Colonial Architecture if in a sale bin somewhere. Pictures are inspiring for design purposes. Read into the text with as much attention as it allows you to give it. Perhaps after board, skim the rest with a contious effort to get
thru at least the rest of the
book in that way. Good goal?
Ten books related to theater turns into a hundred in a few years, after that you have a research library. While in college, you have research for a design for a show due the next day, it saves you a trip to a library at least for the initial research much less preliminary design work. Anyway just some goals and ideas to
advance one's learning above just searching the net for the very short and basic info out there and expecting it to really teach you this trade. Internet tutorials and texts are for the most part a waste of time in my opinion. Too many details that are cut short.
I might be able to get some drawings up with definations in that perspective terms section. To help.
