Monday, January 30, 2012

SOFT6007 DCOM/ITS Class 01

We looked at the module descriptor and discussed the assessments a bit.

We looked at bits and the ASCII table

SOFT6008 Class 01 Lab Typing & Sharing

Since this was our first class it was a bit strange having a lab when we never had a lecture. So it was mostly a typing exercise.

I gave out two JavaScript examples and asked students to type them up in notepad. That'll save time in the next class.

I asked students to set up dropbox folders for their class for this work and to share it with me (ideally read-only). This would allow me to monitor student progress continuously and to very quickly spot problems and offer help. It does raise some privacy issues too. Please name the folder with SOFT6008 followed by your myCIT user name (e.g SOFT6008-Dan.Murphy). Share it with colin.manning@cit.ie. Hopefully that won't screw up my quota. If you don't already use dropbox please sign-up here.

I will invite students taking this class to join Google+. I propose to see if Google+ can be of use in education. Google+ is very like Facebook except that it is much easier to control what one shares with whom.  So use this feature wisely and don't over-share with me!

I have a circle for each class group, so I can post items relevant to individual classes.

To be honest I don't yet know what I will use Google+ for. It's an experiment.

As computing professionals in the making, students should probably join Google+ anyway just to know how it works.


These images required for Random Image example. But of course you can use any images as long as they have the correct names.








SOFT6007 COM1 Class 01

We looked at bits and how they can be assigned meaning. We looked at a system for transmitting text and the ASCII table.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Google+ Invitations

I have invited all first year students to join Google+. I propose to see if Google+ can be of use in education. Google+ is very like Facebook except that it is much easier to control what one shares with whom.  So use this feature wisely and don't over-share with me!

I have a circle for each class group, so I can post items relevant to individual classes.

To be honest I don't yet know what I will use Google+ for. It's an experiment.

As computing professionals in the making, students should probably join Google+ anyway just to know how it works.

One of these days I might try Blackboard. But don't look for me there just yet.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

SOFT6007 Web Development Fundamentals

I am teaching two instances of this module in Semester 2. As with all first attempts at the timetable, there may be some changes. Clicking on the Google Calendar icon will allow you to add the class to your Calendar.

[update: this keeps changing. Only the Google Calendar links are up to date.  Check the printed timetables in the C corridor or your online timetable for the latest info. Once you add the Google Calendar events, I will update them as they change.]

COM1
Mo 0900 room?

Tu 1700 B219

Th 1100 & 1200 IT1.3 COM1-B

Th 1500 & 1600 IT2.2 COM1-A




DCOM/ITS
We 1100 & 1200 Group A

We 1700 B217 (will probably move)

Fr 1100 B219

Fr 1400 & 1500 Group B


Group B = DCOM1
Group A = ITS1 unless the group is too large

COMP6023 Web Publishing

I'm no longer teaching this module this semester.

Monday, January 16, 2012

COMP6023 Web Publishing

Students taking COMP6023 will be expected to sign up for the Google Online Marketing Challenge. Students may wish to read about this and get thinking before the start of the semester.

IUT Lannion Lecture

I gave a class remotely at IUT Lannion this morning. It was quite a strange experience, sitting at my desk giving a lecture. I've recorded lectures for  later use before. But giving one live felt a bit weird to me. This was compounded by not being able to see the audience, and not knowing what they were seeing.

The folks at IUT called to say it worked fine. It was certainly an interesting experience.

I meant to record it, but something went wrong. But that anything worked at all was impressive.

I guess it's a sign of things to come. Perhaps some day I'll be giving my lectures from a beach somewhere.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Free Choice Modules Semester 2

The list of Free Choice modules offered by the department of computing has been finalized.

If you add questions as comments to this post I will do my best to answer them.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

MATH6028 Free Choice

If you like maths you might be interested in MATH6028 that is being offered next semester in the free choice slot. Contact michael.brennan for more details and the CRN required for registration.

