CS 105 Update Log

Things are, I’m sure, getting a little more interesting in lab. A point in the semester has been reached where we’ve accrued that necessary critical mass of information and can start tackling the more challenging problems. More challenging problems = more difficult labs = greater senses of satisfaction upon completing them.

To complete the upcoming labs, though, you really need to have mastered all the material we’ve covered to date. If you haven’t — and it’s quite likely you haven’t entirely — you’ll essentially be forced to. This is a good thing, really!

Besides banging your head against a keyboard, monitor, or other solid object, a great way to wrap your head around a problem and come up with an approach is with someone else. Two heads are better than one, especially when it comes to programming — the silliest problems and bugs are often invisible to our own eyes, and team sessions are invaluable for brainstorming a solution to a seemingly intractable problem.

That said, though, we cannot evaluate your personal progress based on team output. Please remember that solutions to lab exercises must be entirely your own. Discussion is highly encouraged between students (and their TAs), especially where the approach to a problem is concerned. Coding up a solution, though, should be an individual exercise. If you really need help debugging a program, enlisting a friend is okay, but take care not to share lines of code. If in doubt, ask your TA or myself.

The policy I’ve stated and asked the TAs to enforce is, quite simply, that plagiarism of any sort will not be tolerated. It’s a clear policy that’s fair to everyone.

Please leave your comments below, and happy coding!