By: Aylani
Showing posts with label part. Show all posts
Showing posts with label part. Show all posts
Algorithms Doing the Robot Part 1
Saturday, April 9, 2016
The CS Principles class just started Unit 4 - Algorithms this week. The intention is to teach them how to develop methods, and to use these methods to build algorithms.
In the class we are stuck with C++. There are good and bad things about this as a teaching language - I get a lot of strong opinions from folks about it. It is the language my county has chosen for this level of programming, so that is a debate for another day.
One benefit is the mechanics of creating a method are very similar to Java, and most of my students move on to take the APCS course.
Looking back over what we did last year overall they did learn the mechanics of methods. This is one of those topics that you teach, and you think they get it, and then three weeks later they have forgotten the whole business. For the current APCS course this is a big problem since the framework for most free response questions is a method.
On the other hand we got a bit too bogged down with C++ and didn’t spend enough time on algorithms. It is easy to do, I have taught C++ since it was the AP language over a decade ago and I have a ton of materials developed. As most people with small children know, February is flu/strep month so I was out a fair bit while we were covering this topic, and C++ worksheets make super sub-plans.
Algorithms are one of the core Big Ideas of CS Principles. The Learning Objectives that relate are:
LO 17: The student can develop an algorithm.
LO 21: The student can explain how programs implement algorithms.
These are being assessed though the Programming Portfolio. The Programming Portfolio item states that students must include "a description of the algorithms these programs implement". So at a minimum they need to be aware fo when they have developed an algorithm and articulate what it does.
You can find the full collection of CS Principles documents here. Many are still works in progress, but you can get a sense of where the course is going.
So this year I am trying to move beyond just teaching code and do more activities to build algorithmic thinking. More on that tomorrow.
Computer Memory is an Important Part of the Computer
Sunday, February 21, 2016
Computer memory is an important part of the computer because it allows it to store vital information that you will need. Whether the information is in the form of data, pictures or sounds, a computer with a lot of memory can store it. There are basic types of computer memory and you will need to know a little bit about each to ensure your computer is running effectively.
Random access memory or RAM is the same thing as your computer memory. RAM is the main memory center, so essentially, it is the most important. The reason RAM is so crucial is that it is used to store your files and programs and it affects many other computer aspects as well.
DDR computer memory can be bought to increase the amount of memory you have, but first you will want to learn a little more about your computer. Understanding how it works will help you work better with your computer.
The more RAM computer memory your computer has, the faster it will work for you. If you find that youre computer has been very slow lately, you might want to look into buying some DDR for it. If you arent sure what to buy or how to install it, its best to let a professional do it this time around. You will find that all electronic stores that sell RAM will offer optional installation services for a small fee. If you choose this option, it would be a great idea to ask them exactly what they did so you can do it yourself if the need ever arises again.
But, if you know a little something already about computer memory, why not install your DDR program yourself? It will save you some time and money and your computer will be back to working at optimal speed in no time. Either route you choose, dont neglect the health of your computer. If it starts working differently than it ever has, get it checked out or troubleshoot the problem yourself. This will ensure that it stays working great for years to come.
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Random access memory or RAM is the same thing as your computer memory. RAM is the main memory center, so essentially, it is the most important. The reason RAM is so crucial is that it is used to store your files and programs and it affects many other computer aspects as well.
DDR computer memory can be bought to increase the amount of memory you have, but first you will want to learn a little more about your computer. Understanding how it works will help you work better with your computer.
The more RAM computer memory your computer has, the faster it will work for you. If you find that youre computer has been very slow lately, you might want to look into buying some DDR for it. If you arent sure what to buy or how to install it, its best to let a professional do it this time around. You will find that all electronic stores that sell RAM will offer optional installation services for a small fee. If you choose this option, it would be a great idea to ask them exactly what they did so you can do it yourself if the need ever arises again.
But, if you know a little something already about computer memory, why not install your DDR program yourself? It will save you some time and money and your computer will be back to working at optimal speed in no time. Either route you choose, dont neglect the health of your computer. If it starts working differently than it ever has, get it checked out or troubleshoot the problem yourself. This will ensure that it stays working great for years to come.
Whats New in AutoCAD 2011 Part 1
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
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| The new start up screen in AutoCAD 2011. Make sure to go through the New features Workshop to see whats new. |
AutoCAD 2011, the 25th release of Autodesk’s world famous design program AutoCAD, has been released. It has many updates, new features, and new tools added to it. Some of the more flashy additions are the new surface modeling tools as well as the new point cloud abilities. But perhaps the greatest additions are the new design tools that are intended to help your design process and workflow.
