On 08/01/16 22:59, gareth wrote:
... For those of us who became interested at the time of the
transition from thermionic devices to semiconductors, that
in 1965 a household might have less than 35 active devices
in total (25 in the colour TV, 7 in the transistor radio) and now we
have countless millions mostly in computerisation of one sort
or another.

Is it, I wonder the degree of integration in off-the-shelf
electronics that is the prime cause of the lack of technical
acumen and interest in home construction to be found
these days, especially in the under-educated NuHams
who cannot even tell one end of a resistor from the other?


Due to the availability of low cost micro controllers and computing
modules there seems to be an upsurge in home construction related to
electronics ,be it not necessarily ham radio .
The Makers World often focussing on robotics using cheap sensors
,Arduino , Raspberry Pi is alive and kicking and even rapidly expanding.

The Makers really know how to use electronic components .

In the ham radio community there are also groups of active "homebrewers"
although they might not hit the headlines any longer.

In ham radio , for most licensees ,the prime focus is on operating and
because of the availability of ready made equipment , often with an
acceptable price for many , home construction in ham radio overall has
steadily been in decline since WW2.
That is a fact and IMHO there is no reason to keep moaning about it.

Frank GM0CSZ / KN6WH in IO87AT (a ham radio homebrewer)