Computer Science 09/10

Chwilly · 13-08-2009 11:44pm #1

Hey. Just wanted to start a thread on the computer science course, to see how many people like me are taking the course this year.
PS if people are searching for off campus accommodation in the city centre vicinity to let me know if they're interested in a house share.
Thanks in advance

Will

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 10:47am

Chwilly wrote: »

Hey. Just wanted to start a thread on the computer science course, to see how many people like me are taking the course this year.
PS if people are searching for off campus accommodation in the city centre vicinity to let me know if they're interested in a house share.
Thanks in advance
Will

Where ya coming from? Have you just done your LC?

Chwilly · 14-08-2009 11:33am

Yup just did. Im fairly hopeful with my results. What about you? At the minute im living in county wicklow, but most likely will be moving up soon enough. And you? Just looking to see how many people are in the same boat as me, and aswell tryna get to know some people to make it that bit easier sooner.

JC 2K3 · 14-08-2009 11:34am

Welcome my friend.

I'm going into 3rd year myself.

Chwilly · 14-08-2009 11:46am

Thanks

thats awesome. How have you been finding it all? Pretty stoked to think i will be there soon!

JC 2K3 · 14-08-2009 11:59am

Yeah, it's a good course, and there's a good camaraderie in the classes as well as between the different years.

It can be tough, but as long as you do some work you'll be grand.

Chwilly · 14-08-2009 12:06pm

So its pretty easy to feel ingratiated in it all?
Any tips or anything need-to-know before i start? Haha

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 1:21pm

Chwilly wrote: »

So its pretty easy to feel ingratiated in it all?
Any tips or anything need-to-know before i start? Haha

I have it on good authority that you guys should be doing a preliminary course for physics with the engineers. However I've just checked and there isn't such a course

. There is the preliminary course in chemistry, but the only thing relative in that is atomic structure which is covered in < two days in 1BA5 (The CS Electrotechnology class).

Anywho, physics is only required for the first half of one of the classes(1BA5) in first year, but it would be a good idea to take a LC physics book now and get familiar with the basics if you haven't done physics before. It's not a requirement, and as i said it is only for one of the classes.

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 1:22pm

Chwilly wrote: »

So its pretty easy to feel ingratiated in it all?

Rumor has it that the first and second years are definately getting hoodies this year!........

Chwilly · 14-08-2009 2:41pm

So i may have a physics class? Thats not what i was expecting, as i didnt think they co existed in the course..

In any case, it can't be that bad! And the idea of hoodies is welcoming

haha

JC 2K3 · 14-08-2009 3:00pm

It's not really a physics class, it's Electrotechnology, which is pretty much a more in depth extension of the electronics section of LC Physics.

Computer Science in Trinity is a rounded education on computers from basic electronics to high level programming.

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 3:46pm

JC 2K3 wrote: »

It's not really a physics class, it's Electrotechnology, which is pretty much a more in depth extension of the electronics section of LC Physics

Yeah, I should have clarified that actually!

Nihilist21 · 14-08-2009 4:02pm

Chwilly wrote: »

Hey. Just wanted to start a thread on the computer science course, to see how many people like me are taking the course this year.

I too shall be entering into Computer Science this year. Nice to see another person going into the same course

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 4:20pm

Nihilist21 wrote: »

I too shall be entering into Computer Science this year. Nice to see another person going into the same course

Where ya coming from? Have you just done your LC?

Nihilist21 · 14-08-2009 5:26pm

Unregistered. wrote: »

Where ya coming from? Have you just done your LC?

Yes, I just got my leaving cert results and unless the course requirement shoots up over 150 points I'm safe! I'll be moving up from Wexford come September and shall be staying with family for the first year.

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 5:42pm

Nihilist21 wrote: »

Yes, I just got my leaving cert results and unless the course requirement shoots up over 150 points I'm safe! I'll be moving up from Wexford come September and shall be staying with family for the first year.

Did you get a HC in maths?

Chwilly · 14-08-2009 5:56pm

Yeah thats awesome! I'm the same really, hoping nothing affects the minimum maths grade. Yeah just wanting to brake the ice a bit before it all kicks off. Any going up for freshers week?

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 6:01pm

Once ya get a HC in maths you'll be grand.

JC 2K3 · 14-08-2009 6:16pm

Yeah, tbh, you could probably get 200 pts and a HC3 in Maths and get in.

Chwilly · 14-08-2009 6:24pm

JC 2K3 wrote: »

Yeah, tbh, you could probably get 200 pts and a HC3 in Maths and get in.

