Spark fun has a good set of tutorials that cover all of the basics. http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/tutorials.php http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/tutorials.p

Spark fun has a good set of tutorials that cover all of the basics. http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/tutorials.php http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/tutorials.php The nice part about their tutorial is they take you through all of the details such as building you own PCB and other items where some of the kits have all of the electronics built for you. It depends on your interest but I find designing the electronics to be as rewarding as actually programming a micro-controller. I am also the kind of guy that likes to understand ever small detail as well.