Build A Computer As Homeschool Project?

Question:
Has anyone had their child build a computer as a homeschool project? Did you use internet sites as the resource material or books? If so, which ones? Did the parent have any prior experience? (I don't, but I know someone who has) Is this a reasonable task for a 12 year old boy (who presently is very interested, and plans to save up his money to pay for the project)?

Answer:
- Sure its reasonable. When *I* was his age, I built an analog computer that could multiply and divide (digital hadn't been invented yet and the world was still black and white) for my math class. Remember this maxim: "Everything you ever want to know about anything is in a book somewhere or in somebody's head. YOUR job is to find that book or person and learn it. And sometimes, the 'finding' is more enlightening than the getting."

- This would be an excellent project for a 12 year old. Get a book, like "Building a PC For Dummies". Explain that he's not a dummy, but that's just the catchy title of the book. Here is the link to the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0764507826 Buy an old computer first - you should be able to get a 5 year old computer for about $25. Have him tear that one apart and identify the parts, then put it back together. DO NOT TAKE THE MONITOR APART! There are high voltages in there. Also, do not let him take the power supply apart, that could also contain a painful shock, even when unplugged. The "Dummies" book should explain that. Then, when he is familiar with the inner workings of the PC, start buying parts. I always find good deals at tigerdirect.com. Take a look at their "barebone kits". I didn't do this as a homeschool project, but I did have my sons help me build computers, starting when they were as young as 6. My 17 year old son now has a full-time job as a software developer.

- In terms of actually gaining an understanding of computers, I think building a computer completely from scratch would be better than just slapping together a motherboard, a hard drive, a power supply, etc. It would require some research (although I bet Papa Koca would be able to point someone in the right direction for that), but if he builds one that actually requires an understanding of what's going on at the machine-level, it will be a much more valuable experience. It is certainly a reasonable project for a 12 year old, since a whole lot of early home computers were built by 12-14 year olds (I know, because my brother was one of them).

- A twelve year old boy should have no problem at all putting a computer together. It's actually easier than building a model rocket, and twelve-year-olds have been building them for a long time. Since you know someone that knows how to do it, it will be a snap. The interesting part will be having the young'un report to you the purpose of each part, and maybe even discuss the components that are often plugged into a slot in the motherboard, but that are now more commonly built right in. Those items include the video card, sound card, network card, drive controller card (always built in nowadays, but was a separate item in 80486 and earlier machines), and serial/parallel I/O) card (same situation as drive controller card). Also, most modern motherboards have things like USB ports, fire wire, and the like.

- I too believe that a building a primitive computer is of much greater value than putting together boards, wrt learning what a computer *is*. Of course, learning to swim in today's computer- ridden work environment might be better achieved by doing what Chris suggested, playing blocks with PC parts. Re the primitive computer... My suggestion is to build using a MCS-51 type microcontroller (uC). Or, another uC, such as the PIC, but the MCS-51s seem to be all over, and there is a particular site and kit that I'll spend a few seconds later trying to find... http://www.pjrc.com/ I like the site, and I like their little board. I think it was under ~$150 and is hands-on enough to learn on. MCS-51 actually refers to the software instruction set. The actual uCs in this family are called 8051 or any of a huge variety of variants. That website is part of a webring (a bunch of sites dealing with a particular topic, each referencing the next and previous sites onthe list); I suggest reading a bunch of them. As far as books go, I've got three suggestions, first my first love: M.M.Mano, _Computer_Systems_Architecture_ describes (in the most gentle and ignorable way possible) how to build "gates" out of transistors, and then describes how to build "latches" out of gates, "flipflops" out of latches, "registers", "ALUs", etc. until the point where Mano says, hey, if you put a bunch of these simple pieces together like so.... and started it up, it'd do this (be a computer). It's really neat to see it happen, at each level knowing the details of the lower level pieces but learning to abstract the behaviour of the new, higher level, peice and thus simplifying and building up an amazingly complex machine. 2nd, a lost book, I think from O'Rielly Press, on the 8051. It was, for me, the perfect book for actually building a working computer (schematics, parts lists, build instructions,...). 3rd, most college used-bookstores where the college has microprocessors class will have books similar to the O'Rielly one, either for the 8051 or another. I'd root about there. I've gone thru a short course, a bit of an extended unit study, with my children (then 8 & 10 yo) introducing them to basic electronics principles, schematics, ICs and breadboarding, boolean logic, etc. I think that with this understanding they're close to ready to work on a construction project with me as a helper. I think that a dedicated adult without electronics experience *could* manage to make this kind of pursuit with children, but the project would be one where it would need its own workspace for long periods of time, with regular attention (lots of breaks to acquire parts, seek advice and solutions, ...). If y'all are the patient types, then I'd strongly encourage you to go for it. If y'all are the more energetic, impulsive, less methodical types, then I'd wonder whether it'd come to enough fruition by the time it ground to a total halt to make it worth it. I'd advise you to consider that it very well might, even if your Frankencomputer never actually lives to terrorize the locals, be worth the exercise.