10/7/04

A student writes:

     Dr. Patt,

     I have attended all of the lectures and
     discussion sections so far, but I was
     planning on skipping the discussion
     section tomorrow and leaving for home a
     little earlier.  However, I saw in your
     email that you said we would be
     introduced to the LC-3 simulator tomorrow.  
     One of the people in my study
     group will be attending, and she said
     she would let me know what I missed.  
     But is this so important that I really
     need to be there myself?  Are you going
     to go over it again in the lecture on Monday?  
     I can leave later if I need to,
     and I just wanted your opinion.

     Thank you,
     << name withheld to protect one who wants to go home >>

Thanks for the note. I gave you the exam yesterday and did not assign anything new due Monday in order to give you all this weekend off. For many, this is an opportunity to go to Dallas for the OU game. For those who don't live and die on the basis of how many yards UT gained on the last play, it is an opportunity to relax as far as 306 is concerned, and (as in your case) go home. I know that most of you have been working hard so far, and it is a good opportunity to take a break before we start pouring it on again. So, I am not unhappy with your decision to go home this weekend.

As to the discussion session on Friday, yes the TAs will demo the LC-3 Simulator which you will need in order to do the programming for the rest of the semester, and the earlier you get comfortable with it, the better. I do not plan on spending much time in class on it. We have too many other things to do, and I believe the TA session + the tutorial manual + a little practice will be enough, without going over it in class. In fact, the Simulator manual was written specifically to help students learn how to use it without any instruction from a TA. And we will also have a special session next Tuesday evening for those who need another demo of it. So, between all these things and your study group partner, you should be okay.

You will need to use it to get the first programming assignment done by October 17.

So, bottom line, have a great weekend at home. Make sure you tell your parents how mean Professor Patt is, working you so hard. And, I will see you in class on Monday.

Yale Patt