What is a Resistor, and why should I care?
A “resistor” is an electronic component that resists the flow of electricity. This can be used to limit the amount of current that flows through a circuit and/or dispose of excess voltage. Resistor Characteristics Resistance Value Resistors have a resistance value, indicating how strongly the component resists the electrical flow. Resistance is measured in “ohms”, often indicated in technical literature by the uppercase Greek letter Omega (Ω). Resistors with large values are often written with a suffix of “k” to mean “thousand” or “m” to indicate “million”. In the United States, it is common to put the “k” or “m” at the end of the value as a suffix. In some other countries, the letter is placed in the middle of the value in place of a decimal point. Examples: • 310Ω = 310 ohms • 1.5k = 1k5 = 1.5 x 1000 = 1500 ohms • 6.2m = 6m2 = 6.2 x 1000000 = 6200000 ohms Resistors are commonly stocked in certain specific (“preferred”) values. (Would you want to a run a store that carries a billion d
