UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE COMPUTER LABORATORY

First-Year Computer Science

Practical Class — Week 1

The first-year practical work covers three topics:

ML under Windows Java under Unix Hardware

(Paper 1 and Paper 2) (Paper 1 and Paper 2) (Paper 2 only)
In each case there are lectures, practical classes and assessed exercises. There are ten
assessed exercises associated with Paper 1 of which five relate to ML and five to Java.
There are ten further assessed exercises associated with Paper 2 of which seven relate to
Hardware; there is also an additional ML exercise and two additional Java exercises.
This document gives details of the timetable of the practical classes and the assessment
procedure.

Michaelmas Term — ML Practical Work — All Candidates

Half the class will be deemed odds and half will be deemed evens and lists will be issued
next week showing who is in which group.
Practical classes and assessments are always on Thursdays. In the table, the Michaelmas
Term Thursdays are numbered 1 to 8. The odds have ML assessments on Thursdays 1,
2, 3, 5 and 7, and the evens have ML assessments on Thursdays 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8. These
assessments account for the five ML exercises associated with Paper 1.

Michaelmas
Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Odds ML ML ML ML ML
Evens ML ML ML ML ML

At the end of the Michaelmas Term, a sixth ML exercise will be set. This additional ML
exercise is associated with Paper 2 but everyone is encouraged to try it.

Michaelmas Term — Hardware Practical Work — Paper 2 Candidates only

The majority of the assessed exercises associated with Paper 2 relate to Hardware. In
the Michaelmas Term, Computer Science candidates who are odds have Hardware classes
and assessments in weeks 4, 6 and 8 and those who are evens have Hardware classes and
assessments in weeks 3, 5, and 7. Accordingly, the Hardware classes fill the gaps in the
table above.
You will be allocated to a morning Hardware class or to an afternoon Hardware class and
a schedule will be issued next week showing the allocations.

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Lent Term — Java Practical Work — All Candidates
In the Lent Term, everyone has a two-hour Java practical class every week. You will be
allocated to a class that runs from 2 pm to 4 pm or one that runs from 4 pm to 6 pm and a
schedule will be issued next week showing the allocations. Note that there are eight Java
classes altogether.
A Java exercise will be set at each of the first seven classes and each exercise will be
assessed the week after it is set. The first five assessments account for the Java exercises
associated with Paper 1 and the last two are associated with Paper 2 but, again, everyone
is encouraged to try them.
At the very first Java practical class, the sixth ML exercise will be assessed.

Lent Term — Hardware Practical Work — Paper 2 Candidates only

In the Lent Term, Hardware classes and assessments will continue fortnightly and follow
the pattern set in the Michaelmas Term with the odds coming in even weeks and the evens
coming in odd weeks.
Those who have morning Hardware classes will be allocated to the 2 pm to 4 pm Java class
and those who have afternoon Hardware classes will finish in time for the Java class that
runs from 4 pm to 6 pm.
The three Hardware assessments in the Michaelmas Term and the four in the Lent Term
together account for the seven Hardware exercises associated with Paper 2.
Full details of the arrangements for the Hardware classes will be explained in the Digital
Electronics lectures.

Announcements by the Head of Department — Portfolios

There are, appended, copies of the Announcements by the Head of Department. These
explain that the exercises not only have to be completed and assessed but that portfolios
of assessed work have to be submitted by a specified deadline.
Each assessed exercise counts as two raw marks towards the Tripos Examination at the
end of the year. [These marks are subject to a scaling procedure which is outside the scope
of this document.]
For each day of late portfolio submission two raw marks will be deducted. Fractions of
days late are rounded upwards.
The first two programming exercises are undertaken at practical classes in the William
Gates Building. These first two classes are nominally concerned with ML but in practice
they are largely concerned with instruction in the use of the computers located in the Intel
Laboratory.
Accordingly, the first two assessed ML exercises are not very challenging. Guided Practical
Sessions which serve as tutorials will be issued for each.
From the third assessment onwards, the exercises will become increasingly challenging!
The ML assessed exercises are presented in a separate document. Do not be alarmed that
the later exercises seem difficult; remember that the relevant material will be covered in
the Foundations of Computer Science course.

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Schedule for ML Assessments 1 and 2
The following is an outline of the timetable for the first two Thursday afternoons:
Week 1 Week 2
2:00 DR F.H. KING 2:00 DR F.H. KING
Introduction to Practical ML Practical ML continued
2:35 SRCF REPRESENTATIVE 2:55 Break
Student Run Computing Facility 3:00 DR M.G. KUHN
2:40 Break Further use of Windows
2:45 MR R.J. STIBBS 3:30 Week 2 Practical Class
ML under Windows 4:30 DR F.H. KING
3:20 Week 1 Practical Class Tick 3 Briefing

The talks take place in Lecture Theatre 1 in the William Gates Building and the Practical
Classes take place in the Intel Laboratory in the same building. The work at the Practical
Classes includes completing an assessed exercise.

