Any tips for starting in embedded? I don't necessarily want to switch paths, just tinker with something at home. But something realistic that a modern embedded engineer would work on, not say making a light blink with an Arduino.
My first stab at prototyping was with an STM32 discovery kit, a couple of breadboards, and a bag of random parts. The best advice I can you give you though is start with an idea. Do you want to do sensing, audio, LED art, a tiny game console, a robot? That’ll determine the kinds of hardware you should get and will direct your learning. I can also recommend Making Embedded Systems by Elecia White.
In all seriousness embedded feels like the last safe place for a programmer like me, who grew up in the [redacted ancient decade] and has watched with befuddlement the tumescent froth of abstractions in other programming disciplines. I just can’t do web programming, for example. I did for many years but it broke my spirit and made me really dislike programming.
The “aha” moment was when I realized I like programming computers. Not browsers, not VMs, but actual computers. When I think about that old quote about computer science and telescopes, well... it turns out I really do like telescopes.