Well thats a relief! With the whole transition into college, does it make much of a difference between living off and on campus?
Does is make it that much harder to settle in with others if your not?

Nihilist21 · 14-08-2009 6:50pm

Unregistered. wrote: »

Did you get a HC in maths?

Indeed I did.

It must be tough being in the position of wanting to do a high points course, the waiting on results and then the wait on offers - glad I never had to go through that!

JC 2K3 · 14-08-2009 6:53pm

Chwilly wrote: »

Well thats a relief! With the whole transition into college, does it make much of a difference between living off and on campus?
Does is make it that much harder to settle in with others if your not?

No one lives on campus in first year (except maybe some international students).

Trinity Halls residents have an advantage in the social scene, but it's not a huge disadvantage if you're not there, you just have to make a bit more effort to join societies etc.

Jonathan · 14-08-2009 6:56pm

JC 2K3 wrote: »

Yeah, tbh, you could probably get 200 pts and a HC3 in Maths and get in.

Sure most of the AQA and open courses on the CAO are Eng/Comp/Elec related because not many have the HC3.

Unregistered. · 14-08-2009 7:03pm

I think the fact of the matter is, there's not enough people, who want to do CS, doing higher maths.

/states obvious.

boblong · 15-08-2009 1:15pm

Yar I'm doing this course this year

pretty hopeful with my results.

Can anyone tell me if the lecture halls have power outlets for students? Finding a laptop with a 6hr+ battery life is getting difficult

Any laptop recommendations btw?

Unregistered. · 15-08-2009 1:23pm

boblong wrote: »

Yar I'm doing this course this year pretty hopeful with my results.

Can anyone tell me if the lecture halls have power outlets for students? Finding a laptop with a 6hr+ battery life is getting difficult

Any laptop recommendations btw?

They do. You don't need a laptop btw! Using it during class is the worst idea ever. I neve brough mine in, you won't need it. For working on however, you do not need a high spec machine. If you're new to programming, then you'll be using this IDE called eclipse, which IMO is a pig when it comes to using resources, if you have XP at least 1GB of RAM helps!. Which isn't alot, so you can see what i mean by not needing a high spec machine!

boblong · 15-08-2009 1:29pm

Thanks very much for the prompt respnse

I'm in the market for a decent computer to do most things anyway, the only thing that was stopping me was the poor battery life.

Unregistered. · 15-08-2009 1:33pm

Happy Shopping.

Jack Sheehan · 15-08-2009 8:53pm

Going in to First Year this year (hopefully). Hi all.

Brian · 15-08-2009 9:02pm

Are you guys going to learn HTML5?

boblong · 15-08-2009 9:14pm

I really dunno...

karlr42 · 15-08-2009 11:33pm

JC 2K3 wrote: »

Computer Science in Trinity is a rounded education on computers from basic electronics to high level programming.

This a million times. (JC has a way of articulating my thoughts in ways so clear I could never hope to do the same). As long as you bear this in mind, you'll find the course very interesting. A lot of the course is based in hardware, at a totally differnt level of abstraction(that's a key concept too, abstraction) to high-level languages.
Also, re HTML5. My impression(going into 3rd year with JC) has been that there is very little emphasis on actual languages and technologies, but instead more on the basics, the key concepts of computer science in detail, so that you can learn any language in your own time.
"Computer science is as much about computers as astronomy is about telescopes"- you're not here to learn about how to use tools(that's a side-effect), you're here to learn about the worlds those tools open.
I can't wait for the year to start :rolleyes:

Chwilly · 16-08-2009 11:43am

Jack Sheehan wrote: »

Going in to First Year this year (hopefully). Hi all.

Alright mate, nice to meet ya. I'd say your pretty safe as long as you have the minimum C3 in HL maths.

I doubt points will change that much either, but we may wait to see what monday brings!

dave-higgz · 16-08-2009 11:56am

boblong wrote: »

Yar I'm doing this course this year pretty hopeful with my results.

Can anyone tell me if the lecture halls have power outlets for students? Finding a laptop with a 6hr+ battery life is getting difficult

Any laptop recommendations btw?

http://www.apple.com/getamac/

Get a Mac.

Seriously I've a macbook, they're amazing!

Unregistered. · 16-08-2009 12:49pm

dave-higgz wrote: »

http://www.apple.com/getamac/

Get a Mac.

Seriously I've a macbook, they're amazing!

Ehhhhhhh, do you do CS?:p

Unregistered. · 16-08-2009 12:52pm

Baza210 wrote: »

Are you guys going to learn HTML5?

