CS10
-- Introduction to Computer Science I
Spring, 2005
Additional Information
(last updated 1/7/2005)
Working Together: In
general, learning takes place best within a
community. However, when learning to write programs, there is a
strong
temptation to give and recieve help at a level of detail that prevents
one of the parties from actually learning the skill. If you are
asked to give help, try to offer help by asking questions and leading
your peers to discover the solution for themselves. If you think
you need help, first make sure you have followed the "other tips" below.
Submitting Assignments:
Whenever you are submitting an assignment (unless otherwise specified),
you should submit a tar or zip file that unpacks into a folder named
something like "jonesW1" for a student with email "jones" and a
solutions to the exercises from week 1. This folder should
contain any files, which in turn, contain your Scheme code.
Other Tips: Most people
find that they cannot write a program as a stream of
consciousness. This is especially true of students first learning
to design programs. You will save yourself significant
frustration if you follow several guidelines.
- Do not wait until the last minute to begin. Instead, start
working on the problem as soon as it is given. In this way, you
encounter the obstacles early and you have a chance to think about them
and seek help.
- Follow the design recipe. Don't side-step the recipe on the
easy problems thinking you'll apply it when the problems get more
difficult. Incorporate the steps of the design recipe into your
standard operating procedure.
- If you find yourself stumped having followed the design recipe,
try breaking the problem into smaller parts. Think about
sub-tasks that you do know how to tackle and write a function to do
so. Now return to the remaining problem that was previously
stumping you and try again. Repeat breaking off small bits until
the entire problem can be solved.