COMS 161 Introduction to Computing Title: Course Introduction Date: January 12, 2005 Lecture Number: 1

Observation from Last Semester No getting up and leaving class during the allotted class time It distracts other students It is rude It dis’s me No basis in reality for this behavior You simply cannot get up a leave a 50 minute meeting in the work place

Observation from Last Semester Do not use a computer during class You will not need it for the class, therefore you must be doing something unrelated to the class It distracts other students It is rude It dis’s me

Observation from Last Semester Due date have been established and are fixed It is your responsibility to hand work in on time Late work has no basis in reality When you have a job you will need to meet your deadlines Otherwise, you will not have a job for very long

Observation from Last Semester You can’t punk me!

Announcements I try to make class announcements at this time Like assignments, program due dates, etc…

Review I try to give a brief review of what we covered in the last class to motivate you for this class

Outline I try to give an outline of the topics we will cover in this class If all goes well, the outline for this class becomes the review for the next class Rules of the Game Go through the syllabus and calendar Course Introduction

COMS 161 - Syllabus Professor Paul F. Hemler Office: Bagby 110 Office Hours: MF: 1:30pm - 4:00pm W: 1:30pm - 3:30pm TR: 1:30pm - 2:30pm By Appointment There is no reason we cannot find and set-up a meeting time

COMS 161 - Syllabus My email address: phemler@hsc.edu Semester Schedule Class Times: MWF: 8:30am - 9:20am, 9:30am -10:20am My email address: phemler@hsc.edu My phone number: 223 – 6202 My home page Course home page Department home page

COMS 161 - Syllabus Course Objectives To develop a thorough understanding of the organization and functioning of digital computers. Topics include: Computer architecture Systems Theory Logic Programming

COMS 161 - Syllabus Course Objectives (Cont.) To achieve a thorough understanding of the organization and use of the Internet and the World Wide Web To better understand multimedia and networking as methods for information exchange

COMS 161 - Syllabus Course Objectives (Cont.) To understand and appreciate the ethical, moral, and legal issues surrounding computers and computer networks To gain a historical perspective on today’s computer and network technologies To become aware of many facets of the computer science discipline

COMS 161 - Syllabus Course Textbook Exploring the Digital Domain, Second Edition by Ken Abernethy and Tom Allen

COMS 161 - Syllabus Course Grading Policy Straight-up, no curves, tricks, or illusions Letter Points A 95 - 100 A- 90 - 94 B+ 87 - 89 B 83 - 86 B- 80 - 82 Letter Points C+ 77 - 79 C 73 - 76 C- 70 - 72 D+ 65 - 69 D 60 - 64 F 0 - 59

COMS 161 - Syllabus Point Distribution Homework 20% Exams 40% Papers Final Exam Total Points = average homework * 0.20 + average exam * 0.4 + average paper * 0.2 + final * 0.20

COMS 161 - Syllabus Homework: 20% Homework assignments to help you understand the book material No late homework will be accepted Homework is due at the start of class on the due date

COMS 161 - Syllabus Homework: 20% (Cont.) Write your solutions clearly and concisely on the paper you hand in The work you hand in is a reflection of you Make it look good and easy for me to evaluate Put a box around your final answer

COMS 161 - Syllabus Exams: 40% Three exams spaced throughout the semester Exam Exam Date Weight 1 9/22/04 10% 2 10/25/04 15% 3 11/19/04

COMS 161 - Syllabus Exams: 40% (Cont.) Closed book, Open mind No make-up exams unless your absence is excused Come prepared

COMS 161 - Syllabus Research papers: 20% Two research papers on topics related to the course will be required No late papers will be accepted Paper Proposal Due First Draft Due Date 1 02/04/05 02/11/05 02/18/05 2 03/21/05 03/28/05 04/04/05

COMS 161 - Syllabus Research papers: 20% (Cont.) Here are some potential topics and we will discover more as the course progressed. Feel free to investigate any Computer Science topic you may be interested in.

COMS 161 - Syllabus Research papers: 20% (Cont.) The papers should be written according to the guidelines you learned in you Rhetoric 101 and 102 classes Papers must be on a topic that is new to you Paper should not have been or is being done for another course

COMS 161 - Syllabus Research papers: 20% (Cont.) Grading Research: - research quality and thoroughness; significance and credibility of sources Persuasion: - thesis and arguments presented clearly; sources used effectively; points well-justified Style: - grammar and spelling; organization; presentation

COMS 161 - Syllabus Final Exam: 20% Mandatory on the assigned date and time. Cumulative Your last opportunity to demonstrate mastery of the course material It is important you prepare for this exam

COMS 161 - Syllabus Class Attendance: Mandatory I will keep a class roll We will cover material that may not be in the book, but is  important for you to know Class is fun, interesting, and informative

COMS 161 - Syllabus Class Attendance: (Cont.) Your third unexcused absence get you a special meeting with me Your sixth unexcused absence gets you A letter from the Dean Grade Drop of a letter (B- goes to a C-) Class roll taken at the start of class (8:30 sharp) If you miss the roll but are in the class See me at the end of class

COMS 161 - Syllabus Class Attendance: (Cont.) There are good reasons for missing a class Sickness, death in the family, ..., You will be excused from the class if you let me know before the class you intend to miss Send email, call me, stop by, ...  There are no reasons for anyone to have unexcused absences

COMS 161 - Syllabus Commitment: You should expect to spend 9 hours a week on this class 3 hours in class 4 hours reading the text book 2 hours doing homework problems Less than 4 hours or more than 12 hours per week means there is something is wrong

COMS 161 - Syllabus Extra curricular activities: Let me know if your play a sport that will require travel and missing class You should have a schedule of those classes you will miss Share it with me ASAP