Skill

These are the various skills that people may need to know while learning a technology tutorial and could be required to complete a ‘hookup’ tutorial. Skills are most often learned by doing a physical action or using a physical thing.

Arduino Shields v2

April 20, 2020

An update to our classic Arduino Shields Tutorial! All things Arduino shields. What they are and how to assemble them.

Beginner's Guide to KiCad

October 12, 2017

An in-depth tutorial covering schematic capture, PCB layout, library editing, and gerber generation using this amazing open source PCB creation tool.

Customizing LilyPad LED Colors

May 19, 2014

A short guide to creating a rainbow of new LilyPad LED colors at home!

Designing PCBs: Advanced SMD

December 10, 2012

Advanced Eagle layout for PCBs with SMD devices.

Flashlight Kit

October 11, 2018

This is an assembly guide for the SparkFun Flashlight Kit, a basic learn to solder kit.

Getting Started with 3D Printing Using Tinkercad

April 30, 2018

Tinkercad is a great, easy-to-use online modeling software that can have you 3D printing quickly. This tutorial will walk you through designing a simple project enclosure.

Getting Started with Necto Studio

March 4, 2022

Necto Studio is a user friendly development environment for users looking to get started with MikroElektronika's MIKROE products.

Getting Started with the DA16200 FreeRTOS SDK

September 15, 2022

Interested in the DA16200 FreeRTOS SDK? This guide covers setting up the SDK in the Eclipse IDE and how to program our boards with the DA16200 module.

Graph Sensor Data with Python and Matplotlib

July 23, 2018

Use matplotlib to create a real-time plot of temperature data collected from a TMP102 sensor connected to a Raspberry Pi.

How to Install and Setup EAGLE

September 5, 2013

Not just how to download and install EAGLE, but how to install the SparkFun EAGLE Libraries and scripts.

How to Install CH340 Drivers

August 6, 2019

How to install CH340 drivers (if you need them) on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

How to Install FTDI Drivers

June 4, 2013

How to install drivers for the FTDI Basic on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

How to Load MicroPython on a Microcontroller Board

September 4, 2018

This tutorial will show you how to load the MicroPython interpreter onto a variety of development boards.

How to Power a Project

February 7, 2013

A tutorial to help figure out the power requirements of your project.

How to Read a Schematic

July 12, 2013

An overview of component circuit symbols, and tips and tricks for better schematic reading. Click here, and become schematic-literate today!

How to Run a Raspberry Pi Program on Startup

September 18, 2018

In this tutorial, we look at various methods for running a script or program automatically whenever your Raspberry Pi (or other Linux computer) boots up.

How to Solder: Castellated Mounting Holes

May 12, 2015

Tutorial showing how to solder castellated holes (or castellations). This might come in handy if you need to solder a module or PCB to another PCB. These castellations are becoming popular with integrated WiFi and Bluetooth modules.

How to Solder: Through-Hole Soldering

September 19, 2013

This tutorial covers everything you need to know about through-hole soldering.

How to Use a Breadboard

May 14, 2013

Welcome to the wonderful world of breadboards. Here we will learn what a breadboard is and how to use one to build your very first circuit.

How to Use a Hot Air Rework Station

April 10, 2018

Hot-air stations or heat guns are very useful tools and are essential for any electronics workbench. When working with or building printed circuit boards, there is a lot of room for errors to be made. Have no fear though, there are ways to remedy this with a hot air rework station!

How to Use a Multimeter

January 9, 2015

Learn the basics of using a multimeter to measure continuity, voltage, resistance and current.

How to Use an Oscilloscope

February 25, 2014

How to work the dials and buttons on an oscilloscope, and a glossary of the o-scope lexicon.

How to Work with Jumper Pads and PCB Traces

April 2, 2018

Handling PCB jumper pads and traces is an essential skill. Learn how to cut a PCB trace, add a solder jumper between pads to reroute connections, and repair a trace with the green wire method if a trace is damaged.
Viewing 48 Skill Tutorials. View All Tutorials.

Old Tutorials

Looking for the old, archived tutorials? Head on over to the archived tutorials on the main SparkFun site.
Please be aware that the tutorials you find there are no longer actively maintained.