MATH6028 – Mathematical Explorations (Michael Brennan ) [2 lecture + 0 lab + 2 tutorial]

Learning Outcomes
1. demonstrate skills in mathematical reasoning and presentation;
2. describe the way in which mathematics is used in various areas of human endeavour;
3. develop and understand mathematical arguments;
4. identify the cultural role that mathematics has played throughout history;
5. appreciate how mathematics can be used as a learning resource.


· The Logic of Discovery
The familiar Sudoku puzzle provides a nice introduction to problem solving using some basic logical reasoning. Other topics that reinforce the different steps necessary in the problem solving process include Tower of Hanoi, Magic Squares and Algebraic gems.

· History and Culture
The concept of conjecture and proof are fundamental to mathematics. This section develops these from a historical viewpoint with emphasis on elementary mathematics (e.g. primes and geometry).

· Pleasures of Probability
Illustrate how lots of everyday life occurrences can be analysed via probability. Examples include games, National lottery, betting/gambling.

· Applications
The power of mathematics is in its practical application to science, engineering and the world of business. This section uses a variety of examples to highlight this.

CMOD6001 Good Luck!

On the day of the game demonstrations I didn’t get a proper chance to say goodbye to you all. After so much time and work together it seemed strange for us all to walk off and go about our business.

I was very impressed with the standard of the projects. There was a lot of imagination and enthusiasm in evidence on the day. Thanks for taking the work so seriously and for putting so much effort into it. My phone is old and slow. It would really help me if your group e-mailed me the URLs that your project used. So if someone from your group could do that, it would help me fully appreciate your efforts.

I am still correcting continuous assessment components for the module and I’m confident now that you won’t get any results for this module before you get all your results in the new year. So they will all come together.

Eventually you will be able to see the mark for your essay in turnitin. Once I have them all corrected I will take a second look at them. So marks may appear to go up or down a tiny bit. I’ll e-mail you again once they are done.

There’s no update on the free choice options for next semester. So that’s going to be a bit of a disaster. If you see some thing offered by another department that you are half interested in, take it. You will probably get an e-mail from the registrar’s office about your free choice module some time in the new year.

If you had a Finish team member please send me an e-mail about the extent of his or her involvement, so that I can calculate your bonus marks for that. Unless it is already detailed in the project documentation you handed up. If you had a French team member, that’s all sorted.

DNETs. I recommend you opt for SOFT6007 Web Development Fundamentals or your free choice.

Many of you will be taking SOFT6007 Web Development Fundamentals next semester. If you have time over the break and would like to make a start on that, you can subscribe to this podcast in iTunes. There are a bunch of classes there.
http://mcom.cit.ie/staff/computing/cmanning/soft6007.xml


DWEB1s. You can make a start on SOFT6008 Interactive Web Development by subscribing to
http://mcom.cit.ie/staff/computing/cmanning/soft6008.xml


It has been a tough semester for some students. I am very impressed by the extent to which ye supported and looked out for one another.

So good luck with you exams and enjoy the break.

Friday, December 2, 2011

CMOD6001 QR Fest








We met in the student center and group set out their games to be played.

I thought they were good. But I didn't get to play any one in its entirety.

Well done!

Thursday, December 1, 2011

SOFT7001 Class

Some students are still working on the assignment. Remember to get the URL in on time. There's nothing stopping you from updating the site in the meantime.

Colin

CMOD6001 Hand up day was yesterday

A lot of groups handed up their projects yesterday. Students may had up today if they can find me. However if the late penalty is going to apply anyway, it might be best to wait until tomorrow anyway.

We will have no more classes this week

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

CMOD6001 COM Class

Some students used the time to hold meetings. I answered some questions. Quiet enough.

CMOD6001 COM Lab

Students were very busy working on the project.

CMOD6001 ITS/ITM

Students were just chilin' and playing games, so I left them at it.

CMOD6001 DWEB Lab

Quiet morning. Most students worked on stuff for other modules.

Monday, November 28, 2011

SOFT7001 Class

Students worked away on their websites.

We learned that if you don't explicitly use the media="screen" when using media="print", the print style sheet will interact with the regular style sheet and you might get things you weren't expecting.