# Help reading basic circuit diagram

**URL:** <https://community.sparkfun.com/t/help-reading-basic-circuit-diagram/30102>\
**Category:** Projects\
**Created:** [January 4, 2015, 11:45pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/help-reading-basic-circuit-diagram/30102 "2015-01-04T23:45:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![chinabuffet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@chinabuffet](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/chinabuffet)\
**Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 11:45pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/help-reading-basic-circuit-diagram/30102/1 "2015-01-04T23:45:42Z")

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I’m learning the basics still, and came across this in a book:

[http://imgur.com/oOfMTxG](http://imgur.com/oOfMTxG)

In that diagram, the connections from the battery are in the same row, so doesn’t that just complete a circuit back to itself? Nothing joins into the rest of the components. Do the power buses on some breadboards not run horizontal, or am I just reading this wrong? I tried making that circuit but it didn’t light up until I separated the positive + negative into their own rows.

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**Author:** ![Mee\_n\_Mac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@Mee\_n\_Mac](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/Mee_n_Mac)\
**Post date:** [January 5, 2015, 3:53pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/help-reading-basic-circuit-diagram/30102/2 "2015-01-05T15:53:55Z")

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You’re correct, the diagram is wrong. It’s got the battery leads shorted together and the resistor and LED connected to nothing other than together.