Any suggestions for a start?

I'm a student pursuing a degree in electrical engineering. I'm very excited and enthusiastic about learning and "playing" with new projects and ideas in the electrical field. I love the posts everyone here puts out. Its seems many people here are very experienced and have a lot to offer and I'm happy to feel a part. I've been looking around for a small project thats not too costly and beneficial to my education and understanding. I really want to learn how to program PICs as I've read a lot about them and they seem very interesting and productive. There is so much out there and I'm hoping to soak in anything and everything I can.

So, I wanted to ask what you all think at where I should begin. Do you think hobby kits are a good start? or what was your first project?

Suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

_Joe
Orange County, California

Cheap kits are a good place to start, get some practice in soldering and building circuits from a schematic. Spend a lot of time at a library too, it's cheaper to read books there than it is to buy them. Their selection is usually a bit dated bit the older books are still pertinent.