You don't get the benefit of collaboration in this course like you did in 161-162.

Submitted Thu Sep 07 2023

Not too hard at all. You go over the basic data structures and implement them from scratch starting with a static array to hashmaps. However, they provide starter code and the assignment document is very detailed and well written. Tests were fair and as long as you do the explorations you should be fine.

Submitted Mon Aug 21 2023

Get a head start on all the assignments so you know which ones are going to be difficult before the deadline. TAs and Prof are super helpful.

Submitted Mon Jun 19 2023

Start assignments early and get comfortable with the PyCharm debugger!!! The debugger is absolutely your best friend. I do not mean adding in print statements, I mean the actual debugger; put in break points where you start running into trouble and step into your code slowly. TAs are invaluable, get into office hours the second they start and shoot off your message right away to get into the queue because it fills up fast.

Submitted Mon Jun 19 2023

Learn how to get really good at using your debugger and start on the assignments early. Read the requirements carefully and take the time to plan and map out your approach before coding. It will help limit rework and debugging later on. Make sure you’re fully grasping the content from each module, especially the early ones as complexity ramps up and everything builds in itself.

Submitted Sat May 20 2023

This is a good, but somewhat difficult class. Give yourself plenty of time to work on these assignments; they are likely the most challenging assignments you've faced in the program so far. It is much easier to think clearly when you aren't under pressure. Some past reviews complain about 20 page assignments. What this means is that you receive a 20-25 page PDF with assignment details. About 4 of those pages are cover sheets, table of contents, and basic ground rules. The remaining pages are descriptions of the methods you'll implement, and then test code and the expected results, each spanning 1-2 pages. Half of these methods are typically very easy and brief. Some of them are literally one-liners. It's really nothing too crazy or onerous. If you pay attention to all the requirements and pass all the Gradescope tests, you can definitely make a 100 on every single one of the assignments. Use the debugger. Get good at it. Use all of its features. Use stepping, use watches, use conditional breakpoints. MAKE SURE YOU READ THE GENERAL REQUIREMENTS PAGE OF THE PDF EVERY TIME. Certain things are prohibited in some assignments (such as recursion), and the penalties can be steep. Exams are non-proctored, extremely fair, and representative of the course material. You will be a better programmer when you finish this class.

Submitted Fri Mar 24 2023

Office hours are important, but they get less helpful towards the end as the TAs get really bogged down. I'd recommend finding a peer tutor that explains things in a way you understand through COE to supplement. As everyone advised, I started the assignments as soon as they came out, and that worked really well for me. The discord for this class was also incredibly helpful. One warning: double check every method for time complexity. It really can bite you in the ass when it comes to scoring.

Submitted Thu Mar 16 2023

This class was hell. I wish I had a comment to prepare me for this course ahead. If you can, do not take this course with another class, if you're working full time. The time it takes to finish an assignment is a lot and the Gradescope test errors are SO vague so you can't even figure out how to fix the problem based on the response. I went to office hours as much as I could, and it was pulling teeth to get the TA's to help along with Scovil. I understand they do not want to give away answers...but at that point I needed to understand the solution to actually learn. I wanted to learn! I didn't want to just pass all the Gradescope tests. But that's the result. Passed the tests, got an A, and got nothing conceptually learned.

Submitted Tue Mar 14 2023

My advice on using late days in the class. We had 4 late days that were available for use. If you plan on using them for an assignment, start by using the max available (2 for us) and then adjust down (which was allowed). On one of the harder assignments I requested 1 late day and then realized I needed more time and requested to use a 2nd, which the professor declined. Seemed pretty petty, so just start my using the maximum.

Submitted Tue Jan 03 2023

everything before and after AVL trees is pretty manageable but that unit is a bit of a beast, so be sure to get started on that project as soon as possible! you'll be spending a lot of time debugging

Submitted Fri Dec 23 2022