so ive been wanting to get my technician license for a while now and finally decided to just do it. started using hamstudy.org and its been pretty good i think but my uncle who got his license like 20 years ago keeps telling me i should buy the ARRL handbook or one of those study guides. i dunno though, the question pool is right there online and the practice tests seem pretty close to the real thing from what people say.

my main worry is i dont really understand some of the electrical stuff, like the ohms law questions and the ones about antennas, i just kind of memorize the answers without really knowing why. is that fine or will that come back to bite me later. the test is in about 3 weeks at the local club.

hamstudy is honestly fine for passing the test, thats pretty much what most people use now. your uncle isnt wrong that the ARRL book has good info but its way more than you need just to pass the tech exam, its kind of overkill for that purpose.

the memorizing without understanding thing -- look i wont lie, plenty of people do exactly that and pass just fine. but if you have even a little time, the ohms law stuff is actually really simple once someone explains it properly. there are some youtube videos, i forget who does them, where they just draw it out visually and it clicks pretty fast. it'll also make the antenna questions make more sense instead of just being random numbers you have to remember. either way youll probably pass, the tech pool isnt that brutal.

I used hamstudy exclusively and passed on my first try last spring so yeah its definitely enough. just make sure youre consistently getting like 85% or higher on the practice exams before you go, dont go in cold after only doing it a couple times.

the electrical theory stuff tripped me up too but theres a trick someone told me for ohms law where you cover up the variable you want with your thumb and whatever is left shows you the formula. sounds dumb but it works lol. good luck at the club session