Schedule for ML Assessments 3, 4 and 5

After the first two weeks, the Michaelmas Term Thursday afternoon classes follow a
different pattern. Everyone is expected to complete the work which is to be assessed on a
given Thursday by 5 pm on the Wednesday before the Thursday class. On the Thursday
afternoon, a demonstrator will spend 7 21 minutes discussing the work.
Further details will be given at the Week 2 class.

Getting a Tick
The Guided Practical Session for Week 1 is in a separate document. When this is worked
through, it will be clear that part of the session is printed out. It is this printout which
is assessed. At the end of the session, take the printout to whoever is running the class,
probably Dr King, and he will check it and, if satisfied, initial it.
Having one’s printout initialled like this is the goal of each assessment and is known as
‘getting a tick’. Two things are essential :
• Check that the printout really is initialled by the assessor.
• Keep the printout safely. It will form part of your examinable portfolio.

The Tick List

During the year a ‘Tick List’ will be maintained. This shows on a week-by-week basis how
everyone is progressing. A copy of a page of the 2009–10 tick list is appended showing its
state at the end of the year. As noted in the Announcements by the Head of Department,
it is intended that everyone should achieve a full set of ticks. The sample from last year’s
Tick List shows that this intention is not unduly optimistic.
An up-to-date copy of the Tick List may be inspected via:
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/teaching/ticks/IAticks.html

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Note that the demonstrators who issue the ticks should always have up-to-date copies of
the Tick List. Please check the Tick List periodically.
Some exercises are easier than others but it is hoped that few people will need to spend
more than 3 to 5 hours on any assessed exercise.

Workstation Availability
The workstations in the Intel Laboratory may be used at any time of the day or night unless
another group is having a formal practical class. Most people, though, will probably find
it more convenient to use either their own computer or a computer in College. Different
Colleges have different arrangements and Directors of Studies or College Computer Officers
should be consulted.

Hints for Assessment 3

There is no Guided Practical Session for the third ML assessed exercise but the general
style presented in Weeks 1 and 2 should be adhered to for all the programming exercises.
At 4:30 pm on the second Thursday, following the practical class and ticking session, there
will be a briefing in Lecture Theatre 1 which will give sufficient additional information
about ML to solve Exercise 3.

Hints for Assessment 4

Assessed Exercise 4 is quite hard. For those who are not absolutely sure how to tackle the
problem, there will be a briefing in the Lecture Theatre 1 at 5 pm on the fourth Thursday,
following the ticking session and the afternoon Hardware class.

Help Sessions
Some of the finer points of ML can be quite challenging and not everyone manages to
understand everything first time. In recognition of this, three Help Sessions will take place
in Lecture Theatre 1 on the fifth, sixth and seventh Thursdays of the Michaelmas Term.
These are scheduled to begin at 5 pm so that there will be plenty of time for those who
have Hardware classes to finish.

How to Install Linux

Part of the teaching programme for the year is to ensure that two well-known operating
systems are used: Windows and Unix. To this end, the ML programs should be prepared
and run under Windows and the Java programs should be prepared and run under Unix.
The Unix system which is available on the majority of University computers is Linux so, in
preparation for the Lent Term, there will be a special lecture at 5 pm on the last Thursday
of the Michaelmas Term. This will take place in Lecture Theatre 1 and will explain how
to install Linux on your personal computer.

F.H. King
1 October 2010

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 THURSDAY AFTERNOONS

Thursday afternoons are very busy. They are occupied with practical work and with
talks leading up to the practical work. They often conclude with a related lecture. Many
Thursday afternoons run on until 6 pm or beyond so. . .

It is essential not to arrange supervisions, rowing, football

or another practical class on Thursday afternoons.
The first two Thursday classes begin in Lecture Theatre 1 in the William Gates Building.
On both occasions, there are briefings and practical work. The briefings explain how to
tackle the assessed practical work and describe the assessment procedures.
The third Thursday will, for some, include an assessment of the third assessed exercise
and, for others, will be the first Hardware practical class.
The fourth Thursday will be like the third Thursday but there will be a briefing about the
fourth assessed exercise.
The remaining Thursday afternoons follow much the same pattern as the third and fourth
Thursdays. There are Help Sessions on the fifth, sixth and seventh Thursdays and on the
eighth Thursday there is an explanation of How to Install Linux.

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