Basics of User Interface Design

Harvey Mudd College CS124a Spring 2011

Welcome

Basic Information

Policies

Schedule

Course Content 

    Reading

    Investigations

Course Policies

Attendance

On-time attendance to every class is absolutely required to pass this course. This is a small class and class participation is essential to both your learning and class dynamics. If you are ill and cannot attend or an emergency arises, please contact me as soon as possible. I will ask for a dean's note to excuse more than one sick day during the term. If you need to miss class for any other reason, you must get permission in advance.

Unexcused absences will be handled as followed:

• 1 unexcused absence: no consequences
• 2-3 unexcused absences: -5% of your final grade for each absence
• More than 3 unexcused absences will result in course failure. No exceptions

I will track your participation in class daily.  To get full participation credit, you must actively engage in class by contributing to class discussion, answering questions, and participating in class activities.  If you attend class and listen respectfully but do not participate, you will get half credit for that day.  If you engage in any disruptive activities (sleeping, texting, disrespectfully dominating the discussion, etc) you will get no credit.

Late Homework and "Free" extensions

Late homework will not be accepted.  However, for the investigations only, you have one 48-hour extension that you can use for any reason.  You do not need to ask me in advance to take your extension.    Both partners must have an extension in order to use one on a partner investigation.

Grading

Class participation: 10%
Final exam: 20%
Investigations: 70%*

*Note: Over the next week I will be planning one more assignment than is posted currently on the website.  This assignment may not be an investigation, but may be a writing/presenting assignment.  Your grade on this assignment will count as part of your investigation grade.

Collaboration

Your work in this class should be in conformance with the Harvey Mudd honor code.  I encourage you to discuss the assignments with others, but all written work must be completed on your own (except when the assignment explicitly states that you should work with a partner, in which case the written assignment should be the work of only you and your partner).  If you discuss an assignment or a paper with anyone else (which, again, is encouraged!) you must list that person's name on your writeup.

Please review the guidelines for avoiding plagiarism, available at many online sites (e.g. plagiarism.org).  I assume that no one means to intentionally plagiarize, so please pay particular attention to the resources on unintentional plagiarism.

If you have any question at all as to what is considered acceptable collaboration, what is or is not plagiarism, or anything else please ask me.

Christine Alvarado (alvarado@cs.hmc.edu)