Learning from magazines is definitely a great way to ease yourself into learning about a new subject. It's worked out very well for me. The only other approach

Learning from magazines is definitely a great way to ease yourself into learning about a new subject. It's worked out very well for me. The only other approach I find that works as well as a starting point is subject-focused online forums. For example, if I want to learn about creating an electric car, no magazines that I know of, but there is a forum covering this subject: http://www.diyelectriccar.com/ http://www.diyelectriccar.com/ Just reading through the content gives a good feel for common issues and solutions.