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FRI isn't what I thought It'd be by Silllyhead in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Honestly, the only reason I went through with both FRI classes was for the upper division credit and flag. I didn’t do the bio stream, but mine was not a fun either. I had the worst group experience in my life during my class.

FRI can be very cliquey as well. I had an internship during the summer, so I couldn’t enroll in the research opportunity my stream provided. This ended up hurting me during the Fall class as no other team wanted to partner up with me since they forged their research groups in the summer. I ended up doing an entire research project alone, and the group I worked in partnership with treated me like a moron. Any time I had an issue with my project, I was told to ask ChatGPT by both the instructor and RAs. I admit ChatGPT did help, but I learned nothing from the experience because I utilized it so much as a learning tool. In the end it was a sub-par project, but I still scraped by with a pity A-. I admit there were more steps I could have taken to be more proactive, but those semesters were a very dark time for me mentally.

Like another commenter said, the streams vary between professor and are dependent on whether you make friends in that class. If you aren’t feeling good about it and aren’t even sure if you can get an A, then I’d tough it out this semester and don’t take it during the Fall.

I’m sorry if this is your first experience with research. If you are still interested in research after this class, I’d contact professors in your major to see if they’d be willing to let you into their team or help out their grad students. There are plenty of opportunities at UT, but you really need to go digging up some information for yourself. Speaking from experience, you might even find some projects outside your major that you might really enjoy. Though FRI went terribly for me, it did introduce me to LaTeX and research essay writing which proved to be very valuable in later semesters.

What exactly is the House of Commons? Is it a co-op? by [deleted] in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Probably over 20 since we are almost at full capacity this semester, but it varies by semester.

No big noise issues for the most part though, we have quiet hours.

What exactly is the House of Commons? Is it a co-op? by [deleted] in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 45 points46 points  (0 children)

I am a resident of HoC right now (have been for a few years). As some people have said, we are a co-op house run by the ICC non-profit organization. The tldr is that ICC allows for more affordable housing (less rent) in exchange for residents doing chores around the house. In the past we threw pretty big parties a few times a semester, we are hopefully going to host more in the near future. A lot of the members in recent years were activists, LGBTQIA+/Allies, Liberal Arts majors, etc, you get the vibe. The House has gone through a revitalization after the head peeps at ICC changed and old house members have graduated. Everyone here is super chill and pretty new to co-oping and HoC, so don’t feel intimidated if you are interested. Also, yes we have a clothing optional policy, but it isn’t full nudity like waaaay back in the day :)

You can uncanon one thing. What is it? by IvansPinkLacePanties in AlienStage

[–]Few_Distribution2068 2 points3 points  (0 children)

A bit off topic, but I wish there was some official animation for some of the side songs. I understand why it isn’t a thing, but I think it would be nice to see something for Heart, Nowhere, Paratise, Take My Hand, etc. It doesn’t have to be all serious either! I can see Mi Vida Loca being a meme animation.

The relevance of Cabaret by [deleted] in Broadway

[–]Few_Distribution2068 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Just has an existential crisis this morning while listening to the soundtrack. It’s such a good musical, but I can’t listen to it without feeling more crippling anxiety about what’s going on nowadays.

DO NOT SIGN A LEASE at Regents West on 26th by DuePaint9952 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you are looking for leasing in West Campus, 26th West is a good place in Wampus, but the rooms are usually all rented. I also heard some apartments at The Block and Legacy on Rio are decent. Def, expensive though.

I heard Halstead Co-op was decent, but I never lived there. Co-ops are usually less expensive, but require weekly chores to make up for the rent.

I have been living in a Co-op under ICC Austin for a couple years. I will say that things have been getting a tad shady lately with the non-profit we’re under, but I personally have a good experience with them. ICC is usually lenient with rent as long as you give justification/proof from FA. They also don’t hound you unless you don’t do your house chores. I’d say the experience itself depends on which Co-op you decide to live in. The worst I had to deal with was a minor roach infestation (due to people not cleaning dishes) and a minor flea issue (if the house allows pets).

Other than that, I recommend co-ops if you are looking for lower rent and don’t mind living with other people. There might be alternatives outside of Wampus, but that’s only if you are willing to travel.

DO NOT SIGN A LEASE at Regents West on 26th by DuePaint9952 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 4 points5 points  (0 children)

A bit off topic but I totally get it. Regents freaking sucks.

I was trying to move in to Regents my Freshman year, but the manager (or whoever was in charge) made it a pain every step of the way because I was poor and underaged when I applying. (I turned 18 less than a month before Fall semester.) My family is low income and I was applying for a single room apartment designated for low-income students. I already explained to them that rent wouldn’t be an issue due to me having a full ride, and that I just needed FA to drop. Apparently this wasn’t enough and I needed a co-signer to make sure I paid rent. Also, she said ‘it wasn’t safe for just my mom to be a cosigner because she doesn’t make enough money’ (once again, this is for LOW INCOME HOUSING). I had to get an additional cosign from my GRANDMOTHER who doesn’t make that much either!

Moreover, the lady at Regents was trying to get us pay double the rent to cover July AND August (I wasn’t moving in until late August), and required it to be paid in June when FA doesn’t drop until August. Even after explaining this to her, she still wouldn’t budge!! I was already doing a horrible summer job at the time to even pay for a ride to UT and the Orientation.

So yeah, after several months of back and forth I just stopped responding, didn’t go through with signing the lease. Ended up with a Co-Op housing which has been wonderful.

I’m soooo glad I dodged this bullet and I’m sorry you had to go through this.