This is the first in a six part series. To see the other posts, follow the following links:
Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six
Changes to the Interface
Don’t be afraid, AutoCAD doesn’t have a new interface again, only a few tweaks. Rest assured that the default background color has changed again. It is now a dark gray. If you want to change it, open the OPTIONS window, go to the Display tab, and click on the Colors button. Pick the option, and then pick the color you want it to be. Since AutoCAD is often used for design drafting purposes, Autodesk decided to change the visual display of the grid to an actual grid instead of the series of dots we have all known and loved for so many years. I have to say that I “never” use the grid; but, now that it looks like graph paper, I will give it a try. Drawing on graphing paper has always been fun, maybe this new feature will make drawing in AutoCAD even more fun than it ever was before!
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| The grid feature in AutoCAD is now displayed as lines in a graph instead of a series of dots. |
The Quick Access Toolbar has had a face lift. It now displays the name of the current workspace. The workspace selection field has been move from the status bar and placed in the QAT. Click the selection arrow to change your workspace. Out of the box, the QAT now contains the Save As tool.
Navigation has a new tool. Yes another! This new tool is called the Navigation Bar. It replaces the navigation tools that were previously on the Status Bar. It can be moved around to either the left or right side of the screen, or to either the top or bottom of your screen. You can even turn it off you want to. The Navigation Bar has the Steering Wheel on it, the View Cube, Show Motion, Pan, Zoom and Orbit. If you are using a 3D Connexion Device (a 3D Mouse) then the Navigation Bar has integrated support for it, when AutoCAD sees the appropriate hardware driver. On top of that, the View Cube can now be used with the 2D Wireframe visual style. If you like the View Cube in 3D, try it out in 2D.
The UCS Icon was changed to show a different color for each axis. Red is for the X axis. Green is for the Y axis. Blue is for the Z axis. The cones at the end of each axis line have been removed.
The Ribbon
The Ribbon has had some minor tweaks and twists added to it; nothing major, just some cosmetic surgery so to say. A new pull down menu option has been added to the Minimize Ribbon arrow button. Before 2011, when you clicked the Ribbon Minimize Arrow, the Ribbon would cycle through all of the possible minimize options one at a time. Now you can set that as the default setting, or you can tell which one of the options (minimize to Tabs, Panel titles, Panel Buttons, or all) you want the Ribbon to Minimize too. This is handy because you can toggle through the full Ribbon, to just the titles, or whichever setting you prefer. If you minimize the Ribbon to Panel Buttons, large icons are shown for each panel. You can expand them by hovering over them, just like when the Ribbon is minimized to Panel titles.
The View Tab of the Ribbon has a new Windows Panel. It is similar to the Windows Pull Down Menu form the Menubar of old. This panel has options to choose between open files, tiling of open files, toolbar display options and user interface options. The toolbar display options works just like right clicking on an open toolbar. It lists the available toolbars in your workspace. Here you can toggle specific toolbars on or off.
A new Fold Panels feature has been added to the Ribbon. When you change the size of the AutoCAD window, add or remove Ribbon Panels, the Fold Panels feature comes into play. Fold Panels resize themselves horizontally to fill the available space. When you make a panel a Fold Panel, you can define default, minimum and maximum button sizes.
Visual Styles
AutoCAD has had five visual styles available for us to use: 2D Wireframe, 3D Wireframe, 3D Hidden, Conceptual, and Realistic. AutoCAD 2011 has added five more visual styles. They are: Shaded, Shaded with Edges, Shades of Gray, Sketchy, and X-ray.
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AutoCAD 2011 has added five new Visual Styles, each one having a different look |
Visually Isolating Objects
AutoCAD 2011 has given us new visual display control tools. These new tools allow us to control the visibility of objects outside of the layer controls. We can now isolate objects based on selection and not just on layer values. These new tools are accessed through the right-click menu. When you use the Isolate Objects tool, only the selected objects will be seen. All other objects are hidden. Right click again to make everything visible again. The second visibility tool is the Hide Objects tool. This tool hides the selected objects, keeping everything else visible. This is useful when you need to work in a busy area of your model. You can use both visual tools at the same time, meaning that you can hide certain objects first, then isolate a few of the remaining objects. Once you have finished working, right-click and pick the End Object isolation tool. Isolated or hidden objects will remain in that state if you end your drawing session. The status bar has an icon that looks like a light bulb. If it is yellow, no objects are isolated or hidden. If it is red, then objects are either isolated, hidden, or both. You can also click the light bulb to start either tool.
Conclusion
AutoCAD 2011 has added many new and useful tools. We have only begun going through them. There are even more 2D tools that we haven’t touched yet and there are tremendously powerful new 3D modeling tools now available to us in AutoCAD. Stay tuned.
(Reprinted with permission from Autodesk User Group International - AUGI)
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