Sarcasm doesn't suit you.

boblong · 16-08-2009 2:19pm

Naw, I don't see them going much higher.

snappieT · 16-08-2009 5:51pm

Just after finishing this course, though I imagine it's changed a bit in the 4 years I was going through it.

Do every single assignment, no matter what. If you manage that, it'll be impossible to fail the exams.

The modern lecture theatres have power sockets, but the museum building, where some (few) lectures are held, does not. Worst case, you'll be without power for 2 hours.

My #1 piece of advice is not to bring laptops into lectures. I was successful in just using my laptop to take notes for a couple of courses, but you really need to force yourself to turn the wifi off to reduce drifting. Altogether, I think it'd be better to take all of your notes on paper, in a messy, quick way, and then to transfer (and review) to electronic format that evening in your own time if you really want to have it clear and printed.

I also think that having a MacBook is a really really good idea. Prices have come down, you get an education discount, and a free iPod if you buy before the end of October, and there are tonnes of benefits. You get all of the nice Windows-y things like Word and Powerpoint, but you also have the power of a Unix terminal, which is very nice for a lot of things. MacBook is a very good investment, will easily see you through the 4 years.

Finally, a short reading list. Lecturers will recommend a book for each course, but don't just go and blindly buy it. Through the 4 years, I used the recommended reading texts for all of 2 courses. However, a quick review of leaving cert electronics and "the atom" will come in useful for first year, and I have (since) really found "The C Programming Language" to be very useful, and would certainly have helped me through 2BA3 in second year.

At least half the class will end up resident on the IRC chatroom hosted by netsoc, you'll get to know lots of CS people on there, so make sure you join netsoc during freshers week to get a logon.

Jonathan · 16-08-2009 6:55pm

Feeling better snappie?

stesh · 16-08-2009 7:03pm

I've applied to Computer Science, Linguistics and French, so assuming all goes well tomorrow I'll be seeing you guys pretty often!

Brian · 16-08-2009 10:15pm

Unregistered. wrote: »

Sarcasm doesn't suit you.

You presume yourself above the language used in Google Wave?

snappieT · 17-08-2009 6:17am

Jonathan wrote: »

Feeling better snappie?

No, still in bloody hospital, 5 weeks as of today...
Blood test later decides my fate. Could be out soon, could be another week.

Thanks for asking

snappieT · 17-08-2009 6:19am

stesh wrote: »

I've applied to Computer Science, Linguistics and French, so assuming all goes well tomorrow I'll be seeing you guys pretty often!

Actually, the CSLL course is pretty separated from the regular CS course. You share a module or two in third and fourth year, otherwise you don't see much of each other (from a class perspective, get in with them via IRC as I said)

boblong · 17-08-2009 7:07am

How'd we all do? I think the points are down.
I got my offer this morning, see you all soon!

Get well soon SnappieT

Nihilist21 · 17-08-2009 7:40am

Yep I just accepted my offer, surprised it went down (albeit by only 5 points) - see you all there

tolosenc · 17-08-2009 9:09am

stesh wrote: »

I've applied to Computer Science, Linguistics and French, so assuming all goes well tomorrow I'll be seeing you guys pretty often!

Hey stesh, I'm heading into 3rd year CSLF. If you have any questions, hust fire them my way.

snappieT wrote: »

Actually, the CSLL course is pretty separated from the regular CS course. You share a module or two in third and fourth year, otherwise you don't see much of each other (from a class perspective, get in with them via IRC as I said)

7 hours a week of shared courses in JF and SF. Nothing in 3rd year and I can't speak for 4th year. There's also the amount of time you spend in LG12, and get involved with Netsoc etc. You aren't that distant, unless you want to be...

Boston · 17-08-2009 9:12am

Don't forget DUCSS , I think everyone should get involved in DUCSS, I mean, I plan to spend most of next year in that soc room.

Unregistered. · 17-08-2009 9:36am

Boston wrote: »

...I plan to spend most of next year in that soc room.

Ugh.

snappieT · 17-08-2009 9:40am

Toulousain wrote: »

7 hours a week of shared courses in JF and SF. Nothing in 3rd year and I can't speak for 4th year. There's also the amount of time you spend in LG12, and get involved with Netsoc etc. You aren't that distant, unless you want to be...

Really? Either my year's CSLL students really didn't go to lectures, or things have changed. My mistake.

Unregistered. · 17-08-2009 9:44am

snappieT wrote: »

Really? Either my year's CSLL students really didn't go to lectures, or things have changed. My mistake.

Programming and Maths are done wth CS.

spoonbadger · 17-08-2009 10:40am

One more for first year CS!!.

*dances*

Computer Science 09/10

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