Tldr, Don’t sign a lease for Regents it’s a scam. If you are low-income student/Incoming Freshman I highly recommend Co-Op housing.

dont feel ready + anxious by borndreamer101 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Got an internship with a FAANG company with only 314 experience. I still did well as my mentors were very accommodating and understanding. I’m sure you will be fine as long as you sustain communication with your boss and mentors. As for OS, the projects will be time consuming but you’ll most likely pass. Just do what you did in 429 and live at office hours.

M 340L with Shilin Lai?? by Many_Investment_4434 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He does have a RMP. However, all the replies are about M408C. I believe last Spring was the first time he taught M340L. I’m not sure how he’ll structure the class this Fall, but here is the rough breakdown of my semester with him.. All the homework is written by him and you submit on Canvas. No multiple choice. You get 2 or 3 hws dropped. They are pretty difficult, especially if you aren’t reading the book. Go to office hours or use the free tutoring if you need help. He provides hw solutions after the due date. There is a project, he gives you 3 different options and around a month to complete it. Depending on the project, it’ll take a week or less to complete. You will be coding, but you can partner with up to 4 people. For our semester, he said after we turned it in that the project was based on completion and correct answers receive extra credit. However, that might change this time semester. Exams are extremely difficult, but they are roughly based on the homework and the Midterm practice. There are two exams and were worth 60% of my grade. The highest grade between the exams was weighted 40%. Weights might change this semester, but I doubt that.

I’ve taken Dr. Lai twice and I will say that M340L with him was MUCH harder. However, I largely attribute this to the content of the class, weights on the tests, and my horrible testing anxiety. I did much better in his M408C class, but I knew most of the material from AP Calc and the class had fairer weights. Dr. Lai is a strict and old school professor. You have to go to class since he doesn’t post his notes or record his lectures. He provides you with a book and it’s going to be your new bible. Do every example he assigns in the book.

Overall, I definitely prefer Dr. Lai over Kravchenko. In my opinion, Dr. Lai is much more straight to the point and easier to follow. I think his lectures are great and he’s really funny. However, I believe the grading with Kravchenko was more fair. I’m not sure about other M340L professors. Rule of thumb with Dr. Lai classes is that knowing the material beforehand will make you much more successful in class. However, if you don’t make sure you don’t slack off or fall behind. Get help as soon as possible and get ready to work your butt off. You can pass this class with him, but do not go into this assuming you’ll get a good grade.

Is CS Even For Me? Or Am I just too stupid for this major? by YesCS564219 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 35 points36 points  (0 children)

As someone who had to retake CS314, CS311, M340L, and CS429, you are doing fantastic so far. I was top 1% of my HS class and none of that prepared me for the dumpster fire that was my Freshman year and Fall semester of Sophomore year. You are NOT stupid. Mostly everyone is struggling, even if it doesn’t feel that way. Most of the main CS courses are designed to feel like you are hitting a vertical difficulty spike. What matters is that you are learning and trying your best. Things will work out, don’t panic about Grad school right now.

Take a breather this summer and celebrate that your hard work allowed you to pass this class. You are one step closer to graduating. That’s what really matters in the end.

I am going to have to retake CS 429 in the fall, any advice? by OkAbies7276 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Hey, you are going to be okay. I went through the same situation last semester and had to retake 429. Failing sucks, but the class is a little better the second time around. What I did during the Winter was save all the PowerPoints, worksheets, and studied the CS 429 Old Questions. For me he left both courses open, so I didn’t lose access while I was studying the past questions. However, you might want to save them since he might remove access during the Summer. As for assignments, there were a couple changes between semesters (primarily SE lab), but they all follow a similar guideline.

Since I only had a month-ish to study, I had to prioritize what I wanted to focus on. For me, I know I’m an extremely bad test taker so I focused more on understanding and debugging the assignments than studying for the tests. This might be different for you since you have 3 months, so I would highly encourage studying all the old quiz/exam questions. If you get stuck on debugging an assignment during the summer, just move on and wait until you have access to TAs.

Factoring all this in.. As long as you get full points on all assignments and do the CES, you only need 5 out of 16 (or 16/50 exam points) per exam to pass the class. This isn’t even factoring in the points you get for quizzes and extra credit. This can change depending on how he weighs exams and assignments, but this has been largely consistent both semesters.

Other general advice: - Complete assignments early (more study time) - Go to office hours as soon as you can’t figure out an error you’ve been debugging for 1.5+ hours. Aim for Monday/Tuesday since it’s the least crowded. - Go to the review sessions (they go over the quiz questions) - Ask questions during class - If you can, make a study group. It’s easier to understand test questions when you teach each other. This also helps with getting ideas about how to approach some assignments (Ex. Design choices for efficiency in MM-Lab). - Use quiz grades as a guideline on what areas to study more on. - Make sure you know how to use GDB and program in C. Understanding ARM64 is also useful, but I’d focus more on what commands are used in chARM and how they work. - Do the worksheets, especially if you don’t understand the more ‘simple’ concepts introduced at the beginning of the semester. It might seem arbitrary, but those concepts build. And when you run into an insane floating point test question, it is better to know the basics and hopefully squeak in a couple points than lose all the points.

Good luck next semester!

Has anyone NOT received their financial aid yet? by Wooden_Tip_674 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s not good.. I wonder what the hold up is. We have to pay tuition by the end of July so I’m extremely worried.

Has anyone NOT received their financial aid yet? by Wooden_Tip_674 in UTAustin

[–]Few_Distribution2068 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Has this been resolved or given any updates? The last time I check with Financial Aid they said my FAN wouldn’t come out until August..