The VB "Creed"

Here are some key tips that students have told me they "wish they knew" before they got in trouble in this class...learn from their mistakes!!

1. Get ahead of the schedule – Don’t just slowly keep pace with it because you will fall behind as the projects get harder.  The moment you fall behind, meet with me so we can get you caught up.
2. Make folders for each chapter and section – I will go over how to do this in class.
3. Understand how to save programs – Don’t be too fast!  Be sure to do it correctly.  If you’re reusing an old program for a new project, copy the old, paste it in a new folder, open it and name it.
4. Get started immediately when you get to class – You’ll find that your last 15 minutes are your most productive, and if you waste time getting settled in / starting the assignment, the period will be over before you’ve accomplished anything.
5. Don’t Cheat! – It’s even easier and more tempting to cheat with computers, but I hope that you respect me enough not to cheat.
6. Thoroughly test your program before you turn it in! – I always get programs that have errors because the student never tests the program once it’s complete.  In real life, the vast majority of programming is solving errors.
7. Be sure you understand what you are doing –  The course is cumulative and builds off of previous knowledge, so if you don’t understand a chapter and try to move on, it will be even harder.  Understand why your program works or doesn’t work.
8. Be organized! – Learn how to organize your code and add comments correctly.  Keeping your code consistent and correctly indented will make it so much easier for you (and me) to sort through and read.  It makes it much easier to solve errors.